Things to Do in Madrid

If you know what type of activity you're looking for, check out this breakdown of my list of 100 Things to Do in Madrid

• 20 Madrid Day Trips
• 10 Madrid Landmarks
• 10 Madrid Museums
• 10 Madrid Plazas and Streets
• 10 Madrid Leisure Activities
  
• 9 Madrid Art Museums
• 8 Madrid Tapas and Snack Joints
• 7 Madrid Nightlife Spots
• 6 Madrid Meals
• 5 Madrid Shopping Spots
• 5 Madrid Cafes

But the best way to tackle Madrid is to split the city up into districts. Listed in order of relevance to tourists, the first few of these should take you a day (or a half-day if you're in a hurry), though check out each of these pages as all of the districts have something to see.

• Things to Do near Sol & Gran Via
• Things to Do in Madrid de las Austrias
• Things to Do in La Latina
• Things to Do in Malasana & Chueca
• Things to Do in Lavapies
• Things to Do in Huertas
• Things to Do Around Paseo del Prado
• Things to Do in Casa de Campo
• Things to Do in Barrio Salamanca
• Things to Do Elsewhere in Madrid
• Things to Do Outside of Madrid: Day Trips from Madrid

Scroll down for the full list of my 100 Things to Do in Madrid.

Sol is Madrid's most famous plaza and Gran Via is its most famous street. The two are tourist magnets that you may be tempted to hurry away from as quickly as you can. But there are some little secrets right in the eye of the storm that are worth checking out.

• 1. Puerta del Sol
  Madrid's central square and Spain's 'kilometer zero'.
• 2. Gran Via
  Madrid's premier shopping street.
• 3. Try Traditional Cocido Madrileño Stew
  Madrid's signature stew.
• 4. Convento de las Descalzas
  Famous convent with art collection.
• 5. Great Tapas at Casa Labra
  Cheap and cheerful beer and cod dishes.
• 6. Debod Egyptian Temple
  Genuine Egyptian temple in the heart of Madrid!
• 7. Madrid's Iconic Post Office
  Madrid's best photo opportunity.
• 8. Plaza España
  Grassy plaza surrounded by Spain's oldest skyscrapers.
• 9. Shopping on Calle Preciados and Calle Carmen
  Some of Spain's biggest shopping chains can be found here.
• 10. Museo de las Telecomunicaciones
  The history of telecommunication.

Madrid's oldest district and likely to be one of the main focal points of your trip to the capital.

• 1. Plaza Mayor 
  Madrid's most ornate plaza and home to the town hall. A nice place for breakfast!
• 2. El Botin, the Oldest Restaurant in the World 
  The oldest restaurant in the world (the Guinness Book of Records says so) and Ernest Hemingway's favorite restaurant.
• 3. Madrid Cathedral 
  Madrid's, um, cathedral!
• 4. Plaza Oriente 
  The plaza in front of Madrid's royal palace. 
• 5. Madrid Royal Palace 
  The royal palace in front of Plaza Oriente!
• 6. El Flamenco Vive Music Shop 
  Buy some excellent flamenco music from those who know it best. 
• 7. San Gines Chocolateria 
  Spain's best chocolate con churros.
• 8. Casa de las Torrijas 
  Spanish bread pudding, served with sweet red wine. 
• 9. Arab Wall
  Madrid's oldest sight.
• 10. Medina Mayrit Turkish Baths 
  Indulgent relaxation.

Famous for tapas and its Sunday morning market, but there's much more to La Latina than just these things.

• 1. Tapas on Cava Baja
  A high concentration of good tapas bars, most with English menus
• 2. Flamenco at La Solea
  Flamenco without the pomp and ceremony - as it should be. UPDATE: This bar has closed.
  
• 3. Plaza and Iglesia de San Andres
  Take a beer in the shadow of a magnificent church...
• 4. Basilica de San Francisco El Grande
  ...which is just down the road from an even more magnificent church.
• 5. Tapas at Casa Granada
  Madrid's best concealed tapas bar.
• 6. Plaza Paja
  Madrid's oldest square.
• 7. El Rastro Market
  Browse for trinkets in Madrid's famous Sunday market.
• 8. Calle Segovia
  An attractive street, with a viaduct and nice restaurants...
• 9. Paella at El Arrozal
  ...the best of which is this paella restaurant.
• 10. Museo de San Isidro
  Museum about the history of Madrid.

The trendy districts to the north of Gran Via. Malasaña is the bohemian district, Chueca is nominally gay; both are a lot of fun.

• 1. Espacio Conde Duque and the Contemporary Art Museum
Attractive old barracks and home to one of Madrid's best modern art museums.
• 2. Coffee on Calle Espiritu Santo 
English bookshops and retro-hip cafes on this popular street.
• 3. Cafe Commercial 
And then there's this one - Madrid's most famous place to get coffee.
• 4. Wine Tasting at Planeta Vino 
Sample Spain's famous wine culture.
• 5. Mercado Fuencarral 
Trendy alternative fashion (at a price).
• 6. Tapas at Stop Madrid 
Ham, cheese and chorizo - tapas couldn't get any more classic...
• 7. Tapas at El Tigre 
...whereas here it couldn't get any cheaper.
• 8. Drinking at Via Lactea 
One of Madrid's hippest bars in the 80s still attracts a crowd.
• 9. Biggest Drinks in the World at Diplodocus 
These drinks were made to be shared - trust me!
• 10. Con Dos Fogones Restaurant
An excellent fusion restaurant at a reasonable price.

Another old district of Madrid, Huertas has some of the best - and worst - bars in Madrid. Ernest Hemmingway used to frequent this part of town.

• 1. Viva Madrid and Magister 
Viva Madrid is the oldest bar in Madrid, Magister brews its own beer and gives you free tapas - the two bars are virtually opposite each other.
• 2. Plaza Santa Ana 
Pretty plaza that was popular with Hemingway.
• 3. Flamenco at Cardamomo 
A flamenco show with all the trimmings. But miss out the meal - it's overpriced.
• 4. Calle Huertas 
An attractive tree-lined and pedestrianized street, with a couple of well-known jazz cafes.
• 5. The House Where Cervantes Died
Cervantes died here and I once lived here!

Paseo del Prado is one of Madrid's most majestic boulevards, with some of the city's most important museums close at hand. Madrid's famous park, El Retiro, is near here.

• 1. Museo del Prado
This art museum vies with La Sagrada Familia and the Alhambra as the most visited sight in Spain.
• 2. El Retiro
Madrid's Central Park.
• 3. CaixaForum
Contemporary art space.
• 4. Real Jardin Botanico
Madrid's botanical gardens.
• 5. The Thyssen-Bornemisza Museum
One of Madrid's most famous art museums and one of the best private art collections in the world.

One of the poorer districts of Madrid, Lavapies' mix of immigrants and trendy youngsters are making this part of town one of the coolest places to be.

• 1. Centro de Arte Reina Sofia 
Madrid's premier modern art gallery, with key works by Dali and Picasso (including the latter's Guernica)
• 2. Coffee at Cafeteria Barbieri 
My favorite cafe in Madrid. Got a sweet tooth? Try the cafe bonbon.
• 3. Visit a Moroccan Teahouse 
Not just green tea with milk, but a whole host of spiced teas. They have shishas too.
• 4. Bars on Calle Ave Maria 
A number of classy bars on this street.
• 5. See a Concert at Sala Juglar 
Expensive beer, but concerts every night pull in the crowds.
• 6. Curry in Lavapies 
Cheap and cheerful Indian restaurants run by the local expat community.
• 7. Casa Encendida 
Exhibition space.
• 8. Bocadillo de Calamares at El Brillante 
The self-proclaimed best squid sandwiches in Madrid. I couldn't disagree with them.
• 9. Atocha Train Station 
A tropical garden (with terrapins!) and a monument to those who died during the 2004 terrorist attack.
• 10. Gaudeamus Cafe Rooftop Bar
It's a cafe, and a bar, on a rooftop, and it's called Gaudeamus!

Madrid's other famous park, Casa de Campo, is a bit further away than El Retiro but also offers a number of worthwhile attractions.

• 1. Madrid Teleferico (Aerial Tramway or Cable Car) 
Get a bird's eye view of Madrid as you whizz from close to Plaza de España all the way to the park.
• 2. Madrid Zoo and Aquarium 
Home to a rare white rhino and a baby panda.
• 3. Madrid Parque de Atracciones 
Madrid's closest theme park.
• 4. Paseo de la Gastronomia 
High-class restaurants that come at a price!
• 5. Walk Around the Lake
Take a stroll and see Plaza España from an unusual angle.

Madrid's most chic district, with a few good museums around here too.

• 1. Archeological Museum
Includes a replica of the Altamira cave in Cantabria, a UNESCO World Heritage Site (the original, that is!).
• 2. Museo Lazaro Galdiano
Private collection, featuring coins, medals, paintings, ceramics, jewelry and more.
• 3. Museo de Escultura Abstracta
Open-air abstract sculpture collection.
• 4. National Library
Features a book museum.
• 5. Window Shopping on and around Calle Serrano
Too expensive for most people's budgets, but one can dream...

Away from Madrid's most touristy districts, there are still plenty of things to do.

• 1. Santiago Bernabeu 
How to Real Madrid, the most successful soccer team in Europe.
• 2. Bullfighting 
Madrid is one of the main centers of bullfighting in Spain.
• 3. CosmoCaixa Madrid 
Excellent science museum on the outskirts of Madrid.
• 4. Museo de las Americas 
Museum about Spain's exploits in the discovery of the New World.
• 5. Faro de Madrid 
Madrid's "lighthouse" - a lookout point where you can see the whole of Madrid.
• 6. Anden 0 
An old metro station, turned into a little time capsule.
• 7. Blind Museum 
A museum for the blind and about the blind - but the sighted can get a lot out of the tactile exhibitions too.
• 8. Faunia 
Madrid's wildlife park.
• 9. Madrid Planetarium 
It's a planetarium. In Madrid.
• 10. Naval, Railway and Air Museums
Transport aficionados can indulge themselves in these three museums.

But wait! When you think you've got enough out of Madrid, you still have some of the region's amazing array of towns and villages to visit.

• 1.Barcelona
  The AVE high-speed train makes this possible as a day trip, though it's expensive and Barcelona really deserves more than a day.
• 2. Toledo
  This walled city is one of Spain's most famous sights.
• 3. Seville
  The jewel of Spain's south and home to flamenco and bullfighting. Again, it deserves more than a day, but better to see it for a day than never at all.
• 4. Cordoba
  Home to one of the biggest Mosques in the world.
• 5. Segovia
  Segovia has a 2,000 year aqueduct and a German-esque fairytale castle.
• 6. Valencia
  Spain's third biggest city and the birthplace of paella.
• 7. Avila
  The walls and turrets of this medieval city are more impressive than those in Toledo.
• 8. El Escorial
  The burial place of most of Spain's monarchs.
• 9. El Valle de los Caidos
  The chilling monument, built to honor the memory of Franco, Spain's former dictator.
• 10. Aranjuez
  The royal family's former retreat.
• 11. Salamanca
  One of the nicest plazas in Spain.
• 12. Cuenca
  Famous for its 'hanging houses' - dwellings built over the sides of cliffs!
• 13. El Pardo
  Franco's former country retreat.
• 14. Warner Brothers Theme Park
  Madrid's best theme park.
• 15. Consuegra
  Famous for its windmills (the ones that Don Quixote thought were giants) and saffron.
• 16. Chinchon
  Quaint village near Madrid.
• 17. Alcala de Henares
  University town and UNESCO world heritage site.
• 18. Manzanares El Real
  Castles and hiking.
• 19. Cercedilla
  Hiking and the Roman road to Segovia.
• 20. Siguenza
  A 12th century cathedral and a historic train journey there.