Madrid: Have fun all day long!

As I'm reading that Madrid is becoming increasingly popular for travel due to current global events, and having recently returned from Madrid, I'm leaving a few tips for those who are planning to go there. I hope some of this will be useful to you.

First, when is the best time to travel to Madrid? My opinion is that it's spring (May has the most events) or autumn. We had excellent weather (around 21-25°C), and I think it's very hot in the summer. I hope you'll avoid rainy days because it's truly lovely to walk around Madrid when the weather is good.

Second, the number of days depends on each person individually, but given the number of things you can do in Madrid and its surroundings, a week is enough to experience the charms of Madrid without rushing too much.

As for getting around Madrid, there are several options – single tickets, buying 10 rides at once, or a Travel card by the number of days. In most cases, the middle option is the best. Buy a physical card and load it with sets of 10 rides. The card is called the Multi Public Transport Card (Tarjeta), costs 2.5 EUR, and a set of 10 rides costs 7.30 EUR. It's valid for Madrid, and also to the airport. It's purchased at automatic machines in all metro stations. The metro is excellently organized, with many stations and lines, very well networked.

I won't list specific places to visit because everyone will create their own itinerary based on what they like, but most things are located in the old center of Madrid between two green areas that can be explored on foot. If you're looking for where to stay, Malasaña is a neighborhood I would recommend – a 15-minute to half-hour walk to the center, and fewer tourists because there are no tourist attractions there. Just be prepared for noise day and night, as the center of Madrid is quite "lively." If available, book the "Cozy central - 1Bedroom 1Bathroom - Malasaña" accommodation from Booking.com. Prices start from 150 EUR per night and go up. We didn't look at hostels.

It's advisable to book online several weeks in advance for major attractions and events (see list of events below). For us, museums are a must-see, so the Prado and Reina Sofía are highly recommended. Note that the Reina Sofía is free every day for the last two hours – if you want to see Guernica in peace, arrive at least half an hour before that free period, wait for the entrance to open, and then go straight to the second floor, to the Sabatini part of the museum.

If you are in Madrid for several days, a strong recommendation is to visit the surrounding historic towns. We took a GetYourGuide excursion to Segovia and Ávila – by bus it takes about 1 hour there, and about 1.5 hours back. We went to Toledo ourselves by train, which takes 35 minutes from Atocha station. Beautiful towns with many sites and good food and drinks.

Speaking of food and drinks, you eat wonderfully in Madrid (as in all of Spain). Besides various types of tapas that you can find at every turn (especially at the Mercado de San Miguel market right next to Plaza Mayor), they are known for seafood products even though they are not on the coast. Lots of food made from squid, shrimp, octopus, mussels, etc. Fish is somewhat less common. If you like to try authentic food, aim to eat at places called "taberna" - the food there is truly homemade. Leave pizzas, burgers, etc., for Italy or when you return home :)

Some of the taverns where we ate well are: Taberna Casa Alberto (Huertas neighborhood), Taberna Peñalver on Cava Baja street (Latina neighborhood) with the best paella we've ever eaten, or Taberna Skala in Toledo (near the cathedral) with excellent Carcamusas.

In our opinion, they have the best ham/prosciutto we've ever eaten (jamón ibérico). Our prosciuttos are great, but theirs taste even better (depends on where and which prosciutto you try, of course). In addition, they are excellent with wines and cheeses. For cheeses, I suggest dried combined cow, sheep, and goat cheese. Their wines are excellent, especially the red ones. For value for money, I recommend a Tempranillo, e.g., Pata Negra Toro or Ramón Bilbao Reserva.

Events that are worth visiting (also depend on personal preferences) are the following: a Flamenco show (there are many offers on GetYourGuide and Viator, but the experience depends a lot on the quality of the dancers, the ambiance of the venue, and where you sit), a tour of the Santiago Bernabéu stadium (personally, I prefer old stadiums to this new modern one where you don't see real grass and everything is full of metal and concrete), a Corida or bullfight (Sundays at the Plaza de Toros de Las Ventas arena - we went to see it, but it was quite difficult for us to watch the killing of bulls regardless of their tradition, we weren't really prepared for it 🙁), walking and enjoying the greenery of El Retiro Park and the Real Jardín Botánico with a possible manual boat ride on the lake in Retiro), visiting a rooftop cafe with a view of Madrid (e.g., Azotea del Círculo), watching Real Madrid or Atlético matches in a local pub (if you can't get tickets for the actual match), visiting the El Rastro outdoor market (only on Sundays in the Latina neighborhood), watching and photographing the sunset at the Templo de Debod temple. Next to this temple is also a nice picnic spot for an evening outing and listening to local performers with a beautiful view of a part of Madrid.