Tourist routes in the capital
Five walks to get to know Madrid, from half a day to a full day.
The essentials
- Central Madrid is best explored on foot: the routes on this page last from half a day to a full day.
- All of them give the metro station of departure and arrival.
- Combine a historic route with a museum one so as not to repeat areas.
Habsburg Madrid
Walk through the oldest district of the capital, with narrow streets, arcaded squares and palaces of the 16th and 17th centuries.
- Puerta del Sol (Metro Sol, 1, 2, 3, R). Kilometre zero.
- Plaza Mayor, five minutes on foot.
- Plaza de la Villa and the old City Hall.
- Almudena Cathedral and Royal Palace (Metro Ópera, 2, 5, R).
- Plaza de Oriente and Teatro Real.
Duration: about 3 hours without going inside the monuments.
Traditional Madrid: La Latina and Lavapiés
The popular Madrid of taverns, street festivals and markets. Start on the Cava Baja and finish in Lavapiés.
- La Latina (Metro La Latina, 5): tapas on the Cava Baja.
- El Rastro (Sundays and public holidays in the morning), next to Ribera de Curtidores.
- Lavapiés (Metro Lavapiés, 3): a multicultural district.
Art Walk
The Prado–Recoletos axis brings together three major museums: the Prado, the Thyssen-Bornemisza and the Reina Sofía.
- Reina Sofía Museum (Metro Atocha, 1).
- Prado Museum.
- Royal Botanical Garden and the Retiro Park.
- Thyssen-Bornemisza Museum (Metro Banco de España, 2).
More details in Monuments and museums.
From the Gran Vía to Malasaña
From Plaza de España (Metro Plaza de España, 3, 10) walk down the Gran Vía to Callao and then into Malasaña, the fashionable district of the 1980s.
Retiro and Salamanca district
A park walk and shopping: enter by the Puerta de Alcalá (Metro Retiro, 2), go round the lake and the Crystal Palace and leave through Ibiza.
One day in Madrid
If you only have one day: a morning in Habsburg Madrid, lunch near Plaza Mayor and an afternoon on the Art Walk or in the Retiro. In the planner you will find three one-day routes and one three-day route.