Madrid City Guide - Spain 🇪🇸 Travel & Discover

Madrid, the capital of Spain, is located in the heart of the Iberian Peninsula and in the center of the Castilian Plain, more than 600 meters above sea level. A splendid and monumental city, Madrid today is a combination of modern infrastructure and historic squares, churches, palaces and city gates. Among Madrid's most important churches is the Catedral de Santa María la Real de la Amudena. A relatively modern building, it was started in 1883 and not completed until 1993. The cathedral is consecrated to Santa María de la Amudena, a name with Arabic origins. Amudaina means the castle. The building is a mixture of styles with a neoclassical exterior. It is constructed of granite and marble with a large neoclassical cupola and two towers at the main entrance. The massive construction project was long dogged by controversy, not least because of the mixture of styles that resulted from the various modifications of the plans. Amudena was consecrated in 1993 by Pope John Paul II. The first plans for building a great cathedral in Madrid date from the 16th century, during the time of King Charles I. Various projects were considered and the architect Francisco de Cubas was finally chosen to carry out the work. Construction was initially carried out in the Gothic Revival style, but ceased completely during the Spanish Civil War. The project was abandoned until 1950, when Fernando Chueca Gutiérrez adapted the plans of de Cubas to a Baroque exterior to match the grey and white facade of the Palacio Real, which stands directly opposite. Lacking the architectural merit or historical significance of other European cathedrals, Amudena Cathedral is nonetheless worth the visit, due to its uniqueness, modern beauty and sheer size. It measures 104 meters long and 76 meters wide, with a central dome measuring 20 meters in diameter. The facade, with superimposed orders set between two towers, gives on to Almería Square. The Palacio Real, or Royal Palace, is Madrid's largest building. It is located next to the equally beautiful Plaza de Oriente. The architectural complexes of the royal sites were built for use as places of relaxation, recreation and as residences for the members of the various Spanish royal families. The list of buildings includes several monasteries, which were in some way under the protection of the royal family. The palace was built on the site of the old Alcazar, the Moorish castle destroyed by fire in 1734. The site had been occupied since the 10th century by the Moors, who, having named the city's Manzanares River a Magrit, source of water, referred to the area as Mairit, which became Magrit, then Madrid. As its name suggests, the Plaza de Oriente lies on the east side of the Palacio Real. At the center of Plaza de Oriente, on a large pedestal, is a huge statue of King Philip IV. Its designer, Pietro Tacca, was afraid that the rearing horse could not be balanced properly, and that it would fall forward under its own weight. The famous Italian astronomer, Galileo Galilei, came to his rescue by suggesting that the front rearing part of the sculpture should be hollow, and therefore relatively light, while the back part solid, to anchor the weight. Juan Bautista Sacchetti, who designed the Palacio Real, had plans to build a large square in front of the palace in the 18th century. However, the plans were not realized until the reign of King Joseph I, Napoleon Bonaparte's brother. 44 statues of Spanish monarchs line the square. They range from the Gothic period up to the time when the country was reunified, following the defeat of the Moors in the 15th century. Madrid enjoys one of the most extensive networks of parks, gardens, and green zones of all European cities. It possesses a total of 33 million square meters of parkland, distributed throughout more than 40 parks within the urban limits. The Sabatini Gardens stretch along the northern facade of the royal palace. The Sabatini Gardens were created in the 1930s, but followed a design of the 18th century architect who gave the gardens his name. Fountains, hedges, and benches are organized in a symmetrical layout in the classic French garden style. Italian architect Francesco Sabati redesigned many emblematic monuments in Madrid. The Plaza de España is one of the city's busiest traffic intersections. The square is adorned by a large fountain and a monument to Cervantes, the greatest figure in Spanish literature and author of Don Quixote. A sculpture of Cervantes overlooks a bronze statue of his most famous fictional character, together with Sancho Panza, Don Quixote's squire in the novel. At 142 meters, the Torre de Madrid was once the tallest concrete structure in Europe. The enormous dome of the Basilica de San Francisco el Grande is its most prominent feature. It is the third largest dome in Europe. The church is located just a short distance from the cathedral, above and just around the corner from the Puerta de Toledo. The church was built in 1760 by King Carlos III. The Puerta de Toledo is a flamboyant granite structure that was started in 1812 under the Napoleonic government of Joseph Bonaparte. This freestanding gate is 19 meters high and comprised of three archways. The plaza with the bright murals at the intersection of Calle Segovia is called the Puerta Cerrada, or closed gate, named for the entrance to the city that once For the better part of the 20th century, Madrid's San Miguel market was the centerpiece of the Plaza Mayor neighborhood. The iron structure of the market was constructed in 1916, though the site has been used as a market since the Middle Ages. One of Madrid's major streets, as well as one of its oldest, Calle Mayor stretches from Cueste de la Vega near the Royal Palace on the west to the Puerta del Sol on the east. Connecting the old Alcazar with the Plaza Mayor, Calle Mayor was the main street of Madrid under Habsburg rule. The area known as Ostras Madrid, or the Madrid of the Habsburgs, after the Austrian royal dynasty, which ruled Spain until 1700, is the oldest section of the city. It offers a wealth of historical attractions, including the adjacent Plaza Mayor. The Plaza Mayor is Madrid's main square. The square was originally planned by Philip II and his architect Juan de Herrera, but was inaugurated in 1620 during the reign of Philip III, whose statue sits proud in the very center of the square. Juan Gómez de Mora initially gave the square its rectangular form, though after it had suffered three fires, Juan de Villanova completed the work in 1853 by joining the four sides. Over the years, the square has had many different names. Located at the confluence of the paths toward Toledo and Atocha, it was originally the site of the Arabel market, and thus took this name before later becoming the Plaza Mayor. Since its creation, Plaza Mayor has been the center of festivities, bullfights, royal coronations, and executions. It is still used today for public celebrations. The Palacio de Santa Cruz is one of the best examples of Habsburg architecture in Madrid. The red brick, twin-towered building is located at the Plaza de la Provincia. At the Puerta del Sur, the Oso y Modroño, the bear and the strawberry tree, is the official symbol of the city. Just a short walk from the Plaza Mayor, this area is Madrid's most famous and centrally located square. Originally, it was the site of one of the city's gates, which faced east and was adorned with an image of the sun, hence the square's name. Nearly semicircular in shape, it owes its current form to a major renovation work carried out between 1854 and 1860. The convent of the Descalzas Reales was founded by Juana of Austria, the sister of Philip II. Built in the plateresque style, it houses an important collection of paintings, tapestries, and religious imagery. The Plaza de Santa Ana, together with the nearby small streets which make up the Huertas district, is one of Madrid's most lively and vibrant areas. To the west, the unmistakable façade of the Reina Victoria Hotel, with its large front windows, dominates the square. The square was originally the site of the Convent of Santa Ana, founded in 1586 but demolished in 1810 during the reign of Joseph Bonaparte. It is difficult to generalize about Madrid's architecture. As Spain's monarchical dynasties shifted from Flanders to Austria to France, so did the principal styles that shaped each period. Madrid was rarely a trendsetter. Rather, the city tended to absorb foreign influences and adapt them, more often than not, to a somewhat austere Catholic aesthetic. A cosmopolitan city, business center, headquarters for the public administration, government, Spanish parliament, and the home of the Spanish royal family, Madrid also plays a major role in both the banking and industrial sectors. The city is characterized by intense cultural and artistic activity as well. The Madrid Palace, in the Plaza de las Cortes, is a Renaissance building with a marvelous neoclassical portal in its main façade. Covering the area from the Plaza de Neptuno to Atocha, the Paseo del Prado can be considered the heart of aristocratic and institutional Madrid. A stunning mix of formal gardens and wilder areas, the Paseo contains the Fountain of Neptune and the city's most central and popular park, the Parque del Buen Retiro, behind the Prado Museum. The Prado Museum is Madrid's top cultural site and one of the world's greatest art galleries. Located on the eponymous street El Paseo del Prado, its dazzling collection of works by the great European masters such as Velazquez, Goya, Raphael, Rubens, and Bosch is housed in an 18th-century neoclassical building that opened as a museum in 1819. The parish church of Royal Saint Jerome is what remains of the monastery's San Jerónimo el Real. Popularly known as Los Jerónimos, it was founded in Madrid in 1503 during the reign of Queen Isabella I. The church itself is an impressive site next to the Prado Museum. Originally built in a style known as Isabelline Gothic, it has undergone a series of additions and changes over the centuries so that it now displays a mixture of architectural styles. The Bolsa, or stock exchange, was built in the style of a Greek temple towards the end of the last century. The origins of the Gran Vía date to the 19th century when the need was felt to link the northwest portion of the city to the historic center. Madrid's ancient center was traditionally a chaotic maze of small streets, making any journey across the city a difficult task. Several proposals were presented for the Gran Vía that was to cross the city. The definitive one was approved in 1901 and construction began in 1910. The project was divided into three distinct sections, each of which has had different names over the years, changing most frequently in the years leading up to and during the Civil War. The imposing building on the left corner of the Paseo, facing the Cibeles Fountain, is the Bank of Spain. On the right of the Paseo stand the headquarters of the Navy and the General Post Office buildings. The Buen Retiro Park is a wonderful oasis of calm in the center of Madrid. Its 130 hectares of woodland form a green island of more than 15,000 trees in the middle of an asphalt sea. One may enter it through any of its fine gateways. Once part of the Jerónimos Monastery, the royal family had their Retreat, or Retiro, built as part of the church. After King Philip II had the royal court moved to Madrid in the late 16th century, the gardens were enlarged. Successive monarchs continued to extend and beautify the park over the centuries, according to the styles of the time. The park passed into public ownership in 1868 with the overthrow of Queen Isabella. The Palacio de Cristal was built in 1887 to house an exhibition about the Philippines, complete with native plants, animals, and even indigenous inhabitants. With its setting near a small lagoon with water jet, it remains one of the most beautiful sights in the park. Made entirely of glass and iron, it serves today as a contemporary art showroom, part of the Reina Sofia National Museum. Part of the original 1630 design, the artificial lake is one of the park's oldest features. It was the site of the mock naval battles that were performed for the enjoyment of the royal family in the 17th century. On Monument to Alfonso XII was erected in the early 20th century on the site where the old pier used in the time of Philip IV used to stand. Hovering over the pond, the monument was commissioned by the Queen Regent Maria Cristina and construction was begun after Alfonso XIII ascended to the throne. The work of José Gracias Riera, it consists of a large columned walk surrounding the statue of the monarch mounted on a horse. Madrid's main bullring is called La Plaza de Toros de las Ventas del Espíritu Santo or more simply Las Ventas. Built in the Mudejar style, this impressive building is made of red brick and ceramic tiles. El Escorial is a historical residence of the King of Spain in the town of San Lorenzo de El Escorial, about 45 kilometers northwest of the Spanish capital, Madrid. Its construction brought to term a strange vow by Philip II of Spain in which he repented for having shelled the Church of St. Lawrence in St. Quentin in 1577. Hence a gigantic and expiatory monastery whose general plan reproduces the form of an upside down grill, the instrument of the martyrdom of St. Lawrence. The handle is represented by the royal palace which projects on the eastern side while four towers represent the feet. The college, convent and cloister, all quadrangular in plan are placed on either side of the central court at Patio de los Reyes which precedes the church. This ensemble, constructed of bluish granite from Guadarrama, was begun in 1563 by Juan Bautista de Toledo and completed in 1584 by Juan de Herrera. The period of its construction corresponded to the years of the Catholic Reformation after the Council of Trent and the building's astonishing severity and sobriety were indicative of both the religious spirit of Spain and of Philip II's own fervent Catholicism. His was a strict ascetic faith reflected in the building's unadorned facades, rigid rectangular layout of spaces and square towers marking each of the four corners of the building. The main facade is comprised of a superb group of columns, a statue of St. Lawrence and the imperial coat of arms. An exemplary votive monument and retreat of a mystic king, the Escorial was, during the last years of the reign of Philip II, the paradoxical center of the greatest political power of that era. The named king's courtyard is derived from the six large statues of the monarchs of Judah that decorate the temple facade. The facade of the basilica is an immense unadorned wall of granite with two towers at the ends. Its location inside the building is one of the architectural peculiarities of the monastery, with the windows geometrically carved without frames or cornices. El Escorial's library houses a rare collection of more than 4,700 manuscripts, many of them illuminated, and 40,000 printed books. Over its history, the Escorial has had a variety of functions. Part monastery, part royal palace, part museum, part mausoleum, it has also served as a shrine, a school, and home to one of the world's greatest libraries. Its buildings contain collections of gold craftwork, porcelain, painting, and sculpture. The vast building, with its thousands of rooms, is surrounded by legend, much of it linked to the mysterious character of Philip, the most powerful monarch of his time. Philip II, King of Spain, was born at Valladolid in 1527. The son of the emperor Charles V and his wife, Isabella of Portugal, he considered himself a traditional Spanish man with his love of music and art. Passionate about collecting rare books and works of art, he had a spectacular collection of masterpieces at the Escorial. Though Philip was Europe's richest man, his rooms were spartan and sparsely furnished. The gardens of the Escorial adjoining the palace are reached by descending marble stairs and vast terraces interspersed by fountains. The garden is of great extent, and the compartments formed by the intersection of the alleys are filled with different sorts of trees. The Renaissance garden outside the immense palace is often regarded by visitors as bleak and gloomy, like the character of its founder, Philip II. Yet the king loved flowers, and in his day, the parterres, today planted with box hedges, were filled with bright blooms. The parterres and arcaded courtyards of the Escorial despite their resemblance to domestic features, are solemn and religious, temple gardens rather than places of relaxation. Today, thanks to its enviable geographical location and favorable climate, San Lorenzo de Escorial is a living monument and a tremendously important tourist attraction. The world-renowned city was declared a historical and artistic monument in 1971. Thirteen years later, in 1984, UNESCO recognized it as a World Heritage Site.