The Best 3-Day Madrid Itinerary for first-timers (updated for 2023)

Madrid Palace – Day 1 in Madrid

 

We took a metro to Opera Station from where Madrid Palace is just a 5-minutes-walk. All other places we had on our list for the day were at walking distance from here.

 

Spanning 135,000 square meters with 3418 rooms, Madrid Palace is the largest palace in the world. It is the official residence of the royal family, although is now used only for ceremonial purposes.

 

The palace was love at first sight – the pristine white building with a vast courtyard overlooking the countryside and the mountains located far away is.

 

The entry ticket starts from 11 Euros but I recommend a guided tour that you can book at 15 Euros ($16.5) only!

 

The Royal Palace of Madrid, called Palacio Real in Spanish replaced the medieval Alcazar which was burnt to dust in the 18th century. It was built over 100 years by the four architects, Filippo Juvarra being the first. King Charles III was the first to reside in this architectural marvel.

 

We did buy a ticket and enter the palace, and while we witnessed the grandeur of the monument inside, we wondered how much of the wealth must have come from the former colonies. Well, we don’t know the answer, but what exists now is an unbelievable spectacle.

We walked into the ornate halls, the lavish dining rooms, the throne room, and the other residential areas. Photography is prohibited inside many of the private rooms so I can share only those which we were allowed to take.

A travelogue of Madrid won’t be complete without the mention of these fabulous musicians who are kind enough to entertain us for free, near the Palace, at the public squares, and at the metro stations.

Almudena Cathedral 

Right across the grand palace stands the Cathedral of the Virgin of Almudena, the Catholic church of Spain. When the capital of Spain was transferred from Toledo to Madrid in the 16th century, the seat of the Catholic Church still remained in Toledo.

 

Although the plans of this church in Madrid were in place since then, the expansion and administration of the Spanish Empire were prioritized, and the construction of the Cathedral finally began in 1879 (Source).

 

While entry to the church is free, you are expected to drop a minimum of 1 Euro per person in the donation box. There’s no reason to miss this picturesque temple (yes, it was referred to as a temple on the board near the donation box) when you are at the Madrid Palace.

Royal Monastery of Incarnation

Founded by the Queen of Austria, this was built adjacent to the former Alcazar (now the Royal Palace). It had a passageway only for the Royals directly connecting to the palace. A part of the monastery is now an art museum, and the other part is a beautiful Baroque church.

 

It is an 8-minute walk from the palace. Well, if you have taken a tour inside the entire palace, by this time you would have already walked long enough for sore feet.

 

As much as we love architecture, you may understand that on our last lap of the Europe trip, by now we were done with art museums and churches, so we went directly to the West Park.

West Park and the Temple of Debod

 

West Park, about 2.5 km from the palace is not just the most charming park I have seen, but also historically significant. Spanning over 100 hectares, the park is dotted with events of history.

 

The trenches and bunkers made during the Spanish Civil War and the site of the two-day siege of the military barracks on 18-20 July 1936.

 

At this site stands the Temple of Debod, the ancient Egyptian temple from 2nd century BC which was gifted to Spain by the Egyptian government.  The picture of the temple was alluring enough to make to our planned itinerary.

 

This is one of the free- entrance public parks in Madrid where people come in the evening with their family and pets to stroll, run and rewind.

Exploring the gorgeous public parks is one of the best things to do in Madrid in 2 days. There are many more important sites in the park which include the cable car, rose garden for the annual exhibition, Institute of ceramic technology and many more.

Studded with evergreen trees on lush green slopes, the park is famous for its essentially English landscape.

Casa de Campo is the largest park in Madrid and is five times larger than Central Park in the US. When in West Park don’t miss the cable car ride to the Casa de Campo park

Dinner at Plaza Mayor

As the warm sunny day came to a close we walked into the throbbing city center (Main square)at Plaza Mayor. The construction of Plaza Mayor began in 1617 during King Phillip’ III’s reign. If you want to experience Madrid’s culture, food, and lifestyle, this is the place to be. It is the social and cultural hub of Madrid.

It is speckled with bakeries, chocolate shops, restaurants, flea market, and live performances. This is where we had our first taste of authentic seafood paella in a quaint underground restaurant.

[box title=”” bg_color=”#ddc8a8″ align=”center”] Culture and cuisine are an essential part of your Spanish experience. I recommend incorporating one of these evening tours to your Madrid itinerary for this reason.

• Tapas, Taverns & History Tour of Madrid
• Flamenco Show & Special Menu at Torres Bermejas[/box]
  

  On our way back we walked to another famous plaza nearby, the Puerto del Sol from where we took a metro back to our hotel.

  Day 2 in Madrid

  Plan: A day trip from Madrid

  

  On the second day, we decided to take a day trip to Spain’s former capital and currently a UNESCO world heritage center, Toledo.

   
  We reached Puerto del Sol once again to book our tour tickets. You can check the details of our trip in my post about the one day in Toledo.
   
  You can also take a day trip to Segovia or Seville, which are other beautiful historical cities near Madrid.
   
  We had a stroll around Plaza de Espana after our day trip.

  

  [box title=”” bg_color=”#ddc8a8″ align=”center”] You can avail great discounts when you book these day-trips from Madrid online. Here are my recommendations-

  • Full Day Tour to historic sites of Ávila and Segovia from Madrid 
  • Three Cities in One Day: Segovia, Ávila & Toledo [/box]
    

    Day 3 in Madrid – Soak in the city

    Plan: Museums, Retiro Park, Alcala Gate, Flamenco Show

    Our original plan included a trip to Santiago Bernabeu, the stadium of Real Madrid Football Club, but we dropped that off our list.
     
    That’s because we had already been to Camp Nou in Barcelona. However, hardcore fans of Real Madrid cannot and should not let go of the chance to visit the home of one of the world’s greatest football clubs. 
     
    So, on our last day in Europe, we woke up a little late, had breakfast and started our lazy tour of the city, with a heavy heart.

    The National Archeological Museum in Madrid

    

    Madrid has some outstanding museums for art and history lovers, but by this time we had already been to six museums in the last 14 days.
     
    So, while we loved walking in the city, looking at the gorgeous museums, we didn’t enter any of them except the National Archeological Museum. The choice was simple – it was unique, different from anything we have seen so far on our trip, it was about the world and about evolution.
     
    The entry fee of 3 Euros seemed peanuts compared to the experience that the museum offered. With four floors each dedicated to an era of history – Prehistoric, Ancient, Medieval and Modern History.
     
    There are actual remains excavated from sites of Spain and North Africa which are preserved in the museum and 3-D videos explaining each of the exhibits. In our 2-hour trip to the museum, we could only cover the pre-historic and ancient history.
     
    We came back to this museum again in the evening just to rush through all four floors and like taking a roller-coaster ride through thousands of years of human history before the museum closed.
     
    Note that the tickets that you buy are valid for the entire day, irrespective of how many times you want to enter and exit. I loved this tour more so because it was completely totally different from all other museums and sites we had visited on our Europe Trip.
     
    Other important places within a distance of 4km from here are the National Library (the archeological museum is just behind this) and the Golden Triangle of Art formed by the three great art museums of Madrid – Museo Del Prado, Museo Thyssen, and Reina Sofia Museum.
     
    The walking tour map below shows all these spots highlighted.

    

     

    Puerta de Alcala

    

    The gate of Alcala is regarded as the first such victory arch built in Europe in the post-Roman era. It is older than the iconic Arc De Triompe in Paris. It stands in the beautiful Independence Plaza, another public square, which is, at the center of Madrid’s museum map.

    El Retiro Park

    

    Just beside the Alcala gate is arguably the most beautiful park in Madrid – the Retiro Park. This green oasis spread over 125 hectares also has some spectacular monuments, statues, and an artificial lake.
     
    You can see artists painting at the corners and live performances by street dancers. The delightful scenes bring flashbacks of the Victoria Memorial to a fellow from Kolkata. Well, this one is five times larger than our Victoria memorial garden though.

    When in Retiro Park do not miss the Palacio de Velázquez (named after its architect) and Crystal Palace of Madrid. They are both stunning pieces of architecture and adds to the charm of the park’s landscape

    Puerta del Sol – Gate of the Sun

    

    Another famous public square, Puerta del Sol was one of the gates of Madrid in the 15th century. It was named after the rising sun decoration and its orientation towards the East. Here you will see the tourist help desks, souvenir shops and walking tour guides.
     
    You will also see some of the iconic statues of Madrid – Phillip III statue of 1616 and Madrid’s official symbol “The Bear and the Strawberry tree”. Being an important place, there are a lot of security officers seen on duty here.

    Flamenco show 

    I love dancing (a LOT), so when it came to celebrating my birthday in Madrid, it was a no-brainer.
     
    Flamenco is the most famous Spanish dance form which involves creating music with feet. An evening of Flamenco show in one of the Tablaos should be easy to squeeze into your 3 days in Madrid itinerary.
     
    The Tablao Almonte is located in Calle de Juan Bravo. It has daily shows at 9:30 pm which can be booked online. The website wrongly shows two slots- 8 pm and 9:30 pm though.
     
    To be honest, the place looked a bit shady from outside, and the change of timing didn’t help with the first impression. But the ambiance inside was a pleasant surprise.
     
    With dim lights and a lot of family and couple guests, we felt comfortable as soon as we entered.
     
    The show was mind-boggling, extremely complex and nothing like the “Senorita” dance shown in Bollywood movies.
     
    The music was created live by a guitarist, a vocalist, and two outstanding Flamenco dancers. This, according to me was the highlight of our 3 days in Madrid.

    

     

    Other Places to explore in Madrid in 3 Days

    We had created a bigger itinerary for Madrid in 3 days, but it is not possible to do it all. You have to choose what appeals to you the most. For example, we could explore the archeological museum for so many hours just because we skipped the other museums. Here are a few interesting things that you can add to your Madrid itinerary.
    • Railway Museum , one of the largest railway collection in Europe
    • The Madrid City Hall, also called the Palace of Communication. If not enter, at least make sure you see this spectacular monument up close. Somehow we missed this although it was up there on our charter.
    • And of course one of the art museums in the Golden Triangle of Art in Madrid
    The best thing about Madrid is that you can see many places on foot. Besides, there are so many free things to do in Madrid – parks, museums and more.
     
    I loved Madrid for the sunny weather, the beautiful architecture and of course the cleanliness. 
     
    What do you think? Does Madrid really have too less to offer? Tell me in the comments. And before you go, check out the best travel sites for planning your Europe Trip.

    My Top Travel Sites for Europe Trip

    • Secure your vacation with travel insurance from Visitors Coverage

    • Booking.comfor hassle-free hotel booking as well as car rentals, guided tours and more

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    • GetYourGuide and Viatorfor thematic tours in new destinations

    • Book cheap flights on Wayawayand CheapOAir
      
      
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    • BookBig Bus tours for HOHO experiences.
      
      
    • For point-to-point transfers use Economy Bookings
      
      
    • To hire cars for road-trip in Europe useRental Cars

    • Get best deals on travel gear on Amazon

     

    

    P.S. I didn’t forget to mention bull-fighting. It’s an integral part of Madrid’s culture, but I’m just ethically against it. (As I’m against quite a few things in my own culture).

    Like the post? Pin the image below to save it for the future. Have any questions about your Madrid itinerary? Check out the FAQs below and shoot your questions/thoughts in the comment section.

     

    FAQs for Madrid Trip Planning

    How to reach Madrid?

    Madrid is the capital and most accessible city in Spain, so reaching it is not difficult. You can visit there with your Schengen Visa, the details of which can be checked on my post How to plan your Europe Trip. You can apply for your visa here.

    Where to stay in Madrid?

    We stayed in the IBIS budget hotel which was standard and pocket-friendly. It’s a large city, so choose to stay near the metro station for ease of conveyance. Check out the best places to stay in Madrid.

    Check out all available options directly from Booking.com

    How many days do I need in Madrid?

    Madrid has a plethora of attractions within the city and some of the best opportunities for daytrips. However, given the convenient transport network and attractions located in close proximity, you can explore the best of Madrid in 2-3 days.

    3 days is ideal to visit Madrid and also manage an excursion to nearby heritage sites. But you won’t regret staying longer. 

    What is the best time to visit Madrid?

    Madrid has warmer weather all year round compared to other West European cities. Since walking is the best way to explore this city, you would prefer time with lower precipitation and not too hot temperatures.

    So, Spring from March to May is the best time to visit. When we visited in the first week of May it was sunny and windy at the same time.

    It was very pleasant to walk around the city although we could sense the temperature ramping up for the upcoming summers.

    What is the best food to have in Madrid?

    Madrid is a foodie’s paradise. The best place to eat is in Plaza de Mayor which is lit up with beautiful dinners at night. Tapas and Paella are the two most popular Spanish dishes.

    We loved the seafood Paella here. Funny thing is most mid-range restaurants charge the same for a glass of coke and a glass of champagne or Sangria.

    So even though we aren’t into alcoholic beverages we ended up trying Champagne. The food in Madrid is cheaper than other Western European capitals.

    Is Madrid expensive?

    Madrid offers a plethora of rich experiences without burning a hole in your pocket. Food is cheaper (and might I say tastier) than other big cities in Western Europe. Hotel prices are on the higher side, but you can take the advantage of booking early to get discounts.

    Compared to Barcelona, or Paris, Madrid is overall cheaper, and very tourist-friendly.

    Recommended books and movies for Madrid tour

    A short history of Spain

    Lonely Planet travel guide

    Rick Steves Guide to Spain 2020

    Fiction – Asterix in Spain

     

    Check out other posts on our Europe series, some popular cities and some offbeat gems.

    • First time in Barcelona
    • First time in Amsterdam
    • Windmills of Zaanse Schans
    • A Day at De Haan

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