- Madrid
- (153)
-
Spain
The hotel Laura in Madrid is a great place for families in the very centre of this wonderful city. Modern and comfortable design, friendly staff and affordable. It's just a B&B so you have to explore the city for food. Go to the Latina district for tapas and avoid the Plaza Mayor for overpriced and badly cooked food.
Don't join the long line of people waiting to get in the Prado. If you are with your kids go to the Reina Sofia instead and see some marvellous contemporary and modern art paintings like Picasso's 'Guernica'.
After, go to the café/restaurant for some great food and of course a bottle of wine from the Ribera Del Duero region, superb.
Teatriz restaurant in Madrid is a fantastic restaurant designed by Philippe Starck, converted from an old theatre. I had lunch there on Christmas Day with my family to celebrate my wife's birthday and it was one of the best meals I have ever eaten.
Calle Hermosilla 15, Tel.91-577-53-79
Reservation recommended.
A state-run arthouse cinema showing a range of different films. All films are shown in original version, with Spanish subtitles if required. Screenings are eclectic - I've seen some gems I'd never have watched otherwise, some bona fide classics and some "I'll go because it's in English and cheap" bilge. Listings can be found in Guia del Ocio, or with film notes at the cinema itself.
Tickets on my last visit cost just under 3€.
The main screen is a fabulous old salon, complete with balcony and boxes. The whole cinema is housed in a fin de siecle building which has starred in at least one Almodovar film.
As with any Spanish museum, morgue or meeting place there is a cafeteria serving coffee and snacks on site.
C/Magdalena.
M.Anton Martin.
If anyone feels like having a pleasant evening with candlelight and intimate ambiance, try 1917 Blinis & Vodkas. They have a good assortment of smoked fish (salmon, tuna, herring, etc) on top of freshly baked blinis and a choice of 30 different kinds of vodka from Estonia, Russia, Poland, France, Argentina, etc. And the location is perfect: next to the Teatro Real (Madrid's Opera House).
Calle de la Independencia 1, 911 429 800, Opera metro station, bar1917.com
Many people know Spain as a tourist destination.
Many people know Spanish wines. But nearly nobody enjoys wine tourism in Spain.
There are lots of wine regions and marvellous wineries to visit. The areas where wineries are located usually offer excellent food and at budget prices. The offer is enormous.
I suggest to have a look at www.turismodevino.com or www.winetourismspain.com
A sky resort mainly, but there are some mountains you can climb and other trails you can follow.
A local told us you can follow a trail from Puerto de Navacerrada back down to the town of Cercedilla which takes about three hours.
Absoutely amazing views on top of the mountains of Madrid and Castilla y Leon. Makes for an amazing day out.
Take the train from Nuevos Ministerios, Atocha or Charmartin to Cercedilla where you change to take the train up the hill to Puerto de Navacerrada. Takes about two hours in total from Charmartin.
From there, follow other hikers up the hill and the various trail signs.
Restaurant serving dishes from the País Vasco
(Basque) region of northern Spain.
Brilliant food, and that's why I am taken here by my hosts in Madrid who seek a change from the usual.
The most popular delicacies are patatas con bacalao, cocochas de merluza y centollo, zortziko de almejas, solomillo dantxari -al vapor, bacalao al pil-pil, con aceite de oliva virgen y pimiento, and tarta fina de manzana.
You could avoid these and try the more innovative dishes. I appreciated the excellent use of seasonal products and dishes such as 'pil pil' and their cod croquetas.
Ventura Rodríguez 8, 28008 Madrid
Tel: 915 423 524
www.dantxari.com
Notes from Madrid is a blog about Madrid written by a bunch of city-savvy expats. It includes everything from where to shop, eat, drink, and go out (neighborhood by neighborhood) to information on museums, parks, excursions outside the city, even what to avoid in the city.
Marisqueria in Madrid, best restaurant to eat fish. Not very stylish but really good food.
Tribunal
I recommend when you are traveling by train in Spain that you request four seats with a table between them, so that the family can talk together or play games.
Me and my family have just visited a really nice hotel built into a medieval castle. Only about two hours from Madrid. Amazing landscapes and quiet surroundings. I just didn't want to leave!
This Spanish TV series about a family in the late 60s and 70s gives a great idea of how life in Madrid was at that time under Franco. Spaniards agree that all the details, from decor and furniture to footage of actual events, are spot on and a real nostalgia-fest, but the characters of the family themselves are also a real pull. If you speak some Spanish this is well worth watching.
Within Spain you may be able to track the series down in Fnac or the Corte Ingles, otherwise try the internet.
A great restaurant chain for tapas and larger raciones. They don't do just ham, as the name might suggest, but all sorts of food. Calamares, Tortilla and gambas al ajillo are excellent. Prices are very reasonable. You can eat at the counter or in the salon (waiter service is a little dearer). They have restaurants in Puerta del Sol and on the Gran Via. They also do excellent three-course menu for under 10 Euro.
La Puerta Del Sol
or La Gran Via
We travelled to Madrid by Eurostar to Paris, then sleeper from Paris to Madrid. It's a wonderful way to travel - straight from city to city, with no airport queues, and you arrive right in the centre.
However, don't do as we did and get your student son to book it for you - it's much cheaper to buy the tickets in France or Spain. He was there; so far, so good. However, the economy drive went a bit too far when we realised that rather than the comfortable two-person compartment we were expecting, we were separated into four-berth compartments - and no dinner in the very nice-looking dining car.
Oh well, it's all part of seeing life and living it to the full. We recommend it !
On an overnight train to Madrid, I met a woman who was getting on a bit in years and had been travelling by train over Europe all her life. She gave me some excellent advice: pack your clothes and have your money ready - then halve your clothes and double your money, and everything will go just fine.
Turn up early at the station, because the concourse is pure street theatre. Where else can you see terrapins, high-speed trains and stunning architecture under one roof? Travel first class for not much more than standard class, and arrive at your destination with a Quixotic smile on your face.
You can laze around feeling really decadent in this place. A chilled bar experience awaits you as you are served contemporary modern European food as you stretch out and your weary limbs recover from a day pounding the streets of the Spanish capital.
It is a very nice walking tour through very impressive paths in the mountains 60 km north to Madrid, with excellents views. The walks are guided in the months of May, June, September, October and early November. They provide Bed and breakfast in double rooms, and transportation from /to the airport. Also they give you the opportunity to spend the evenings in Madrid, but also they show you other very nice villages in the area. It is a perfect mixture of nature, culture and relaxation in a non dense part of Madrid. The price is 300 pounds per person for 7 days / 6 nights. Totally recommened!! Get to know rural spain
More information at dongegp@gmail.com
Really cool, spacious urban apartments, designed by Madrid's trendiest 'interiorista', with lots of live-in space, beds on upper floors, sofas downstairs, wi-fi and working/dining table in all rooms (plus kitchen etc). And reasonable prices.
Alicia on corner of Plaza Santa Ana is next to lively terrace bar-restaurants, but Laura is on a nice quiet street near 'Descalzas Reales' and Gran Vía
www.room-matehotels.com/alicia_ing/alicia_ing.htm
Send your feedback or queries to been.there@guardian.co.uk
Search Been there
Your tips about Madrid