Madrid, a lovely treasure in the middle of Spain. This month we will explore some of the most important and beautiful squares of Madrid. Are you ready for our Squares City Tour? We are so excited!
Squares in Madrid are like an obliged stop. They are simply too beautiful, too important, too… well, you have understood what we mean, right? Our original project was to collect information about every single square in Madrid and provide you with a huge long list. We ended up with a sense of boredom and we would never bore our sweet readers. Therefore, we came up with another great idea, a city tour with few selected breath-taking squares. We know that you love our back channel stories, but the show must go on.
Little digression, as in every article, we give you another hint of a good location for your new home in Madrid. Some of the following squares are perfectly located (what a news! They are squares…); good services, many metro stations, grocery shops, banks, restaurants, bars. A shared flat close to one of them may be the perfect solution to enjoy your experience and Madrid. Who doesn’t want to live in the lifeblood of this enchanting city?
It’s time to begin our Squares City Tour, are you ready? Backpack, bottle of water, camera, sunglasses… let’s go!
We have to begin with the ultimate centre of Madrid, the square where the major Spanish roads start, the meeting point for the Mexican Mariachi and their audience. Puerta del Sol is THE square here and, as all the major metro lines have a stop there, it’s the perfect starting point for any activity with your mates and, in particular, for our Square City Tour.
Just to add a little spice to this tour, two interesting facts about this square. As I have mentioned, Puerta del Sol is the Km 0 of the radial network of all the major Spanish roads: this point is reported with a beautiful sign on the path. The traditional eating of the Twelve Grapes that is broadcasted live since 1962 takes place in front of the clock contained in this square.
An important building is the House of the Post Office, where Francisco Franco has settled the headquarters of the Ministry of Interior and State Security.
From Sol, we walk to Plaza Mayor, the rectangular red square full of restaurants, bars and little shops. It has been named several times and it current one goes back to the end of the Spanish Civil War. Originally, many different events took place in this square, from the executions to the autos de fe of the Spanish Inquisition. Today hosts mainly concerts and fairs.
Have you ever tried to count the balconies? We did and we have never managed to end our mission. Hopefully, someone did it for us: they are 237!
Let’s go back to serious things. Do you know the guy in the centre of the square? He is King Philipp III and this statue was created as long ago as 1616. Another important building is the Casa de la Panaderia, Bakery House. We know what you are thinking about, but no, they don’t sell delicious croissants! It serves municipal and cultural functions.
Have you ever wished to be a princess or a valiant knight? We are heading the Royal Palace. It is not difficult to guess that the Palace is the most important part of the Plaza de Oriente. Nonetheless, beautiful and perfect statues and perfumed gardens will amaze you.
Well, we have revealed pretty much everything we had to say about this square. As we still must walk a lot, it is time to go to check another majestic square, the Plaza de España.
Maybe because they are our neighbours, maybe because the artistic value of the squares is immeasurable, but every time we listen to this name, we think about the square in Rome. It is a pity, because the Spanish version is breath taking, too!
Our favourite part of the square is the monument dedicated to Cervantes. Aren’t you a great fan of Don Chisciotte? Since we have read the novel, we are in love with him. Once you took a picture with him and his friend Sancho Panza, we should go on with our Squares City Tour.
This time we have to walk much more to reach the last stop of our city tour. Believe us, it is worth a visit and not just because the Real Madrid celebrates there.
Beautiful emblematic buildings such as the Bank of Spain, the Palace of Linares, the Palacio de Buenavista and, our favourite one, the Cybele Palace, surround this neo-classical square. These buildings together with the majestic Fountain of Cybele create a harmonious merging. Both the Palace and the fountain are symbolic monuments of the city. We are simply in love with Plaza de Cibeles.
The end… We would really like to show you all the other amazing squares in Madrid, but they are simply too many. You have enough hints to visit the most iconic places of the city centre. Just take note and start exploring!
Where would you like to live? We have discussed a lot about it and our favourite location for a room is Plaza Mayor! This square has gained the competition (there wasn’t one, actually). The location is simply perfect as it is central, it has many services, it is far away from the traffic jam… the list could go on forever. So, if you are looking for a shared flat, this area is the right one. Please, take note!
It’s time to go home and have some rest, this tour has been exhausting!
See you asap.