Things to do in Madrid: a sloping street of balconied apartment houses in central Madrid, with the city stretching out beyond
MADRID

Things to do in Madrid, chosen with a reason.

Guides and stories from the guide who shows the city on foot and by bike. Not checklists of places to visit in Madrid — what earns your time, and why.

Written and kept up to date by Yves, who guides these routes himself.

The best things to do in Madrid, as I would tell a friend.

4.9 ★ on Google

The best things to do in Madrid, as I’d tell a friend — written by Yves, who guides every route himself.

GETTING AROUND

Getting around Madrid: the two things you’ll need on day one

Fares, times and the changes that catch people out — checked on the ground, then cross-checked against Metro de Madrid.

The red Metro diamond and the Sol nameplate hanging over Puerta del Sol in Madrid, with a pigeon perched on the ironwork and a pale façade behind
PLAN YOUR TRIP

Madrid Metro Tickets and Prices: What to Buy for the Days You’re Here

What a metro ticket costs in Madrid, when the tourist pass pays for itself, and the fare rules nobody explains at the machine.

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Metro platform at Aeropuerto T4 on line 8, the start of the metro route from Madrid airport to the city centre
PLAN YOUR TRIP

Madrid Airport to the City Centre and to the Train Stations

Metro, Cercanías, the yellow bus or a taxi: real fares, real times, and the one change every other guide has missed.

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START HERE

Things to do in Madrid: the two guides I’d read first.

Group of cyclists with bikes admire the Almudena Cathedral from the viewpoint during the Hidden Madrid bike tour
PLAN YOUR TRIP

Madrid in 3 Days: The Itinerary I’d Recommend to a Friend

A Madrid 3 day itinerary on foot: Habsburg Madrid, one museum chosen well, neighbourhoods with personality, and a sunset the whole city shares.

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Where to stay in Madrid: terracotta rooftops, domes and church towers of the old town seen from above
NEIGHBOURHOODS

Where to Stay in Madrid: Best Neighbourhoods, Honestly

Eight neighbourhoods compared honestly: what each one is like after dark, what you’ll pay, and how they link up by bike.

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BY BIKE

Madrid by bike: the stops that don’t make the lists.

Madrid rooftops from above Gran Vía, the dome of the Metropolis building in the foreground and the sierra on the horizon
BY BIKE

Unusual Things to Do in Madrid, by Bike

Places in Madrid that don’t make the guidebook lists, in the order I ride them, and why the loop only works on two wheels.

Places in Madrid that don’t make the guidebook lists…

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Group of cyclists pause in a leafy Madrid plaza, looking up at typical balconied buildings on a guided bike tour in Madrid
THE TOUR
Discount on now

Three hours of central Madrid you won’t get on foot or by bus — the city at the pace of a bike.

8 riders max · 3h · English · Every day at 10:00 and 15:00

From €47
per person
ON THE CALENDAR

What’s on in Madrid: when the city changes for a weekend

Formula 1 car on the main straight at dusk, grandstands lit, on a Grand Prix evening
PLAN YOUR TRIP

Madrid F1 Weekend: What to Do Between Sessions

The Grand Prix fills your afternoons. Your mornings and nights in Madrid are still yours — here’s how to use them.

The Grand Prix fills your afternoons. Your mornings and nights in Madrid are still yours — here’s how to use them.

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THE TOURS

See Madrid with me: the guides are the homework. These are the streets.

Group of cyclists pause in a leafy Madrid plaza, looking up at typical balconied buildings on a guided bike tour in Madrid
ENGLISH
Discount on now

Three hours of central Madrid you won’t get on foot or by bus — the city at the pace of a bike.

8 riders max · 3h · English · Every day at 10:00 and 15:00

From €47
per person
See the tour →
Yves and a small private group on bikes by the Royal Palace at sunset on a private Madrid bike tour

The same ride, private — your group only.

From €220
group of 4 · 3h
See it →
The twin towers of the Colegiata de San Isidro down Calle de Toledo on a private Madrid walking tour

Madrid on foot, at your group’s pace — 2.5 unhurried hours.

From €195
group of 4 · 2,5h
See it →
WHEN STORIES TURN INTO PLANS

The guides are the homework. The city is the tour.

Everything written here comes from the same streets I ride and walk every week — the Madrid attractions everyone sees, and the corners they miss. If you would rather have Madrid explained in person — small group, slow pace, on foot or by bike — that is what the tours are for.

Cancellation up to 24 h before · Same guide on the day as on this page · I reply to questions within 24 hours, usually faster.