Madrid runs on a different clock to the rest of Europe, lunch at 2pm, dinner at 10pm, and a nightlife scene that considers 2am the middle of the evening rather than the end of it. It's also home to the Golden Triangle of Art, three museums within walking distance holding one of the world's great art collections.
The Golden Triangle
The Prado holds the definitive collection of Velázquez and Goya; the Reina Sofía has Picasso's Guernica; the Thyssen-Bornemisza fills the gaps between them with an astonishing private collection spanning eight centuries. All three are walkable from each other along the Paseo del Prado.
Retiro Park, just behind the Prado, is where Madrileños actually spend a Sunday afternoon, rent a rowboat on the lake, or just find a bench near the Crystal Palace and watch the city relax.
Eating and Nightlife
La Latina, especially around Calle Cava Baja, has the city's best concentration of tapas bars, go on a Sunday after the El Rastro flea market for the full local experience, moving bar to bar with a beer or vermouth in hand.
Madrid's nightlife genuinely doesn't start until midnight, plan a late dinner, then head to Malasaña or Chueca for bars that stay lively well past 3am on weekends.
Recommended Stay · Madrid · Atocha
Only YOU Hotel Atocha
A design-forward hotel near Atocha station, an easy walk to the Golden Triangle museums and Retiro Park, with a rooftop bar that fills with locals as much as guests.
