7 Days in Madrid: First-Timer Plan

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A full week covers Madrid’s city core over four unhurried days, then leaves three for the best day trips: Toledo, Segovia, and El Escorial. It’s the longest sensible city-plus-trips itinerary before you’re better off framing Madrid explicitly as a regional base. Shorter versions: the 6-day plan drops El Escorial, the 5-day plan keeps only Toledo, and the 3-day or 2-day plans are city-only.

Book these before you go

Day 1: Puerta del Sol and the Royal Palace

Arrive, settle into Sol/Centro or La Latina, then walk Puerta del Sol and Plaza Mayor. Afternoon at the Royal Palace of Madrid (EUR 14, timed slot) and the free Sabatini Gardens. Dinner at Sobrino de Botín, the world’s oldest continuously operating restaurant (founded 1725).

Day 2: The Golden Triangle and Retiro

The Prado (EUR 15) in the morning, two to three hours for Velázquez’s Las Meninas, Goya’s Black Paintings, and Bosch’s Garden of Earthly Delights. Afternoon in Retiro Park; the Palacio de Cristal is closed for restoration until roughly 2027, so plan around the lake and the Fallen Angel statue.

Day 3: Gran Vía, Debod, and Tapas

Walk Gran Vía end to end, browse Chueca or Malasaña, then time Temple of Debod for sunset. Evening: a Cava Baja tapas crawl in La Latina, starting around 20:00 at Casa Lucas or Casa Julio.

Day 4: A Slower City Day

Add the Reina Sofía (EUR 12, closed Tuesdays) for Guernica if you skipped it earlier, then wander Lavapiés for Madrid’s most ethnically diverse food scene. In the evening, catch the view from the Cibeles rooftop (Mirador Madrid, EUR 3, closed Mondays) before dinner in Huertas or Chueca.

Day 5: Toledo, the Deep Day Trip

AVANT direct from Puerta de Atocha, about 33-34 minutes each way. Toledo Cathedral, the Alcázar (now the Army Museum), and El Greco’s The Burial of the Count of Orgaz at Santo Tomé. Toledo carries its own UNESCO listing, the “Historic City of Toledo” (1986), and needs the full day.

Day 6: Segovia, the Easy Half-Day

AVE from Chamartín, about 26-28 minutes; Segovia-Guiomar station sits roughly 4km outside the old town, so take bus 11 or a taxi in. The Roman aqueduct, the fairy-tale Alcázar, and cochinillo asado at Mesón de Cándido for lunch. Back in Madrid with the afternoon free; a Ponzano tapas stop in Chamberí is a good, less-touristy close.

Day 7: El Escorial and Departure

Cercanías C-3 or C-8 to El Escorial station, about 50-60 minutes, then a short uphill walk. El Escorial (official name “Monastery and Site of the Escurial, Madrid,” a separate 1984 UNESCO listing from Madrid city’s own) requires advance online tickets, no walk-up sales as of 2026, and is closed Mondays. Cover Philip II’s monastery-palace complex, the Basilica, and the Royal Pantheon, then head back for your flight from Barajas.

Getting around and where to stay

Base yourself in Sol/Centro or La Latina; all three day trips run by direct train with no transfers. The Metro runs 06:00-01:30 daily. A flat EUR 33 taxi fare covers Barajas Airport to the city center inside the M-30 ring.

One concrete tip: book El Escorial’s tickets online before day seven, not the morning of. Advance purchase is mandatory now, and there’s no ticket window to fall back on if you show up without one.