Madrid weekend itinerary idea: how to spend three days in Madrid and love it
Madrid weekend itinerary idea for a quick and perfect getaway: easy to follow, detailed weekend itinerary perfect for couples or a girl’s getaway!
Cities, history, food and spa time are the four magic ingredients to my perfect getaway and I am happy to report I have found the perfect destination where they all come together beautifully: Spain or, more precisely: Madrid!
Madrid is a city I know well and always love to rediscover: elegant, varied, dynamic and beautiful, Madrid has great museums, outstanding food, great shops and is remarkably easy to explore without tours or even much planning. Perfect for a relaxed, even last minute trip!
Madrid is also a great place for plush hotels and for a spa night: the Hammam here is outstanding and one of the most relaxing experience you can ever have!
As well as the attractions of the city, Madrid is within easy reach to two wonderful towns worth seeing: Toledo and Segovia.
Together, these destinations make do a wonderful weekend or two: I went once with my husband (couple’s weekend in Madrid and Segovia) and once with a friend (girls’ getaway – itinerary wise the only difference was we went to Toledo instead of Segovia!).
I loved both these trips and would highly recommend them to anyone looking for a quick getaway to Spain. On this page, I share my exact itineraries. I hope this quick guide will inspire you to organise your own weekend away! Safe travels!
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Our Madrid weekend itinerary at a glance
Friday Night Arrival: checking into ME Reina Victoria hotel, dinner, Drinks on Hotel Terrace
Saturday: day trip to Segovia, return for late evening Hammam experience, dinner / I did the exact same but with Toledo instead of Segovia
Sunday: Thyssen Bornemitza Gallery, Madrid city center, stroll, temple of Debod, evening departure
Notable meals: Entre Santos (Madrid), Bar Tomate (Madrid), Mama Framboise (Breakfast, Madrid)
Have cocktails in: Me Reina Vitoria Rooftop; El Cielo de Chicote Terrace
The best things to do in Madrid on a weekend getaway
Madrid is a large, dynamic city with plenty of beautiful museums and things to do. Above I shares how we planned our time.
Here, I share my shortlist of the best things to do in Madrid, so that you can design your stay just as you like it.
Take a bike tour of Madrid city center
If, like me, you have an other half who loves cycling, you may enjoy knowing that you can visit Madrid by bike.
Madrid is a large city so it is lovely to have a means of transport and it is also a great way to get the lay of the land of arrival in terms of what is where and what you may want to spend additional time seeing later.
It’s also a great way to pick your guides’ head for ideas on where to eat and drink!
Visit the Prado Museum
One of the great museums of the world, the Prado has the biggest collection in the world of Spanish art and it is also home to masterpieces by Flemish and Italian artists. It is one of those museums you can spend days in and not be be done!
Among the most famous artists and pieces, in the Prado you can see works by Goya (La Maja Desnuda and La Maja Vestida are among his most famous works and are here), Velasquez (Las Menina is here), Hieronymus Bosch (The Garden of Earthly Delights), Fra Angelico (The Annunciation), Raphael (The Holy Family and The Cardinal) and several Titian.
You can visit the museum with or without a tour. In either case, I would recommend to book ahead.
Visit the Thyssen Bornemitsza National Museum
the Thyssan Bornemitsza Gallery is one of the best museums in Madrid and in Europe for art lovers since it has paintings from large variety of schools and styles, from Ghirlandaio (XV century) to Dali’ (XX century) and many in between!
The Gallery is stunning and easy to enjoy even without a tour. I personally find this museum the nicest to visit as it has variety, a large number of paintings, yet it manages not to be overwhelming or excessively busy.
Relax in Madrid Hammam
Going to the Hammam (Arabian Baths) is one of my favorite things to do and the Hammam in Madrid is a lovely place for a truly relaxing and immersive experience.
The Hamman is in the city center, in a busy area that doesn’t exactly evolve the quiet atmospheres of the hammam yet, all it takes it to enter its front doors to find yourself in a place that seems out of time.
Dimmed lights, vaulted ceilings, the gentle sound of dripping water: all here is studied to be immersive and grounded whether you decide to get treatments or just soak into the baths, Turkish bath and hot room in your own time.
My own favorite way to enjoy the hammam is to come here in the late afternoon, so that I shake off the day of exploring and feel ready and relaxed for dinner. If you’re in Madrid for a romantic weekend, this plus a romantic dinner is a spectacular combination!
You can find here >>> info and prices
Have churros in Chocolateria San Gines
Having Churros and hot chocolate in Chocolateria San Gines is a quintessential touristy thing to do in Madrid but it is so nice, we always stop here for a hot chocolate fix!
The chocolatoeria has been THE place to be for chocolate and churros for over a century and its fame is still well deserved: after walking all day around Madrid, a soothing cup of smooth hot chocolate is a soothing break and the crunchy yet gooey churros are the perfect complement to it: some classics are classic for a reason!
The chocolateria is in the center and easy to include in any city center itinerary. Should you be in other areas, my local friend from Madrid also recommended Los Artesanos (more local)
See the incredible temple of Debod
The temple of Debod is a real ancient Egyptian temple now in the center of Madrid!
The temple originally comes from Nubia and made its way to Spain in the 1960s, when the construction of the Aswan Dam threatened its existence. The temple was gifted to Spain and moved to its new location stone by stone: it now proudly lies in the center of a Madrid garden: Cuartel de la Parque de Montaña.
The temple is a sight to behold even just from outside: access to it is ticketed.
Have a rest in one of Madrid’s Parks
Madrid has many beautiful parks, perfect for a walk and a rest.
The most famous of all is large El Retiro, which I find fun for couples as it has an Embarcadero where you can get rowing boats – always a bit of fun, whether you are looking for an actually romantic moment or a tongue in cheek, ‘play romantic couple’ moment!
Another cool park in Madrid city center is Campo de’ Moro: just beside the Royal Palace, the park is a manicured, classical designed garden perfect for a stroll.
Visit the fun Ikono Madrid
Ikono is an interactive space that I first discovered thanks to my kids but that I find also fun for adults, when you want to just mess with selfies and fun backdrops!
Ikono is an interactive space with several rooms all kitted out in fun and unexpected ways to that you can interact with: you can enter a pool of balls, write with light, walk in tunnels of light, have angel wings… and of course immortalize these moments by taking selfies.
Nothing particularly Madrilean about the whole thing but a really fun, easy stop I enjoy!
Have tapas everywhere
Madrid has amazing food and the use of having it in the form of tapas (small portions) means you can taste a lot of it even during a short stay!
You can do this by joining a food tours of just trying the many tapas bars you’ll encounter on your way: many I like are under Plaza Mayor (itself a sight worth seeing), at Mercado de San Miguel, Mercado de la Paz.
Have a drink on Madrid’s beautiful rooftops
I am partial to a good rooftop bar and Madrid has many of them! Some that stand out for ambiance and view are:
Le Tavernier (tapas, burghers, tacos, drinks, cocktails, etc), INNSiDE by Meliá Madrid Gran Vía, C. de Mesonero Romanos, 13, 8ª Planta, Centro, 28004 Madrid, Spain
Casa Suecia, on top of the NH Collection Madrid Suecia, with one of the best views in Madrid (drinks and tapas), NH Collection Madrid Suecia, C. del Marqués de Casa Riera, 4, Planta baja, Centro, 28014 Madrid, Spain
Oroya at Edition, lovely and colourful rooftop bar and Peruvian restaurant
Go shopping
Madrid is wonderful for shopping as it has a mix of high steet names, international brands and more unique, local finds.
A great area for shopping is around Gran Via / Fuencarral for big names and stores; for more unique finds the area of Malasana has many concept stored; for designer, you wan to head to Salamanca area.
Take a day trip to Toledo
Toledo is the ancient capital of Spain and a fantastic city, perfect for history lovers especially.
The cuty has a very impressive array of attractions that bear witness of the great communities that called this city home (Jewish, Muslim, Christian) and it is easy to explore on foot: if you are looking for an easy day of sightseeing in a walkable towns with centuries old history, Toledo is very much the place for you!
You can find here >>> how to spend a day in Toledo from Madrid
Take a day trip to Segovia
Segovia is only a short train ride away from Madrid and a fantastic place if you want to see ancient ruins, a fairytale castle, eat well and just spend a day in a slow paces, outstanding historic town.
The city is most famous for a massive ancient Roman aqueduct still overlooking the town and a castle that seems out of a children’s book but it is also one of those places that are more than the sum of its parts; in between Landmarks, Segovia is a lovely town with pretty, ancient streets, cute restaurants and a relaxed, historic feeling woth experiencing.
You can find here >>> how to spend a day in Segovia from Madrid
