Madrid

Casa Patas

If you’re looking for an exclusively flamenco setting, then look no further. Unlike other more touristy places, this venue has 100% genuine flamenco blood in its veins. It’s a great place for having dinner while enjoying a show that will entrance even the most demanding visitors, because the performers here are all exceptionally talented. The bar boasts a delicious array of tapas to make your experience all the more authentic.

Calle Cañizares 10, Madrid. Tel: 91-369-04-96. www.casapatas.com

Cuevas de Sésamo

The atmosphere in Cuevas de Sésamo is light-hearted and hedonistic, albeit somewhat bohemian too. When you arrive, you will pass through a mirrored hallway and down some stairs fixed to stone walls featuring contemporary art and the thoughts of legendary writers (Hemingway was one of the bar’s first customers and a plaque on the wall commemorates his visit). Live piano or guitar music provides the ambience, while the recommended drink is sangria.

Príncipe 7, Madrid Tel: 91-429-65-24

Café Central

 This jazz club (although it caters for other musical tastes too) has been around for 25 years, in which time it has hosted more than 8,000 concerts by Spanish and foreign performers. The high standard of the musicians who play here has earned it a number of well-deserved mentions in newspapers such as El País and El Mundo, as well as the Music Prize in 2005. Its interior, with touches of Art deco and large windows made of colored glass, gives it a peaceful feel in the evening but a livelier and more amenable atmosphere at night.

Plaza del Ángel 10, Madrid. 91-369-41-43. www.cafecentralmadrid.com/

Casa Lucio

This restaurant is a favorite among public figures such as the royal family, presidents, artists and performers. It is strongly recommended for visitors wishing to sample some of Spain’s succulent dishes such as capón, lamb paletilla or tripe a la madrileña, to name but a few, all prepared with the very finest ingredients. The place is styled like an old-fashioned tavern, from the old fittings, with hams hanging from handcrafted beams, to its typically circular shape. Its specialties include: ibérico ham, Lucio potatoes, the house churrasco and, to finish off, rice pudding.

Cava Baja 35, Madrid. Tel: 91-365-32-52. www.casalucio.es/

La Broche

This restaurant is a must for fans of innovative cuisine. Catalan chef Sergi Arola offers diners a menu for trying different things such as cod steaks with migas de pastor, poultry egg yokes, risotto salmon, mushroom carpaccio and red wine sauce. The setting itself is very tasteful and cozy.

Calle Miguel Ángel 29, Madrid. Tel: 91-399-34-37. www.labroche.com/

Txirimiri

Txirimiri has a more laidback atmosphere and guarantees prompt treatment for voracious appetites. The restaurant’s excellent service is provided by very attentive waiters, while the food is exquisite and abundant. Here you can savor the traditional tapas, slices of Spanish omelet with caramelized onion, hamburgers in tempura and other finger-licking delights. It’s quite likely that you won’t find a table free but there is always the bar, which will position you right next to the excellent wines and beers.

Calle General Díaz Porlier 91, Madrid, 28006. Tel. 91-401-43-45

AC Palacio del Retiro

This Nineteenth Century palace is strategically located between the Thyssen, Prado and Reina Sofía museums. The inside of the hotel is characterized by the refined decorative style of its era, including ceramic fountains, marble floors and wrought metal lamps and chandeliers. The rooms on the upper floors are blessed with an extraordinary view of the Retiro Park, which stands just in front of the hotel.

Calle Alfonso XII 14, Madrid, 28014. Tel: 91-523-74-60. www.ac-hotels.com

Apartamentos Turísticos Príncipe II

These apartments are ideally situated if you want to go shopping and enjoy the bars and night clubs. You can also rent studios, suites and single or family apartments with a kitchen complete with a refrigerator and utensils, as well as bathrooms with a washing machine. If privacy is what you are after, this hotel can offer some outstanding options. Furthermore, it is located a short distance from Plaza Santa Ana, Plaza Mayor and Puerta del Sol.

Calle Príncipe 11, Madrid, 28012. Tel: 902-113-311. www.atprincipe11.com

Hesperia Madrid

This hotel boasts the contemporary and avant-garde nuances afforded by the interior designer Pascua Ortega (who decorated the Teatro Real and other buildings) to bring out its classical, oriental and sometimes minimalist style. Its charismatic restaurant Santceloni is where you can sample the great flavors of the acclaimed chef and author Santi Santamaría. Lime trees and an enticing atrium can be contemplated from the lobby, and there is also a small Japanese garden and a terrace. This hotel stands on Avenida de la Castellana.

Paseo de la Castellana 57, Madrid, 28046. Tel: 91-210-88-00. www.hesperia.com

El Retiro Park

This huge park dates back to the Seventeenth Century and covers 118 hectares. It is a great place for spending the whole morning in. You have to be ready to walk in order to enjoy the landscape and breathe in the setting of lush vegetation. There are a number of routes you can take, such as Paseo de las Estatuas, along which you will find marble statues of Spain’s monarchs of years gone by. You can enter through Puerta de España, visit the Fuente de la Alcachofa (Fountain of the Artichoke) or the Ángel Caído (Fallen Angel) fountain, see the Palacio de Cristal (Crystal Palace) or take a breather in the splendid gardens that are sometimes frequented by lively puppeteers and musicians or tarot card readers in front of the main pond.

Museo del Prado

Art lovers simply cannot leave Madrid without visiting this museum with its over 7,000 works of art. Its main exhibits are the creations of classical Spanish painters like Goya, Velázquez and Murillo. But there are also impressive works by Italian Renaissance painters such as Raphael, Botticelli, Fra Angélico, Andrea del Sarto and Correggio¬¬, and Flemish artists like Brueghel the Elder and Hieronymus Bosch, as well as others. The museum is huge and seeing everything will take a long time. So if you only have a couple of hours to spare, it would be advisable to go straight to most famous exhibits, like Las Meninas (Ladies in Waiting) by Velázquez and Bosch’s Garden of delights, The Feet Lavatory by Tintoretto, Jacob’s Dream by Ribera, Goya’s Executions or The Annunciation by Fra Angélico. The museum also houses an important collection of sculptures and metalwork.

Tel: 91-330-28-00 http://museoprado.mcu.es

Casa de Campo

This enormous park is the biggest in the province of Madrid and entices visitors in to spend the whole day in the company of nature. This historic garden, which was the property of the Spanish monarchy for many years, is the scene of a whole host of activities ranging from fun fairs to the Venta del Batán (where you will find bulls during the last few days before the bullfight), as well as the cable car and the Madrid Arena. The park is home to lakes, rivers, bridges, palaces, flower gardens, vegetable gardens and many other attractions just waiting to be discovered. But perhaps its main feature is the zoo with more than 3,000 animal species from every continent, most of which live in conditions similar to their natural habitats. There are shows for kids, as well as pony and horse rides. The zoo’s vast aquarium and dolphinarium are also worth seeing.

Real Basílica de San Francisco el Grande

This enormous Eighteenth Century neoclassical church is an architectural jewel thanks to its vestibule doors carved from walnut, its huge 72-meter high dome, the ornate marble rotunda and its art gallery which features the works of Spanish painters such as Zurbarán and Goya. The church’s design was completed by Francesco Sabatini, the architect who styled the Puerta de Alcalá. This is Madrid’s most outstanding religious building.

San Buenaventura 1, Madrid Tel: 91-365-38-00

Puerta del Sol

This meeting point for thousands of madrileños is one of the city’s main nerve centers. It never rests: there are always people on the plaza, and in the nearby stores, restaurants and bars. Its name, which means the Sun Gate, reflects the fact that from the Fifteenth Century it was the entrance through the fence surrounding the city and crowned by a representation of the sun.