As in any foreign destination, tourists in Madrid must navigate the transportation system to make the most of a visit to the Spanish capital. The sooner travelers grasp a reasonable understanding of local transportation, the easier it is to maximize opportunities for important things like sightseeing and sampling local cuisine.
Transportation in Madrid is generally pretty easy. The most challenging part will be navigating the language barrier for those with limited knowledge of Spanish. Even for the linguistically-challenged tourist, transportation in Madrid is simple.
Transportation From Madrid Airport to the City Center
Transportation in Madrid for most tourists begins at the airport. Madrid-Barajas Airport is the international airport serving the Spanish capital. It is the busiest airport in Spain. With more than 50 million passengers traveling through each year, it is one of the busiest airports in Europe and the world. In other words, if you’re flying into Madrid, it’s here.
After passing through immigration and customs, the next thing for tourists in Madrid is to figure out transportation to the city center. Thankfully, it’s pretty straightforward, fast and easy.
Metro
The fastest way to reach the city center is via the Madrid metro system. It’s as easy as following the “Metro” signs. Reaching the metro from the terminal involves a bit of walking through the airport, so travelers with excessive baggage should take that into consideration.
There is a metro stop located at terminals 1-3 and a stop at terminal 4. When going into the city, it doesn’t really matter where you get on the metro. *Note: when going to the airport, your departure terminal matters when purchasing the subway fare.
The metro trip from Madrid-Barajas Airport to the city center takes about 30-45 minutes depending on the location of your accommodation.
To reach the Centro District where most tourists stay, take the 8 line (direction: Neuvos Ministerios) 4 stops to Colombia. At Colombia metro station, take the 9 train (direction: Puerta de Arganda) 5 stops to Principe de Vergara. If you exit here, you are in Salamanca.
To continue to Centro, at Principe de Vergara, take the 5 train (direction: Cuatro Caminos) 4 stops to Sol. This metro station is beneath the Puerta del Sol, the de facto center of the city and the epicenter of tourism in Madrid.
The actual city center is about 10 minutes walking from Puerta del Sol, but most hostels are nearer this area. Puerta del Sol is an easy, practical starting point to get around Madrid.
This isn’t the only metro option to reach the city center. Depending on the precise location of your hotel, hostel or rental, there may be an easier or faster option. Personally, for my first time as a tourist in Madrid, I found this to be the simplest transportation option. It is a short distance from tons of hotels and hostels.
The metro from Madrid-Barajas Airport to the city costs about €7.50. This includes the price of the Madrid Transportation Card, about €2.50. Keep the card for further transportation needs. The price of a return to the airport (or a future trip from the airport) will cost about €5 once you have the card.
Bus
Madrid-Barajas Airport is served by an express bus. This is basically the only way to get the bus directly from the airport and into the city. The yellow buses run every 15 minutes and pick up from terminals 1, 2 and 4.
Taking the airport express bus is not the most convenient method. Being on a dedicated “express” route, there are only 3 stops in the city, so most people will have to take another bus, a metro or plan for a lengthy walk to reach their accommodation.
The airport express from Madrid Airport takes a long time. The express bus to the city center takes over an hour. It’s a good way to see some of the city, but that’s not on the forefront of most travelers’ minds after a long flight.
Lastly, the bus from the airport to the city costs about €5, so it’s not even a significantly cheaper alternative. Due to the slowness and inconvenient stops, I do not recommend tourists use the bus for transportation from the airport to Madrid City Center.
Taxi/Uber
The fastest and easiest transportation for tourists from Madrid Airport to the city center, accommodation or anywhere else in the area is via taxi or Uber. Of course, this is assuming traffic is not exceptionally bad.
Taxis from the airport to a hotel will take about 20-25 minutes. A normal taxi fare is about €30, once again, assuming traffic is flowing at a reasonable pace.
Taxis are usually the fastest and easiest method of local transportation. In some places, there is a worry about taxi scams, but that is not an issue in Madrid. The only drawback here is the cost, but peace of mind is worth it for many travelers, especially after a long flight.
Walking in Madrid
Walking is the easiest and best method of transportation in Madrid for tourists. It’s the best way to see the city, and walking is healthier and free of charge.
Most of Madrid is easily walkable. In particular, most areas of interest to tourists are concentrated in the city center. Provided your hostel/hotel is nearby, there’s very little need for most visitors to worry about metro lines, bus routes or taxi fares.
Centro is the center of tourism in Madrid. Getting across the district may take some time due to the mishmash of streets, but it’s not especially physically demanding. Based on the eye test, a large amount of Madrilenians traverse their city on foot.
For tourists in Madrid staying outside of Centro, a quick bus or metro trip will deposit passengers right in the middle of the action in a few minutes. However, depending on the desired level of activity and the willingness to walk, even the neighborhoods around Centro are close enough to justify getting around on foot.
For instance, the upscale Salamanca district is about 30 minutes from Puerta del Sol. It’s not a short walk, but it’s pretty flat and an easy way to get some exercise.
Overall, Madrid is not a very strenuous place to walk. The city does have hills, but most parts of the city are flat or contain gradual inclines. The old part of Centro does have a few steeper inclines. The only issues for walking in Madrid would be for disabled persons or those carrying a lot of luggage.
Like most cities, walking is the best way to see more of the Spanish capital. In Madrid, walking makes perfect sense. The city is clean and pedestrian-friendly. The health factor of walking is important too, as Spanish food isn’t exactly a low-calorie cuisine.
Madrid by Bus
The Madrid bus system runs 24 hours a day, with limited lines running after 1130 PM. It connects all corners of the city and much of the metro area. The benefit of taking the bus in Madrid is that it can take you just about anywhere with very little walking required.
The cost for a single ride is €1.50, and this can be purchased on the bus. The fare is cheaper when purchasing 10 rides, coming in at €12.20. This saves a few euros, and, for tourists planning to return to Madrid, the rides don’t expire for several years.
Bus (and metro) tickets can be purchased at any metro station, but the easiest place to get bus tickets is at one of the newspaper or tobacco stands on street level. These stands are prevalent around the city.
Personally, I don’t care much for most bus systems. Yes, at times, they are the most convenient (or only) option. However, to me, buses are slow and inconvenient. And they are often very crowded. In Madrid, the traffic slows down buses, and the construction that seems to be taking place everywhere is another factor that slows buses.
The extensive bus network in Madrid makes it appealing, but I find it to be a headache. Walking is simpler, and the subway is usually faster.
The Madrid Metro
The Madrid Metro is the subway system in the city. For tourists, the metro is the fastest transportation to get across Madrid. It is simpler than the buses and is not affected by traffic or construction. Outside of rush hour, the crowds are not excessive.
The Madrid Metro is reasonably priced compared to most major cities in Western Europe. One ride costs €1.50-2.00. This ticket is good for trips in “Zone A,” which covers most of the city. A combined ticket (ticket outside Zone A) will cost €3. As with the bus system, riders can purchase rides in bulk – 10 rides for €12.20.
When landing at Madrid Airport, tourists will need to purchase a transportation card before using any bus or metro. It costs a small amount, but the card is needed to use the system. Hang on to the card after this initial trip. If you’re planning to return to Madrid anytime soon, that’s another reason to keep the card.
Transportation To/From Madrid
Madrid is a popular destination in its own right, but most travelers will include other places in their trip. Fortunately, transportation for tourists to/from Madrid and around Spain is super easy.
Spain has an excellent rail and bus network for passengers. I’ve never witnessed such a puzzling display of consistent inefficiency (from a practical, financial perspective), but more on that coming in a future post. The point is that, for a tourist in Spain, it is easy to travel around the country.
Trains are always easier and more expensive. Buses are generally slower but tend to be cheaper and serve more destinations. Here are some basics to know to get around Spain when going to/from Madrid.
Train
Madrid has two main train stations. Puerta de Atocha is the biggest train station in the city. It is located close to the city center, within walking distance of Centro. Atocha is the principal train station to use for trips around much of Spain, though shorter routes also embark from here (regional, Cercanias). It is a big, beautiful train station.
Chamartin is the secondary long-distance train station in Madrid. For the most part, Chamartin is used for medium-distance routes (regional trains) and slower long-distance routes. It is also used for the Cercanias commuter rail system that connects Madrid with nearby smaller cities and towns, such as El Escorial.
Tourists should go to Puerta de Atocha for the fastest trains to reach other popular places in Spain, such as Seville, Valencia or Barcelona. There are even international trains (to France) from Atocha. For destinations in the north of Spain, Chamartin is the station of choice.
Regional trains in Spain are typically cheaper and slower. A train from Madrid to Segovia costs €7 and takes about 2 hours. This is on the “Media Distancia” train. A high-speed line, AVE or Alvia, also reaches Segovia. However, it is more expensive and the station in Segovia is not centrally located.
AVE or Alvia trains (high-speed) to locales farther away can be expensive. Tickets are usually cheaper when buying far in advance. For example, a ticket from Seville to Madrid on a high-speed AVE train can cost as little as €25-30. A last-minute purchase (like I did) cost over €70. If you know your travel dates, it’s best to buy the tickets early.
The same goes for the high-speed train between Barcelona and Madrid. Purchased early, the ticket can cost €35-40. On the other hand, buying the ticket right before departure regularly costs €100.
Some of the prices for these trains are pretty steep, but the journeys are fast. The high-speed train to/from Madrid and Seville takes a little over 2 hours, and the journey to/from Barcelona takes about 3 hours. By comparison, the slower trains will take at least 6 or 7 hours.
Bus
The cheapest way to get around Spain is via bus. Lengthy bus trips may not be the most common method of transportation to and from Madrid for most tourists (exception: backpackers, budget travelers), but they are a much better option than most travelers realize.
If time is on your side, buses are very practical. Most bus stations are more centrally located in cities, and buses serve more destinations than trains. Plus, buses are almost always cheaper than trains. Compared to slow trains, buses take about the same amount of time.
Buses in Spain (and most of Europe) are a good quality transportation method. As an American, that’s a hard concept to grasp. I’ve taken long bus rides in the US, and they are usually less than pleasant. Spain’s long-distance buses beat the hell out of a Greyhound trip every time.
The main long-distance bus station in Madrid is Estacion Sur de Autobuses. It is located near Puerta de Atocha train station, and there are buses here traveling all across Spain. There are even international bus routes leaving from Estacion de Sur going to Morocco, Portugal, France and beyond.
The secondary bus station in Madrid is Avenida de America. This one is located in the Prosperidad neighborhood, a little farther away from most tourist interests but still in the middle of the city. Most buses from Avenida de America serve destinations in the north of Spain, though there are international routes here as well.
When going to Avenida de America bus station, go inside and all the way down to the bottom level. This is where the buses park and load, and they are not visible from street level.
All of the long bus journeys I took in Spain were nice, clean and comfortable. About half the time, the free WiFi even works. Also, the buses are usually not full, and there is plenty of room to spread out. As much as I love riding on trains, buses are usually more practical from a comfort and price standpoint. Long-distance buses in Spain are great.
Spain has a fantastic public transportation network. Fortunately, transportation in Madrid for tourists is equally comprehensive and easily navigable. There is a transportation card specifically for tourists in Madrid. It can be used for 1, 3, 5, or 7 days. However, I find the regular system to be more practical.
Walking is almost always the healthiest and least stressful way to get around a destination. In Madrid, too, walking is the best way to see the city and, most importantly, find all of the delicious food. Other options for getting around are better than decent, though. Whether on foot, by bus or train, getting a grasp on transportation is the first step to enjoying and maximizing time for tourists in Madrid.
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