Madrid Information - hotels, restaurants, golf, weather, maps & more

While Madrid remains the hustling and bustling center of commerce for one of Europe’s most important countries, in recent years, Madrid has developed a bit of an inferiority complex. Ever since the 1992 Olympic Games shown a white hot spotlight on little sister Barcelona, Madrid has fallen to a drab second place when it comes to Spain’s hot vacation destinations. But while Madrid may not have miles of sugar sand coastline and hordes of beautiful women running around in bikinis, it is still a venerable city that every tourist should visit at least once. With centuries of history and architecture to die for, Madrid is undergoing a rebirth of sorts among tourists who are happily rediscovering Spain’s capital. Let’s take a closer look at this beautiful city and see exactly what it has to offer the curious traveler.

If the city of Madrid was a souped-up European sports car, the vibrant and pulsating art community would be the 8-cylinder engine. After decades under a regime that wasn’t friendly to creative types, to say the least, the art, music and fashion scene has blossomed like a beautiful rose in the years since. While Barcelona may have the beach, Madrid has the gravitas that other cities would kill for. If you are on a mission to find your muse, you could do a lot worse than a few weeks hunting around Madrid.

What many people don’t know about Madrid is the oddly high elevation the city sits at. It is because of this location that Madrid seems, at times, to be almost unreal in appearance. The sunsets are just a bit brighter, and the blue skies are a little too shiny. Perspective can be thrown off just a bit if you’ve come here from a sea level town or city. It gives the whole place a somewhat dream like quality that is especially apparent during sunset and at dusk. It is no wonder then that painters and artists from around the globe have flocked here en masse.

As for what to do in Madrid, you could spend quite a nice vacation here just eating at the various cafes and four-star restaurants and visiting galleries and art museums. Of course, there is so much more to do in Madrid, but no one is going to fault you for making your trip here two dimensional. The sheer number of galleries may make you think for a moment that you’ve stumbled into Venice or even Rome, but you are safe and sound in the center of Spain, discovering that Madrid is so much more than just a world wide business center.

Don’t miss the multitude of ancient buildings here, either. There are ancient ruins as well as buildings restored from the middle ages that deserve inspection and admiration. As for hotels, you can easily spend a fortune staying here, or only a prince’s ransom, if you so desire. With a large art community that is often low on cash, Madrid is possibly one of the best European destinations to do on a budget, although it is a lot more fun if you don’t have to.