One of our first places we visited was Madrid and it was a great kickstarter for us. We found a great place to stay and more importantly we found the cheap beer! This blog goes through a 2 day visit exploring the city and sharing with you our favourite hotspots.
Contents
- Best place to drink beer
- Where to stay for backpackers
- Best places to visit in 2 days
- Best way to get around the city
- Best restaurants
- Best clubs and party
- Is Madrid worth visiting for backpackers?
- Tips and Tricks
Best Place to Drink Beer
You can see the delight and sense of achievement when we found the only bar in Madrid that serves beer this cheap! 1 euro a beer is just as dangerous at it sounds and as you can see we got a little carried away.
This place is called 100 montaditos and is actually a chain across Spain and some of Europe.
It’s the ideal place for any budget friendly backpacker and serves some good snacks to keep your stomach lined.
See all their Madrid locations on Google Maps here
Where to stay for backpackers
We stayed in the 2060 Newton Hostel and it was perfect for our visit. Walkable to the city centre with reasonable prices. Location is found here. However there are some great hostels in Madrid and here are a couple others that stand out.
The Hat Madrid – location here
Being a little more expensive for your dorm room bed pays off with the access to this awesome rooftop restaurant/bar. It is important to treat yourself sometimes.
Onefam Sungate – location here
This is the highest rated hostel in Madrid on HostelWorld for a reason, it delivers across the board and everyone who has stayed there recommends it to us. Also hold some great hostel parties and event nights. A must try on your next visit.
Best Places to Visit in 2 Days
You will have plenty of time to view the major sights in Madrid, like the Thyssen Museum, Parque del Retiro, and Puerta de Alcala, in two days while visiting this lovely city. You can take in the peace of Real Basilica de San Francisco el Grande and people watch at Plaza Mayor for a while. The Monasterio de la Encarnacion, Palacio Real de Madrid, and the Almudena Cathedral are a few more must-see sights. We believe you can see all these sights on two days easy peasy. Click to see their locations.
Day 1:
Best Way to get around the city
The metro is renowned as the best and most economical mode of transportation for navigating the city. With its extensive network of routes and frequent services, the metro provides unparalleled convenience and accessibility to all major attractions. We love walking but when it was raining all day like this day was, metro was the obvious choice.
Best Restaurants
When you dine out every meal, like we do, you get a solid sense of the quality of restaurants and whether they are worth spending your hard-earned money in. Another thing you should know is that we eat a burger between us every day so when it comes down to our burger recommendations we mean business. Oh tapas is pretty good here too apparently. Click the name for the google map link.
- Best Tapas – Casa Toni
- Best Burger – Bacao
- Best Pizza –Fratelli Figurato
- Best Asian – Sichuan Kitchen
- Best Steakhouse – Chambao Restaurant
- Best Spanish Breakfast – Matilda Café Barrio de Las Letras
- Best Cup of Tea spot – El Riojano
Best Clubs and Party
Madrid is famous for its massive clubs, where thousands of people party every night of the week. The Spanish capital is regarded as the “city that never sleeps.” You’ll find some of the top clubs in Spanish and European nightlife.
Before we give you our favourite clubs don’t forget about your hostels! Loads of the hostels in Madrid turn into a massive party most nights and they keep the price of their beer as low as they can for us backpackers! The hostels listed above have a great nightlife atmosphere. But if you’re looking to experience the real Madrid nightlife in full these are our top club picks:
- Best Techno – Fabrik
- Best House – Goya Social Club
- Best Dance & Hits – Teatro Barcelo
- Best Overall – Teatro apital – 7 Floor Club
- Best live music – Café La Palma
Is Madrid worth visiting for backpackers?
Short answer = Yes! Madrid might seem a little expensive for a backpacking location but you can still have a great time without breaking the bank. If you have a big bank then Madrid is of course a no brainer.
Madrid offers a perfect blend of cultural richness and laid-back vibes. Whether you’re wandering through its charming streets, devouring mouthwatering tapas, or dancing the night away at a lively club, Madrid always keeps the adventure alive. We believe it’s the ideal playground for backpackers looking to dive into the heart of Spain’s lively culture and offers a real unique city experience.
Tips and Tricks
As you can see from some of our pictures, rain tends to fall quite often in Madrid so always make sure to bring your raincoats or at least an umbrella with you as you explore. Take a peak at our favourite backpacking clothing here.
Speaking a little bit of Spanish goes a long way with the local people and we are big believers on giving the native language a try. To help us out we take a Spanish phrase book around and it definitely helps put a smile on the waitresses face!
You can check it out here.
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