All our Madrid guides tagged planning.
A four-day Madrid plan that does not rush: the museum triangle, royal Madrid, the tapas neighbourhoods, Retiro, and a day trip out, with the local eating hours built in rather than fought.
How entering Spain works for a Madrid trip: who travels visa free and for how long, how the rolling Schengen count works, the new biometric border, passport validity, and what to have ready at the airport.
Madrid's big museums open free for the last hours of the day. What that period is really like, which museums offer it, how early to arrive, and when paying is the better decision.
A plan for one of the great museums: the works most people come for, how to structure two or three hours instead of a whole day, when it is quietest, and what to skip without regret.
Half an hour by fast train: the Roman aqueduct in the middle of town, the Alcazar on its rock, the cathedral, the walk to the viewpoints, and the long lunch Segovia is known for.
One has the sea, the architecture and the crowds. The other has the art, the food culture and a city that still belongs to the people who live in it.
Everything a first-time visitor needs for Madrid: when to go, which neighborhood to stay in, what to book ahead, how to get around, what to eat and the rookie mistakes to skip.