Plaza Mayor, Center, Madrid

The Plaza Mayor is a famous tourist hotspot in central Madrid, a beautiful city square lined with tiny little tourist shops and tapas bars.

A picturesque spot with a Convent Garden-type feel, this is the best place in Old Madrid to kick back with a glass of wine in the sunshine and listen to the buskers, watch the mime artists and laugh at people pretending to be statues or weird goat-men dressed as pom-poms... maybe that last one was just us.

Even if it’s a grotty day and there’s nothing so exciting happening, it’s worth wandering around here just to appreciate the incredible architecture of Juan Gómez de Mora, dating back to 1790.

Oh, and apparently (according to Wikipedia): “If you look around today you can still see the blood on the walls from some of the bull fights held in earlier years.” Lovely.

What a lovely place. Madrid doesn’t have a nice river like Paris, but it does have a lovely old square. Plaza Mayor has shops all around it, cafes all over it, and tourists everywhere. The cafes are pretty stupidly expensive, but that’s what you pay for such beautiful surroundings. It’s a wonderful place for a walk and an evening drink, and it’s easy to get to and find. Definitely one of Madrid’s main attractions, if you ask me.

Yes, it’s touristy and you should not eat and drink here, but you should pass through it at least once. As one of the other re-viewers has pointed out, there are some great bars and restaurants off some of the side streets which are worth checking out.

There are often open air concerts and displays here in summer for free which are well worth attending.

Huge central space in Madrid off the Calle Mayor, this is where everyone touristy goes. There is an information centre which provides lots of helpful information and free 15 minute internet slots for those all important facebook updates.
There are lots of very nice, very expensive touristy shops in the cloisters of the square, full of leicester square style tat, but perhaps the most important reason to visit the square is all the little squares and streets that spin off it to the south, where you can find better, cheaper restaurants and bars.

Busy, busy heart of Madrid. Kilómetro 0 plaque in sidewalk makes it feel a little like going to Ecuador and standing on the equator… well, perhaps not quite the same. A lot of the area has been renovated by fresh paint, which means it looks very different today than 20 - 25 years ago. What is still the same are the mobs of people and the rushing of vehicles. Some tourists will enjoy this excess of humanity and activity, but not this one. There are also some stories about some of the buildings which are a bit dark, considering people have been detained in one of the buildings.

One fun thing is to stand in the center and decide which of the arteries out takes your fancy, then follow it.

I would also hold onto one’s purse here - tightly. It was in the Puerta del Sol where I was robbed (and lost 2 passports plus tickets the day before an international trip) - the only time I’ve had anybody steal anything in years on end of traveling through Iberia. There was a ring of thieves working the area, as the police told me.

New Year’s Eve is a big event here - like Times Square. people gather to down the 12 uvas de la suerte ( 12 lucky grapes) as the clock gongs. Go if you wish, but again don’t take any valuables.