Just back from Madrid with teens and a 9-year-old
Aug 2nd, 2006 | 07:08 PM
#1
Original Poster
Joined: Jun 2003
Posts: 24
Likes: 0
Just back from Madrid with teens and a 9-year-old
Thanks to everyone who posted suggestions to this site. It was extremely helpful, especially Maribel's guide, which provided information that is impossible to find in guidebooks.
Our trip was wonderful, albeit a bit odd. My 16-year-old daughter and 9-year-old son stayed with me in a hotel, while my 18-year-old son stayed with several European friends in a youth hostel nearby. We tried to get together at least once a day and find activities that everyone would enjoy.
Here are some highlights:
Lodging:
We were at the Lope de Vega, which is a half block from the Prado. Great little hotel, wonderful staff, excellent value, perfect location.
The boys were at the nearby Cats youth hostel, which was another bargain at 18 Euros a night, including a simple croissant and coffee breakfast. It is in an historical building right off of Atocha street next to a Flamenco club. They said it was clean and fun, but by the end of the week they complained that there were more seniors than young people.
Museums:
Follow Maribel's advice on how to visit the museums. It really helps avoid the crowds.
We all loved the Palacio Real, especially the view, the Royal Pharmacy and the Armory.
The current Picasso exhibit at the Prado and Reina Sofia is definitely worth seeing, although it is rather crowded. The teens especially enjoyed "Guernica" at the RS.
The Prado is free on Sundays, RS free Saturday late afternoons and Sundays.
We loved the Thyssen, which has no free days and thus probably explains why it is quieter and less crowded. Our 9-year-old especially liked the Dalis.
We waited in line for the Descalzas Reales, but the line was hours long and it was so hot that we ended up skipping it.
Other entertainment:
El Retiro Park: If you don't mind the gypsies who try to sell you rosemary and play in-your-face accordion music, this is a great place to relax and people-watch. We found many quiet corners and benches to sit on in the shade.
The teens found a public pool near El Retiro that they went to almost daily to cool off.
The Palacio de Cristal (in the park) has a current exhibit that we called the "sock" exhibit. The Palacio is empty except for some shiny plastic covering on the floor, and it's about 100 degrees inside. At the (free) entrance the attendant rips open a new pair of socks from a plastic wrapper, and gives them to you so that you can slide around on the floor, all the while listening to some unsettling animal scratching sounds coming out of the speakers. When you've had enough fun, you can either give the socks back to the attendant, who puts them in a big bag to be thrown or given away, or you can take them. Since we were doing our own laundry on the trip, we opted for keeping the free socks, but we´re still wondering if we didn´t somehow miss the point.
Food:
La Plateria: Calle Moratin 49. Maribel suggests this place for lunch or coffee after the Prado. It became our daily stop, sometimes several times a day, but certainly for breakfast. The staff is very pleasant and hardworking and the food is quite good.
Taberna Maceira: Huertas 66. This was supposed to be the place we all went together for our big feast. As such, it was a bit disappointing. It's a Galician tapas bar, which would have been fine, but the waitresses were pretty rude, not keen on teens, and one was horrified that we asked for Coke. The tables were so close together that we kept falling into other diners and vice versa. Having said that, the food was great (especially the patatas bravas and the pimientos patron.) I would try it again, hoping for a better night.
Other good tapas bars in the (Santa Ana) area were:
La Casa del Abuelo, Calle Victoria 12
Taberna Dolores, Pza. Jesus 4
Cervezas la Fabrica, Calle Jesus 2
For quick snacks: Try either VIPS, Pans & Co. or Rodilla, with Rodilla being the best of the three.
Shopping:
Corte Inglés is the best option for picking up a few fans or perfumes or scarves for gifts. The one at the Puerta del Sol is quite crowded; the one in the Salamanca neighborhood is better. We especially liked the book, music and gourmet sections, which are at some locations in separate buildings. We bought a lot of gourmet items there to take home as gifts.
For espadrilles, the Casa Hernanz is right off the Plaza Mayor at Calle Toledo 18. They have every imaginable type and price, although they close for lunch, Saturday p.m. and Sundays.
The kids' favorite place to buy good souveniers was at the stands on the median in front of the Prado, at Plaza Cibeles. They bought shawls for 8E, cloth purses for 10E, bullfighting posters with their names on them as bullfighters for 8E, t-shirts and scarves. The prices and quality there were as good if not better than anywhere else.
Transportation:
Suggest the Aerocity shuttle from the hotel to the airport. It's reliable and much more comfortable than a cab, bus or metro. The hotel can reserve it for you.
Our trip was wonderful, albeit a bit odd. My 16-year-old daughter and 9-year-old son stayed with me in a hotel, while my 18-year-old son stayed with several European friends in a youth hostel nearby. We tried to get together at least once a day and find activities that everyone would enjoy.
Here are some highlights:
Lodging:
We were at the Lope de Vega, which is a half block from the Prado. Great little hotel, wonderful staff, excellent value, perfect location.
The boys were at the nearby Cats youth hostel, which was another bargain at 18 Euros a night, including a simple croissant and coffee breakfast. It is in an historical building right off of Atocha street next to a Flamenco club. They said it was clean and fun, but by the end of the week they complained that there were more seniors than young people.
Museums:
Follow Maribel's advice on how to visit the museums. It really helps avoid the crowds.
We all loved the Palacio Real, especially the view, the Royal Pharmacy and the Armory.
The current Picasso exhibit at the Prado and Reina Sofia is definitely worth seeing, although it is rather crowded. The teens especially enjoyed "Guernica" at the RS.
The Prado is free on Sundays, RS free Saturday late afternoons and Sundays.
We loved the Thyssen, which has no free days and thus probably explains why it is quieter and less crowded. Our 9-year-old especially liked the Dalis.
We waited in line for the Descalzas Reales, but the line was hours long and it was so hot that we ended up skipping it.
Other entertainment:
El Retiro Park: If you don't mind the gypsies who try to sell you rosemary and play in-your-face accordion music, this is a great place to relax and people-watch. We found many quiet corners and benches to sit on in the shade.
The teens found a public pool near El Retiro that they went to almost daily to cool off.
The Palacio de Cristal (in the park) has a current exhibit that we called the "sock" exhibit. The Palacio is empty except for some shiny plastic covering on the floor, and it's about 100 degrees inside. At the (free) entrance the attendant rips open a new pair of socks from a plastic wrapper, and gives them to you so that you can slide around on the floor, all the while listening to some unsettling animal scratching sounds coming out of the speakers. When you've had enough fun, you can either give the socks back to the attendant, who puts them in a big bag to be thrown or given away, or you can take them. Since we were doing our own laundry on the trip, we opted for keeping the free socks, but we´re still wondering if we didn´t somehow miss the point.
Food:
La Plateria: Calle Moratin 49. Maribel suggests this place for lunch or coffee after the Prado. It became our daily stop, sometimes several times a day, but certainly for breakfast. The staff is very pleasant and hardworking and the food is quite good.
Taberna Maceira: Huertas 66. This was supposed to be the place we all went together for our big feast. As such, it was a bit disappointing. It's a Galician tapas bar, which would have been fine, but the waitresses were pretty rude, not keen on teens, and one was horrified that we asked for Coke. The tables were so close together that we kept falling into other diners and vice versa. Having said that, the food was great (especially the patatas bravas and the pimientos patron.) I would try it again, hoping for a better night.
Other good tapas bars in the (Santa Ana) area were:
La Casa del Abuelo, Calle Victoria 12
Taberna Dolores, Pza. Jesus 4
Cervezas la Fabrica, Calle Jesus 2
For quick snacks: Try either VIPS, Pans & Co. or Rodilla, with Rodilla being the best of the three.
Shopping:
Corte Inglés is the best option for picking up a few fans or perfumes or scarves for gifts. The one at the Puerta del Sol is quite crowded; the one in the Salamanca neighborhood is better. We especially liked the book, music and gourmet sections, which are at some locations in separate buildings. We bought a lot of gourmet items there to take home as gifts.
For espadrilles, the Casa Hernanz is right off the Plaza Mayor at Calle Toledo 18. They have every imaginable type and price, although they close for lunch, Saturday p.m. and Sundays.
The kids' favorite place to buy good souveniers was at the stands on the median in front of the Prado, at Plaza Cibeles. They bought shawls for 8E, cloth purses for 10E, bullfighting posters with their names on them as bullfighters for 8E, t-shirts and scarves. The prices and quality there were as good if not better than anywhere else.
Transportation:
Suggest the Aerocity shuttle from the hotel to the airport. It's reliable and much more comfortable than a cab, bus or metro. The hotel can reserve it for you.
Aug 2nd, 2006 | 07:12 PM
#2
Joined: Sep 2004
Posts: 12,848
Likes: 0
Nice report and trip, llopez. We've split up before, too, and although it does create logistical problems sometimes it's the best solution for older teens. I'll bet your son was not prepared for all those senior citizens at his "youth" hostel!
Thanks for posting this--
Thanks for posting this--
Aug 3rd, 2006 | 01:13 PM
#4
Original Poster
Joined: Jun 2003
Posts: 24
Likes: 0
We were in Madrid for about a week, in Barcelona for six days. Five days in each would be enough if you can get everybody moving early and keep them going until about 10 p.m.
Our kids are a bit slower than that however. They like to stop a lot and have lemonade, horchata, ice cream or snacks at cafes or in plazas, so it was probably good that we had the extra time. I think in the end they got much more of a feel for the places and spent a lot of time away from the hotel zones.
We loved both Madrid and Barcleona, but on balance, I think we all probably liked Barcelona a bit more, just because the architecture is so unique. We live in Chile and the kids have spent their entire lives living in Latin America, so much of the Madrileño architecture is similar to what they are familiar with.
Nobody, on the other hand, had seen the likes of Gaudi before, plus Barcelona just has its own style in general.
In addition, everyone in our group had different tolerances for fine art, so I'd say that the variety of things to do and see in Barcelona was probably better, although they were all wowed by what they saw at the Prado and Reina Sophia in Madrid.
We missed out on the bullfighting season in Madrid, although we watched several "ferias" on TV on the three Sunday afternoons we were there. If we were to go back, some of the kids would go to a bullfight, but our 9-year-old says he would refuse on the grounds that the bull didn't do anything to the matador so it's not fair.
Our kids are a bit slower than that however. They like to stop a lot and have lemonade, horchata, ice cream or snacks at cafes or in plazas, so it was probably good that we had the extra time. I think in the end they got much more of a feel for the places and spent a lot of time away from the hotel zones.
We loved both Madrid and Barcleona, but on balance, I think we all probably liked Barcelona a bit more, just because the architecture is so unique. We live in Chile and the kids have spent their entire lives living in Latin America, so much of the Madrileño architecture is similar to what they are familiar with.
Nobody, on the other hand, had seen the likes of Gaudi before, plus Barcelona just has its own style in general.
In addition, everyone in our group had different tolerances for fine art, so I'd say that the variety of things to do and see in Barcelona was probably better, although they were all wowed by what they saw at the Prado and Reina Sophia in Madrid.
We missed out on the bullfighting season in Madrid, although we watched several "ferias" on TV on the three Sunday afternoons we were there. If we were to go back, some of the kids would go to a bullfight, but our 9-year-old says he would refuse on the grounds that the bull didn't do anything to the matador so it's not fair.
Apr 17th, 2007 | 08:34 AM
#5
Joined: May 2006
Posts: 53
Likes: 0
Thank you very much for your report (especially the souvenir tip)...... We'll be travelling to Madrid this August with our 3 children (ages 14, 8 and 4) ---- Can you tell me the name of the swimming pool your kids went to near Retiro Park? Also, did you get a chance to visit the Cada de Campo Park? I'm wondering if there is more to entertain our children there vs. Retiro Park (we'd go on a Sunday). Thanks again!
