Forty-eight hours
in Madrid.

The short answer

Two days is enough for the essential Madrid if the bookings are made in the right order: the starred dinner first, then the museum slot, then everything else around them.

Day one: arrive, art, a great table

Land at the executive terminal and be at the hotel within about half an hour. Afternoon at the Thyssen or the Prado (the Prado is open until 20:00 Monday to Saturday). Dinner at one of Madrid’s two-star tables, with the car waiting outside. The starred list →

Day two: the Golden Mile, the old city, a night out

Morning on Serrano and Ortega y Gasset, with private appointments if you want them. Lunch, then the Royal Palace and the old streets around the Teatro Real. Evening: the opera if a production is on, or flamenco and dinner at Corral de la Morería. Shopping → · The opera season →

With a third day

Toledo or Segovia by car, back for dinner; or, in winter, a ski day in the Pyrenees by private jet. Day trips →

Where to sleep

For two nights, stay central: the Paseo del Arte for the museums, Salamanca for the shopping. Where to stay →