A large number of agencies in Madrid book organized tours and excursions to sights and attractions both in and outside the city limits. Although your mobility and freedom might be somewhat hampered with an organized tour, many visitors appreciate the ease and convenience of being able to visit so many sights in a single efficiently organized day.
In the City
Bus Tours -- Many of the city's hotel concierges, and all of the city's travel agents, will book anyone who asks for a guided tour of Madrid or its environs with one of Spain's largest tour operators, Pullmantours, Plaza de Oriente 8 (tel. 91-541-18-07). Regardless of their destination and duration, virtually every tour departs from the Pullmantours terminal, at that address. Half-day tours of Madrid include an artistic tour priced at 34€ ($43) per person, which includes entrance to a selection of the city's museums, and a panoramic half-day tour for 19€ ($24).
The hop-off, hop-on Madrid Vision Bus lets you set your own pace and itinerary. A scheduled panoramic tour lasts a half-hour, provided that you don't get off the bus. Otherwise, you can opt for an unlimited number of stops, exploring at your leisure. The Madrid Vision makes four complete tours daily, two in the morning and two in the afternoon; on Sunday and Monday buses depart only in the morning. Check with Trapsa Tours (tel. 91-767-17-43) for the latest departure times, which vary. The full-day tour, with unlimited stops, costs 11€ ($14). You can board the bus at the Madrid tourist office.
Outside the City
Pullmantours also offers guided tours to destinations outside Madrid. Toledo is the most popular full-day excursion outside the city limits. Trips cost from 60€ ($75). These tours (including lunch) depart daily at 9:45am from the Pullmantours terminal at Plaza de Oriente 8, last all day, and include ample opportunities for wandering at will through the city's narrow streets. You can, if you wish, take an abbreviated morning tour of Toledo, without stopping for lunch, for 40€ ($50).
Another popular tour stops briefly in Toledo and continues on to visit both the monastery at El Escorial and the Valle de los Caídos (Valley of the Fallen) before returning the same day to Madrid. With lunch included, this all-day excursion costs 90€ ($113).
The third major destination of bus tours from Madrid's center to the city's surrounding attractions is Pullmantours' full-day guided excursion to Avila and Segovia, which takes in a heady dose of medieval and ancient Roman monuments. With lunch included, the price per person is 70€ ($88).
