In One Day

This is going to be a very busy day if you want to do the city's key sights full justice. Start with the not-to-be-missed Prado museum, for many the highlight of a Madrid visit. Then, after sauntering briefly though the neighboring Botanical Garden, take in the sights around the Puerta del Sol and Plaza Mayor. After lunch, explore the historic Austrias district, the heart of old regal Madrid. Round off your day with a coffee or aperitif in the adjoining Plaza de Oriente and enjoy the view of the Royal Palace. Note: Varying seasonal hours of some attractions may require modification of the itinerary below..

1: Prado Museum

Your minutes are precious here, so pick out a few choice masterpieces (such as Velázquez's Las Meninas) and concentrate on your favorites. It will be difficult not to be sidetracked with such a wealth of beauty around you, but try to confine your time to a mere hour instead of the half-day you really need to do this place justice. If you're making this visit on a Sunday morning, admission is free, so expect to see longer-than-usual lines of eagerly waiting tourists.

2: Botanical Gardens

Adjoining the museum, this delightfully compact backwater of calm and greenery was founded by Charles III. It had over 650 plant species when it opened in 1755: now you can count the wide variety of flowers, shrubs, and ancient trees in thousands. As you wander its sylvan pathways, it's hard to believe you're in the heart of a big city.

3: Paseo del Prado

Also the work of Charles III, this tree-lined gem, where you can walk shaded by a huge mellow archway of green, is for our money the most beautiful paseo in Madrid, if not all Spain. Incomprehensible 2006 plans to chop down most of these ancient trees and "open up" the whole avenue to make it more "touristically attractive" have so far been scotched thanks to strong opposition by Thyssen Museum owner "Tita" Cervera, widow of Baron Thyssen, and a host of other prominent Madrileños. At press time, however, it's still not clear what will happen.

4: Congreso de Diputados

Reach here after turning left at the Neptuno fountain. At the Plaza del Congreso admire the neoclassical facade, granite pillars, and bronze statues of lions outside this mid-19th-century parliamentary building designed by Pascual y Colomer. Here the fate of the state is discussed -- often heatedly -- and a botched coup was attempted in 1981 (bullet holes in the ceiling of the Sessions Chamber date from that inauspicious occasion). Bring your passport if you want to pay a Saturday morning visit.

5: Ateneo de Madrid

This 19th-century bastion of culture exudes a time-warp atmosphere. Wander in, ask politely to see the well-worn lounges with their wooden walls and high chandeliers, and imagine yourself back in the time of Unamuno, Ortega y Gasset, and other literary giants of the "Generation of '98" (that's 1898). Though the impressive upstairs library (members only, but you can peer through the glass door) now boasts Internet facilities, the mellow historic surroundings remain incongruously as they were more than a century ago.

6: Casa Museo de Lope de Vega

Probably the smallest museum in town, this well-preserved medieval house was the home of Spain's most famed and prolific 16th-century playwright and has a secret hidden gem of a garden at the rear. Ironically, it's located on a street named for the dramatist's rival, novelist Cervantes. Best to book ahead; it has severe limitations on the size of visiting groups.

7: Take a Break

Rest your weary legs in La Mallorquina Pastelería's rather secretive upstairs cafe, where the laid-back atmosphere contrasts pleasantly with the frenzy of the congested bar-cum-shop below. Great coffee plus a variety of cholesterol-filled pastries including a favorite of the Balearic island, ensaimada, which may tempt you into spoiling your lunch. Puerta del Sol 8. tel. 91-521-12-01.

8: Puerta del Sol

Named after the sun-emblazoned gate of a medieval fort that once stood here, this compact and ever-crowded urban hub, Madrid's answer to Times Square, is the only plaza in the city that still bears the name puerta (gate). Highlights are its 18th-century clock, whose chimes have marked the jubilant beginning of many a New Year, and emblematic little statue of El Oso y el Madroño (The Bear and the Strawberry Tree). It's said to be the geographical center of the country -- although the nearby town of Parla also claims this privilege.

9: Plaza Mayor

Spain's most famous square has seen various — sometimes violent — changes since its first appearance in the 15th. century, and in these more peaceful days enjoys times concerts, exhibitions and one off freebie treats such as the annual serving of traditional cocido to the public by soldiers. Have your tongue-in-cheek portrait painted in five minutes by one of the various artists who set up their stalls beside the colonnades, and look out for the controversially bright and breezy murals portraying goddess Cibeles and offspring Proserpine on the Casa de la Panaderia side (considered by some to resemble a comic strip.) If you come on a Sunday browse around the weekly stamp and coin market.

10: Take a Break

Lunch in Cava Baja's Casa Lucio restaurant, a favorite of King Juan Carlos and visiting stars, dignitaries, and heads of state including George W. Prize dish is the outwardly simple huevos estrellados, (a fry of eggs and wafer-thin potatoes), here raised to a fine art. On a grander scale, the oven-baked beefsteaks are out of this world. Try to get a first-floor table for the best atmosphere.

11: Austrias District

The narrow streets of Cuchilleros and Cavas Baja and Alta and the charming plazas de la Cebada and de la Paja are at the heart of 16th-century Madrid, dating from the period when the Habsburgs ruled Spain. Here you'll find the city's oldest -- and smallest -- churches, San Nicolas de las Servitas and San Pedro el Viejo, twin reminders of a time when Madrid was a modest town of some 10,000 inhabitants. The tiny Morería section on its western fringe was once the Jewish quarter.

12: Plaza Oriente

Built over the remains of the old wooden Habsburg palace that burned down in the 17th century, this attractive French-style semicircular plaza has statues of the kings of Spain clustered around a central equestrian statue of Philip IV. A favorite with photographers of all nationalities, it's one of our favorite spots for relaxing over a drink.

13: Take a Break

The great attraction of the Café de Oriente is not so much its plush mock Baroque interior as the outside terrace area, which overlooks the square and magnificent facade of the Palacio Real (which you'll visit on your second day). Here you can sip your Campari and soda in an atmosphere of historic splendor. Plaza de Oriente. tel. 91-541-39-74.