Where to Stay in Madrid: Complete Guide for First Timers

Malasaña: Our Top Pick for Coolest Area in Madrid

Malasaña – our favorite part of Madrid’s city center – is just north of Gran Vía and stretches up north, getting more residential the further north you go.

Just off of Gran Vía, it’s lively, full of bars and restaurants that are busy starting in the late afternoon and stretching into the early hours of the morning. 

We found ourselves in this charming neighborhood many, many times – sometimes multiple times in a day – over the course of our week in Madrid.

The number of coffee shops, bars, restaurants, and shops is unrivaled in any other neighborhood in Madrid, at least in our experience.

Being just off of Gran Vía, it’s also in a central location that will put you within walking distance of most places in Madrid. 

Normally when we talk about hipster, charming neighborhoods in a city – Trastevere or Testaccio in Rome, Capitol Hill or Ballard in Seattle, or Gràcia in Barcelona –  the area is not as central as we’d like, but it’s worth the tradeoff to stay in a cooler neighborhood than some of the more central ones. 

In Malasaña, you truly get the best of both worlds. You’re central and within walking distance of just about everything you’ll want to see over the course of your Madrid itinerary, and you’re also smack dab in the middle of the coolest neighborhood in central Madrid. 

The only tradeoff is that it’s generally a little louder and more boisterous than other areas, with people packing the plazas, bars, and restaurants at all hours.

However, you can certainly find quieter corners where you’ll be able to get a full night’s sleep, if that’s what you want. 

What about Chueca?

Chueca is the neighborhood immediately to the east, and as I was walking around the two neighborhoods it was really hard to find a real border between them.

They blend together, though as you get closer to where the border is supposed to be, you’ll start to notice more and more rainbow flags – Chueca is one of the more LBGTQ+ focused areas in Madrid, and also a nightlife hub (the two seem to usually go hand-in-hand – see: Capitol Hill in Seattle and the Castro in San Francisco).

For the purposes of this guide, we don’t see enough of a difference between the two to have a completely separate section for them.

Pros and Cons of Staying in Malasaña

Pros of staying in Malasaña: 

• Simultaneously Hip and Charming. Malasaña is a little bit hipster, and a lot bit charming. Every few blocks, you’ll come across an open plaza with people relaxing in the sun, sipping coffee or a beer, watching the world go by. Open public spaces within cities where people hang out is something that Spain (and Italy, and Colombia, and Mexico…) do really well, and we’re here for more of it at home in the US. 
  
  
• Unparalleled Variety of Places to Eat and Drink. In between those charming plazas is an array of shops, bars, and restaurants offering nearly every kind of cuisine or drink under the sun. Authentic Venezuelan, Japanese, Italian – just about every region of the world is represented here. 
  
  
• Central. It’s just north of Gran Vía, the main artery running east-west in Madrid. It’s within walking distance of the Prado, the Royal Palace, and La Latina, which means you’ll be able to walk basically everywhere you want to go. 

Cons of staying in Malasaña:

• Loud at Night. Parts of the neighborhood are home to some of the best nightlife in Madrid, and as you might imagine, it’s not exactly the quietest place on earth. Walking through the streets after the sun went down, we regularly found most streets in the area packed wall-to-wall with people. If you’re looking for a quieter part, stay further north or further west. 

The Best Places to Stay in Malasaña

Here are some places to stay in Malasaña that caught our eye as we were perusing the options. 

7 Islas Hotel: Charming & Stylish Hotel

If we hadn’t been in need of a kitchen due to Matt’s Celiac Disease, we might have chosen to stay in this stylish boutique hotel just a few blocks north of Gran Vía in the southern end of Malasaña. 

There’s an art gallery on the ground floor, which is probably a little too on-the-nose, but we’re okay with it because of the elegant, minimalist decor in the surprisingly spacious rooms. 

A family-owned property, the hotel was completely remodeled in 2012 by the original owner’s granddaughters and it was transformed into the place it is today.

Despite the corporatization of most hotels in major cities around the world over the past decade or two, this hotel is still run by those same three granddaughters, which we think is something worth mentioning and celebrating. 

Rooms are simple, stylish, and comfortable, with an industrial-chic sort of theme with touches like those fancy light bulbs that stand alone without a shade.

They also have a penthouse suite with a terrace, which has a lot more room to spread out (nearly double the space, in fact), plus a private terrace with a hammock to relax in the Spanish sun. 

Onsite, there’s a bar/cafe that serves specialty coffee and cocktails (along with a beer brewed specially for this hotel) throughout the day, but you’ll definitely want to branch out outside of the hotel to get into the surrounding neighborhood, which is chock full of amazing bars and restaurants. 

IBIS Madrid Centro: A Nice Affordable Hotel

This budget-friendly hotel is up on the northern edge of the neighborhood, which does mean that it’s a bit further from most of the places you’re going to be visiting on your Madrid itinerary.

It is just a couple of blocks away from Plaza del Dos de Mayo, though. 

However, the price reflects that less central location, which is why it’s here on this list. There are a couple of metro stations within walking distance, depending on which line you need to catch. 

IBIS Hotels are nothing particularly special, but they are consistent, which is a nice characteristic to have in a hotel. Rooms are basic but comfortable, with options for double beds and twin beds, depending on who you’re traveling with. 

limehome Madrid Calle de la Madera: Stylish Serviced Apartments

After staying in a limehome property in Granada that we absolutely loved, we wish we had stayed at these stylish apartments in Madrid instead of the place we ended up staying. 

For context, Matt has Celiac Disease, which makes dining out sometimes difficult and means we try to always have access to a kitchen so that we have the option to cook for ourselves. 

This property is basically an apart-hotel. Rather than being a single apartment being rented out by an individual or investment group, it’s more like a hotel, but the rooms are apartments with amenities like living areas and kitchens. 

That generally means you’ll have more space to spread out, which we appreciate given we’re often doing work and writing when we’re traveling, which is not particularly pleasant in a cramped hotel room with only a bed to sit on. 

There are a variety of apartments here, from studios (choose between small, medium, and large depending on your needs and preferences) and one-bedroom options, again with various sizes and configurations. 

All apartments here have full kitchens (including coffee and tea), air conditioning, and washing machines. Plus, even more modern amenities like Smart TVs and contactless check in and check out. 

The apartments are stylish and functional, and would make a fantastic home base for exploring Madrid in one of the city’s best neighborhoods. 

Bastardo Hostel: An Upscale Boutique Hostel

When we’ve traveled over the past few years, we’ve fallen in love with the idea of a “boutique hostel.” The reason? We feel like they give you all the benefits of a boutique hotel plus the social aspects that draw people to hostels. 

If you’re looking for a nice hostel that is more affordable than a hotel, but quieter with more privacy than staying in a dorm, then choosing a private room in this upscale hostel in the center of the neighborhood will be a perfect choice. 

If you’re really on a budget, they also have dorms, but we’re a little too old for that (and more importantly, we value our sleep too much). 

There are a variety of common areas to enjoy, including a sunny terrace and light-filled common room on the ground floor. 

The private rooms are essentially hotel rooms, some have terraces, some have different bed configurations that will work better for families or couples, and all are at an affordable rate.

Barrio La Latina: Local Vibes + Great Food and Drinks 

If we had to pick a second-favorite neighborhood after Malasaña, it would be La Latina. The second we crossed over its boundaries from Plaza Mayor, our eyes lit up.

Generally, there’s a strong correlation between a neighborhood that has plazas with local kids running around and the amount we like the area. 

La Latina is a neighborhood that is named after Beatriz Galindo, a beloved teacher of Queen Isabella of Castile (and various other famous royals).

She was named “La Latina” because her grasp of Latin was prolific, and the neighborhood here bears her name because of her contributions to the neighborhood and city, where she founded a hospital and was one of the most prominent women in public life at the time. 

There are a couple of things we really enjoyed about La Latina. 

First, if you want tapas, go to Calle Cava Baja, which is famously lined with tapas bars on either side of the street for several blocks (more on this in the “highlights” section below). 

Second, the bustling plazas. We were here multiple times at various points in the day – early morning, noon, and late afternoon – and at all of those times, the open plazas were full of people either grabbing their morning coffee with friends, taking a break before going about their day, or eating tapas and drinking wine, beer, and vermouth in the warm sun.

Of course, it should definitely be noted here that this neighborhood, like most places in Madrid and around the world, has seen rising rents displace local families in service of short-term rentals meant for tourists.

Pros and Cons of Staying in La Latina

Pros of staying in La Latina: 

• Charm Charm Charm. This area is endlessly charming, with tons of energy and people milling about at all hours. Tapas bars spilling into the streets. Open plazas with people sitting around catching up or taking a break after dropping their kids at school. The neighborhood takes up part of the oldest part of Madrid, and is full of narrow winding streets that feel like a maze. 
  
  
• Central Location. The other nice thing about La Latina is that it’s walkable to most of the city. You’ll be able to walk to El Prado and the Royal Palace, and if you don’t feel like walking, there’s a very convenient metro station right in the heart of the neighborhood.

Cons of staying in La Latina: 

• Not Many Places to Stay. Because this area is a bit more residential than some of the others in this guide, there aren’t as many places to stay. Since we do not recommend staying in an Airbnb in Madrid, which has helped contribute to a housing crisis where locals who have lived here for decades can no longer afford it, the choices are relatively slim. However, there are still some cool places to stay here, so don’t discard it altogether!
  
  
• Loud and Boisterous. This area is very popular, and as a result it can be loud and filled with a frenetic energy. Particularly on weekends and at night. 

The Best Places to Stay in La Latina

Here are five places that caught our eyes as we were browsing the options of places to stay in the neighborhood.

We’ve done our best to include places for all budgets and styles – from fancy schmancy boutique hotels, to affordable hostels.

Plus, apartments with a kitchen, which is something we often find we need when we’re on the road (Matt has Celiac Disease and needs to eat gluten free – check out our guide to eating gluten free in Madrid!). 

Posada del León de Oro: A Boutique Hotel in a Great Location

This boutique hotel is right at the northern end of Calle Cava Baja, which means you’re within about three minutes of being right in the heart of all the action.

Plus, you can easily walk to places north of La Latina, like Plaza Mayor. The location is honestly just about perfect. 

It’s in a 19th Century building that has been lovingly restored, and the 17 rooms are modern and elegant, though not in a stuffy way at all.

It’s a relatively small hotel, which is a nice alternative to some of the bigger mega-hotels in Spain’s capital. 

L&H La Latina Selection: A Nice Mid-Range Hotel

This mid-range hotel is towards the southern edge of the neighborhood, which means it’s going to be significantly more quiet and relaxed than the places up near Calle Cava Baja.

The rooms are nicely laid out, and more importantly, have a microwave, mini fridge, and stovetop in the room! Plus, a Nespresso machine for your morning coffee.

They have standard hotel rooms of various configurations and sizes, plus a couple of deluxe attic rooms with a private terrace, and suites with a little more space, including a living area. 

The decor is stylish and simple, with big gray headboards and two pieces of artwork hanging above the bed, and big rainfall showers. 

They also have parking, which is a plus if you’re going to be driving in Spain. 

Casa du Soleil: A Small, Stylish B&B

Okay, TECHNICALLY this is just outside the eastern border of La Latina, but it’s within a few blocks of La Latina metro station, so we’re going to include it because we think it’d be a great place to stay. 

Casa du Soleil is a new hotel, opened in 2021, and you can tell when you look at the style. It’s very boho-chic, if you know what we mean. 

They ONLY have double rooms, which means it’s probably not a great option for families or groups traveling together.

They do have a communal kitchen for you to use, where you’ll find free coffee and plenty of common areas for relaxing (or getting some work done). 

The Hat: An Upscale Eco-Hostel

We had this stylish eco hostel booked for our stay in Madrid at one point, but we weren’t sure whether the communal kitchen would be accessible when we were there, so we ended up switching to an apartment with a kitchen. 

It’s also worth noting that the kitchen facilities here are fairly limited – a microwave and kettle, no stove – if that’s something you care about. 

On our next trip, we’d have this place at the top of our list. 

We’re all about the boutique hostel trend that is currently taking popular cities around the world by storm.

They combine the comfortable, stylish rooms you’d find at a boutique hotel with the social aspects you get from staying at a hostel, at a relatively affordable price (usually). 

The Hat is one of the nicest hostels we’ve come across in our extensive search for the perfect place to stay in cities around the world. It’s on the northern edge of the neighborhood, pushing into the area around Puerta del Sol, which is a great central location for exploring Madrid. 

They have a combination of dorm rooms (including female-only dorms) and private rooms that are essentially hotel rooms. 

You’ll also have access to their extensive breakfast, the rooftop bar, and their various common spaces that all seem to be filled to the brim with natural light.

Barrio de las Letras: Central and Romantic

Barrio de las Letras is so-named because of its history of famous writers taking up residence in the neighborhood. It’s very central – tucked between Puerta del Sol and the Prado Museum – but it has a distinct feeling from the more commercial parts of town immediately adjacent to it. 

Las Huertas is the main street, running west to east towards the Prado and Parque El Retiro, and the offshoots branching off of it are full of great restaurants and bars. 

Plaza Santa Ana is the center of the neighborhood, serving as a welcome open space in a neighborhood of dense housing, bars, and restaurants. 

The streets of Barrio de las Letras are adorned with gold letters spelling out famous passages and quotes from the many writers who called this area home.

As you walk its streets, you’ll find statues of Cervantes and Federico García Lorca (a famous poet), among others. 

This neighborhood is also full of (or adjacent to? We aren’t quite sure where, exactly the border of the neighborhood falls) cultural marvels, from the Prado Museum and the Reina Sofía – two of the best museums in Madrid – to the CaixaForum Madrid, which we were immediately drawn to as we strolled by on a cold November morning thanks to its cool garden wall that climbs several stories with dense greenery, even in the late fall. 

Pros and Cons of Staying in Barrio de las Letras

Pros of staying in Barrio de Las Letras: 

• Full of Bars and Restaurants. Along with the other neighborhoods on this list, this area is a great place to explore for foodies. We think the moral of the story is that Madrileños love food, which we’re on board with. 
  
  
• Hub of Culture. From renowned art museums to music venues and statues of famous Spanish literary heroes, this neighborhood is the place to be for art lovers. You’ll be near the best art in Madrid, all the way from famous 15th Century paintings to modern day musical performances, and just about everything in between. 
  
  
• Super Central. Walkable to the art museums and El Retiro park, and a hop, skip, and a jump away from the Sol metro station (near Puerta del Sol), you’ll be well connected to the rest of the city.  

We don’t have a whole lot to say on the cons front. If we were nitpicking, we’d say that there’s not a whole lot of options in terms of places to stay and that they’re a bit more expensive than in other parts of the city, but that’s a little harsh, we think.  

The Best Places to Stay in Barrio de las Letras

Here are four places that caught our eyes as we were browsing the options of places to stay in the neighborhood. 

Room Mate Alba: A Nice Boutique Hotel

Room Mate is a fairly well known hotel brand that we’ve found all over Spain and the rest of Europe. Not as well known as, say, Hilton or Marriott, but they have a presence on multiple continents. 

They have a mix of hotels and apartments around the world, and this particular property – Room Mate Alba – falls squarely into the hotel category. And it’s a nice one, at that. 

Rooms are relatively spacious, starting with the standard rooms at more than 200 square feet and increasing in size from there. Rooms are beautifully decorated, particularly the bathrooms with their intricate tilework that caught our eye. 

There’s also an onsite gym and a daily breakfast buffet that runs until noon (at an extra cost, of course). 

The hotel’s location couldn’t be better. It’s on Calle de las Huertas, about four blocks west of the Prado Museum, and within a couple of blocks of all the food and drinks in the neighborhood, and also the metro station at Antón Martín. 

One Shot Prado 23: A Stylish & Affordable Hotel

One Shot Prado 23 is a relatively affordable option in a great location at the northeastern corner of Barrio de las Letras.

It’s right on Calle del Prado, which means you’re just a few blocks from the famous museum, along with other gems in the neighborhood like the statue of Miguel de Cervantes at nearby Plaza de las Cortes.

They’re also within 5-10 minutes of three different metro stations, so you’ll be able to jump around the city as needed. 

The economy rooms – which can be outfitted with two twins or one double bed – are a fantastic value if you’re not too concerned about space and you’ll be spending most of your time outside of the hotel room. 

If, like us, you’ll be spending some time in the hotel getting some work done, upgrade to one of the bigger rooms (standard and above), which have more space and, importantly, a desk. 

Some rooms have balconies overlooking Calle del Prado, which are both a bit bigger and a bit more expensive. 

They have an underground parking garage if you happen to be driving, which isn’t something that every place in Madrid has.

Apartamentos Matute 11: Classy Apartments

Look, sometimes living out of a hotel for more than a day or two can get tiresome. 

We like to cook, and staying in an apartment allows us to do that and experience a slice of local life as we go to the grocery store or market, try to speak the language (in this case in Madrid, that just means hearing a lot of “vale vale” which roughly translates to…just about anything), and cooking up a simple meal. 

In Barrio de las Letras, we’d go with these classy apartments that are located at the southern end of the neighborhood, within a couple of blocks of a metro station. 

They have a mix of apartment types – studio, one bedroom, and two bedroom – all with varied layouts, some of which are definitely better than others (though there’s no way to tell which one you’ll get).

Decor is simple but stylish, with hardwood floors or tile (carpet is kind of gross sometimes) and fairly minimal decorations on the walls. 

The apartments have a stovetop, but no oven (although the microwaves do double as convection ovens, which we’ve seen before but haven’t quite figured out just yet).

If you’re looking for an apartment where you’ll have more space and access to a kitchen AND you want to be well connected to the city – both on foot and by the metro – these apartments would be a great option.

Barrio de los Austrias: The Historic Center of Madrid

This neighborhood is the historic center of Madrid, which was largely built out in the 16th and 17th Centuries under the Hapsburgs, who ruled Spain for a few hundred years and hailed from Austria, hence the name. 

Spain’s history is fascinating, and is something we never really learned about in history class in the USA (apart from the whole Christopher Columbus saga). 

Between the 800 year war between Christians and the Islamic Caliphate on the Iberian Peninsula (known as the “Reconquista”) and the drama-filled fights for control of the Spanish empire post-Reconquista, it’s quite the story. 

Funny enough, despite the fact that it’s the capital, Madrid’s history doesn’t really start until the 16th Century, when it became the capital more or less overnight, and started to rapidly expand. 

Now, the neighborhood here is a little amorphous, and we’re combining a few different neighborhoods that overlap (Sol, Gran Vía, and Barrio de los Austrias) into one bigger neighborhood that covers the historic center of Madrid. 

The middle of that original city is centered around the area between the Royal Palace and Plaza Mayor today, which were encircled by a city wall. The northern and southern borders are roughly Gran Vía and Calle de Segovia, respectively.

Generally speaking, we prefer the part of this neighborhood that is further south. As you get closer to Gran Vía and Puerta del Sol, it starts to get more commercial, with wide, pedestrian-only streets lined with chain stores like Foot Locker and Levi’s, and it feels a little bit like Times Square in New York City, or Union Square in San Francisco

We stayed here, right on Gran Vía, which is about as central as it gets. We were within walking distance (15 minutes or less) to everywhere we wanted to go in Madrid, and as a result we ended up using the metro a lot less than we had initially planned. 

However, being right on that main, modern boulevard kind of sucks (in our opinion, anyway), and we’d recommend that you stay further south (or another neighborhood entirely). 

It’s also well-connected to the train station (Atocha train station, which is where you’re likely to arrive if you’re traveling to Madrid by train) and airport thanks to the “Sol” regional train stop.

It’s one stop and 2.20 Euros to the train station (the transfer to or from the regional trains is usually included with long distance train tickets), and it’s an easy journey to the airport.  

Pros and Cons of Staying in Barrio de los Austrias 

Pros of Staying in Barrio de los Austrias : 

• As Central As It Gets. Puerta del Sol and Plaza Mayor are in the neighborhood, and just outside of it you’ll find La Latina (great tapas and full of charm) and Malasaña. 
  
  
• Good Shopping. If you’re looking to do some shopping, this is probably the place to do it. There’s an incredible variety of shops selling everything from clothes to electronics, and just about anything else you can think of. If you need a new pair of jeans or a pair of Spanish-crafted Espadrilles, head here. 
  
  
• Lots of Choices. There are a lot of places to stay in this corridor, as you might imagine. From hotels to apartments, you’ll have your choice of style and budget. 

Cons of Staying in Barrio de los Austrias: 

• Relatively Lifeless. As you cross Gran Vía coming from Malasaña, you’ll trade the charming locally-owned boutiques for chain stores that exist all over the world. Instead of a wide variety of small restaurants, you get Five Guys and Burger King. This is a generalization, of course, but it’s just not that charming. You’ll end up spending most of your time outside of the neighborhood, which isn’t a bad thing especially considering you’ll be able to walk anywhere you want to go. I will say that the southern end of the neighborhood – around Plaza Mayor and to the south – is a little more fun and charming. 

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