MAD · Layover Guide
Madrid
Stop in Madrid.
Best layover: 4–72h
LayoverScore™
Base city score. Your route score varies by savings and timing.
Exit realism
Comfortable window
Enough room in Madrid for a real stop. Keep the buffer at the end anyway.
Landside playbook
If time slips
- Drop the last stop. Go straight to the train, taxi rank, or ride pickup you already chose.
- Add 15 minutes to map ETAs for the return leg at rush hour.
- One ticket for the whole trip protects you when the inbound is late. Separate tickets do not.
Worth knowing
- Do not stack three stops. One solid block in the city beats a rushed loop.
- Do not treat one map time as gospel for immigration lines. Pad on your first pass through this hub.
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Places to stay
Search hotelsLayoverScore™ breakdown
Score 75 · Discover 53 · Ease 18
Why Madrid scores 75
Getting there
Metro Line 8 $6 · Airport Express Bus $6
min to center
metro- 01Metro Line 8 (25 min to city center, €5 airport supplement)
- 02Express Bus 203 (40 min to Atocha, €5)
- 03Taxi (25-35 min, €30 flat rate)
- 01Prado Museum's Velázquez and Goya masterpieces
- 02Tapas crawl through La Latina neighborhood
- 03Retiro Park rowboats and Crystal Palace
- 04Plaza Mayor and Puerta del Sol historic squares
- 05Mercado de San Miguel gourmet food hall
Experiences in Madrid
Timed tours and tickets for Madrid are listed on our partner site.
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- Yokomo~60 min1 min walk
- Adoc~60 min1 min walk
- El Bus Turístico de Madrid~75 min1 min walk
- Terraza de El Corte Inglés~75 min1 min walk
- Gira Artística en Europa~90 min1 min walk
- El Bus Turístico de Madrid~90 min1 min walk
- Bernabéu4.6
- El Retiro Park4.8
- Museo Nacional del Prado4.7
- Royal Palace of Madrid4.7
- Mercado de San Miguel4.4
Need a room for your layover? Browse hotels near the airport.
Where to stay →Drop your luggage. Don't drag it around the city.
Left Luggage MAD T4
Terminal 4, arrivals level
$8/day
2 min walk
Locker in the City
Atocha Station
$6/day
3 min walk
Hotel Puerta América
Avenida de América
$45/day
5 min walk
From the terminal to the good part.
Metro Line 8
to Nuevos Ministerios
Includes €3 airport supplement, runs 6am-1:30am
25 min
$6.00
Airport Express Bus
to city center
24-hour service to Atocha and Cibeles
40 min
$6.00
Taxi
Flat rate €30 to anywhere within M-30 ring
30 min
$33.00
Madrid City Card
Prado, Reina Sofía, Thyssen + public transport
24-hour option ideal for layovers
$55
per day
Getting there
Get an Uber from the airportAt the airport
- 01Terminal 4 designed by Richard Rogers with bamboo ceilings
- 02Iberia Premium Lounge with Spanish wines and jamón
- 03Sala VIP Neptune with shower suites
- 04Excellent duty-free Spanish gourmet products
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