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Arriving Madrid Nov 1 - holiday

Posted by (Omaha, NE) on

Hi! My teenagers and I are leaving the US on October 31st, which means we're arriving bright and early to Madrid on November 1st - a national holiday!

I'm curious what to expect during the day. Our AirBnB check in isn't until 4:00 pm. yikes! I'm trying to find out if we can drop our luggage early, (and if we can't - i'm open to suggestions of what to do with it!)

I know once we land we'd like to get SIM cards for our iphones, probably some sort of breakfast, light groceries for the AirBnb. Can we expect restaurants and supermarkets to be open on this day? I'm not sure if we'll try to do anything touristy as I know we'll probably be exhausted, but maybe we'll try to take in a park. I did see that the Royal Palace and the Museo del Prado are open on November 1st, so I get the feeling the city may not be as closed down as I think? What about clothing stores like Zara?

Thanks in advance for any insights!

Posted by
7159 posts

Even if everything was closed there are plenty of things to do outdoors, such as, walking in the area near the Plaza Mayor or visiting Retiro Park. Not having been there on that holiday I can’t comment on what will be open or closed.

Posted by
2267 posts

There are commercial/private luggage storage places around town. I forget the name, but I'm sure google could lead you to the closest options. Another option, if availability and your budget allow, might be to add the night of the 31st to your AirBnB booking. That way you could go straight to the apartment, drop your bags, take showers, etc. (I always reach out to the AirBnB host before booking this way, to be sure someone can let me in in the morning.)

Restaurants and supermarkets will mostly be open. I'd bet $5 all the bigger shops, like Zara will be open. Phone stores could be a crap shoot (but you could get SIMs at el Corte Ingles).

Posted by
134 posts

Ah! Thank you for the tip on El Corte Ingles for SIMs

Posted by
2267 posts

J. - In the center, Sol area there are 3 (or 4?) different Corte Ingles buildings. The one on Plaza Callo is the one with electronics and phone company sales.

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