Madrid--with limited walking ability?

Posted by Carol (Denver) on 01/19/15 11:33 PM

My husband and I will be in Madrid for 3 nights in April. He walks with a cane, and for limited distances. I need suggestions for hotel location and choices, and also ideas for sight-seeing. Bus tours or hop-on, hop-off tours work.

I'm debating between the Prado area (Hotel Gonzales or Hotel Lope de Vega, and the Europa in Madrid center. Rick mentions that the Prado area hotels are not convenient to the Metro, but I don't know if that matters. We are a senior couple and the club scene isn't of interest, nor is very late fine dining.

Any help would be much appreciated!

Posted by Nancy

Bloomington, IL, USA

01/19/15 11:44 PM

9371 posts

I think you would be OK with either, depending on what you want to see. If your aim is to see the Prado and Thyssen museums, and maybe roam a little in Retiro Park, the Prado area is great. There are plenty of restaurants, etc., in that area. It is an uphill walk, though, to places like Puerta del Sol and the Plaza Mayor, and other historic sites like the palace. If those are the things you want to see, the Europa might be better since it is very near Puerta del Sol. Friends have said that the Hotel Europa has a nice restaurant downstairs, too. Puerta del Sol also has a metro stop.

Madrid has a hop-on, hop-off bus (two routes, I think) that takes about 90 minutes to make the whole circuit. It takes you through both the historic areas and the modern areas of Madrid. There is English commentary, via headphones that they give you when you get on. You could get a nice overview of the city, get off at anything that looks interesting, and get back on to continue your tour. The bus goes through Puerta del Sol, so it would be convenient to the Hotel Europa, as well.

Posted by David in Brisbane

Brisbane, Australia

01/20/15 12:49 AM

7175 posts

I think Nancy is spot on.
I would look, as you have with Gonzalo, in the area between the Thyssen/Prado and Anton Martin Metro.
Paseo del Prado is lovely for a leisurely stroll with many seats along its length.

Posted by Laura

Rick Steves' Europe

01/20/15 12:57 AM

16895 posts

While it's usually nice to have the Metro option handy, both Metro and bus can come with stairs and standing/waiting time that might cut into your husband's energy resources. I'd plan to take a few taxis, e.g., Prado to Royal Palace about 6 euros; see other taxi tips on p. 405 of Rick's Spain book.

Posted by Carol OP

Denver

01/20/15 05:20 AM

25 posts

Thanks for the replies, it's good to know there are benches along the Paseo del Prado; apparently that is not always the case. I'd still like to hear comments on the specific hotels I mentioned

Taxis are a good idea, I re-read page 405. And thanks for the reminder about stairs in the Metro. We haven't been abroad for awhile, and I'd conveniently forgotten that little piece of information!