First trip to Spain: Ok to skip Madrid?

YES you would or should regret not going to Madrid. It is a great city full of wonderful people & sights. Most of the main places to see are in the central area. The Prado on one side and the Palace on the other. Plazas & pedestrian streets make it very walkable for most anyone. The buildings are not huge towers and will not make you feel smothered like some other large cities. We have been from the very north to the very south of Spain and will always make time for a stop in Madrid on any future trips.

I'll give the counter point. Madrid is a nice city and the Prado and other museums are amazing. But for me, I found other places far more interesting. You could easily do Madrid in 2 days. Plus, Toledo is not to be missed and you'll have to pass through Madrid to get there by train. So if possible, spend a night there at least. But if you'd rather spend your time in other places, don't fret it too much.

Those are both good thoughts, thanks. I think I'll have to do more research on different cities before I make my decision.

On my first trip I only visited Andalucia. Go to the places that are really calling to you; maybe this trip will make you want to see more of Spain, and you can go to Madrid next time. You can't cram everything into one trip; do what makes sense, time wise.

I have traveled to Spain approximately 8 times in the past 5 years, and enjoy the country and people so much. Recommend that you do not skip Madrid ~ the Prado, Palace, Gran Via, Plaza Mayor and all the beautiful buildings are worth seeing. Also, Toledo, 1/2 hour via AVE train is definitely worth an overnight stay (Hostal Posada de Manolo, near the cathederal is excellent). Sevilla, 2 1/2 hours via AVE is interesting. Salamanca to the West is worth seeing. Zamora, near Salamanca is also interesting. To answer your question, I highly recommend not missing Madrid! A wonderful city..

It's a very personal decision. For me, I (same as a previous poster) felt Madrid was not as interesting as many other cities throughout Spain. It just didn't grab me like Barcelona or Sevilla did.

As others have said, it depends on what your interests are and how long you are traveling in Spain. For me, Madrid was exceptional for art (Prado, Reina Sofia, Thyssen) and I don't regret any of the time I spent there. The food was also amazing (again, don't regret that either). But if your time is limited and your interest is in smaller towns, then focus on that. Toledo, Segovia, Sevilla, Granada were all highlights of my trip too, along with Barcelona (for a completely different not-exactly-Spanish feel).

To me, Madrid is one of those "must see" cities, much like London, Paris, Rome, Amsterdam, Copenhagen, etc. But Madrid, for me, is an only-see-once city (same for a couple of those others). But it's such a personal thing. Others absolutely love Madrid (and Rome and the others) for their own very good reasons. I'm just interested in other kinds of places. So I'm not sure anyone can really answer this question for you. Were it me, I'd stick to smaller places. But that's just me.

I would vote for including it if you can. The art is great, but that's not all there is to the city. I prefer it to Barcelona, although I like both.

Worst case scenario--you regret not going. That just gives you a reason to return. We regretted nit spending more time (any time) outside of major cities...so now we are going back. Have a great trip!

Where are these small towns you want to see? For towns like Toledo, Segovia, Avila, etc., then you would be passing through Madrid to get there anyway; it's worth spending at least a night on the way, or book you rflight open jaws into Barcelon and out of Madrid, and spend a night or two in Madrid at the end. If you are thinking of Andalusia, then you still might want to travel by AVE train to Madrid and then to Seville The alternative would be to fly from Barcelona to Seville or Granada. But you'll still have to plan your return flight home, and Madrid may be the best option. You should figure that part out before you decide you wil skip Madrid. It might just fit right into your plans in a good way.

Thanks, everyone! These are really great things to think about. We haven't decided which towns we want to visit, so I appreciate the suggestions. And you're right, Madrid might just fit in to our travel plans well, depending on where we end up going.

I spent nine days in Madrid! It was awesome! I absolutely loved everything about it!

Went to Spain for the first time last May and did not go to Madrid so I don't know what I missed. However, did spend my time in Andalucia and loved it. I tend to like smaller places rather than big cities. Loved Sevilla, Granada, Antequerra, and Malaga. The countryside was beautiful and the people were great. We went to vineyards, a horse show, Flamenco version of Carmen (complete with a bull at the open air bull ring) Alhambra, etc.Also did a short side trip to Morocco, which was amazing. Whatever you do there is always more to see. Enjoy!

We are planning a trip to Spain and Portugal, after spending 9 nights in Majorca we are doing a road trip.. After much research we're opting for just 1 full day in Madrid and choosing to visit towns listed below... We also wanted to avoid the really touristy 'Spanish/British' resorts along the Costa Del Sol.. Barcelona 3 nights AVE Train to.... Madrid 2 nights ~ Hire Car Segovia 1 night Salamanca 1 night Belmonte 1 night Stay in a Pousada. Coimbra 1 night Nasare' 1 night Lisbon or Sintra 4 nights Tavira 6 nights (Visiting Brother) Seville 2 nights La Frontera 1 night Cadiz 1 night Ronda 1 night Granada 2 nights
Toledo 2 nights Madrid nr airport 1 night for early flight home We have 1 spare night to add somewhere else or on to one of the destinations listed above...

You don't say how many days that you'll have in Spain. In a visit of fourteen nights I would spend two in Madrid. I would include it with Granada, Seville, Toledo, Segovia, and Barcelona.

Teresa - You don't list Cordoba on your list. Given all the other places you are going, that is not to be missed with the Mezquita. You could do it as a day trip from Sevilla, but with only 2 nights in Sevilla, that doesn't leave much time for that city.

Madrid makes a great day trip from Toledo.

Douglas, Thanks for pointing that out, I don't want to hijack Rachels page though, on saying that I think we are both open to finding out what towns fellow travellers liked and why.. .. Given all the other towns on my list, I was just looking at where it is on the map, i'm not sure how I could fit it in, one way or the other it looks as if I'd be back-tracking .. After Cadiz we want to drive to Gibraltar but don't plan on spending a night.. .. I did do my own posting with itinerary and asked for it to be critiqued alas didn't get much of a response..
There's more to this planning thing than meets the eye!!

Hijack away! I'm enjoying reading.

Teresa, if you do go to Gibralta, which I recommend, then allow for some considerable time to get off the rock when you decide you have had enough. It may not happen every time but on the occasions we have been the Spanish police and customs have made vacating Gibralta very lengthy, taking over an hour and a half on one occasion. Perhaps their thinking goes that if they make it difficult to enter Spanish territory from Gibralta it is one more annoyance that will ultimately lead to Britain handing the rock back to Spain. Don't know, but if you have a plane to catch (or another deadline) on the Spanish mainland then make sure you leave enough time to exit Gibralta.

Rachel, If you like paintings, clocks, arms/armor, and/or royal palaces then you may want to consider spending time in Madrid at some point during your lifetime. Whether it is part of this tripis another question. Edwin