Travel Recommendations from Gigi & Julian
Where to stay?
We are getting married in downtown Madrid. Whether you want to stay in the heart of Madrid, or near Serrano/Velazquez if you are interested in shopping tax free, there are many hotels of all prices! Here are a few that my friends and I recommend based on a recent trip:
The Principal - The Westin Palace - Hotel Urban - VP Jardines de Recoletos - H10 Puerta de Alcalá
Here are some links for you to do your own Google and AirBnB searches in the area! Everyone has different needs!
What to eat/do in Madrid?
Below, we added our favorite things to do and places to eat! Click on the links!
Gigi & Julian's favorite restaurants:
Faborit - Gigi's favorite stop for green juices (hangover cure), salads and other healthy things!
La Ferretería - This place is magical! We were sat at the Chef's table next to a Dalí hand painted plate!
La barranca - I love their duck and setas paella
Bel Mondo - Great carbonara and Mafaldine al tartufo!
La Cabaña Argentina - Get the blue cheese sauce with your steak!
Yakitoro by A. Chicote - Nice Spanish/Japanese fusion yakitori (skewers)
Rosi la loca - This place is wild and the food is great!
Lobito de mar - Seafood by Chef Dani Garcia ($$$)
Sobrino de Botin - This is the oldest restaurant in the world? Hemingway ate here and wrote about it! Good place for the history, vibes, morcilla de burgos and a drink before dinner. But If you are coming for the suckling pig, we recommend taking a day trip to Segovia and go to Mesón de Cándido :)
Good luck scoring a reservation at diverXO - Coque - DSTAge - I have been trying for a while!
Gigi & Julian's favorite Rooftop bars with views:
A few other recommendations from the bride and groom:
Have a museum day! Here are some of our favorites: El Prado: Garden of Earthly Delights, El Greco, Velasquez and Goya. Reina Sofia: Guarnica, Picasso!
For foodies.. claim a table in Mercado San Miguel or La Latina in Lavapies and spend a few hours having food and vino!
Tapas crawl in Las Letras Pubs: Places in the area: Los Gatos - El Diario - La Dolores - La Fabrica (pop in for a caña and snacks)
Tapas crawl in Cava Baja Neighborhood: Lunch tapas crawl - Txakolina, Taberna Tempranillo, Casa Lucas (Foie Gras!!!), la Concha y mas!
Get lost in Párque de el Retiro and find the Bonsai garden, Palacio de Cristal and Rosaleda
Have a spa day at the Four Seasons's spa - They have the biggest spa in Europe (3 stories)
Select all airports near you
How to find cheap plane tickets
This method may not find you any special deals, but if you follow these steps, you can be confident you've found a reasonable price.
Visit Google Flights and start your search.
Choose the number of travelers. You can change your ticket class (Economy vs. Premium Economy) later when you're buying the ticket.
Choose the airport you're flying from. If you have multiple airports near you, add each of them using the "+" icon.
Begin choosing dates and compare prices
Choose Madrid as the destination. There are no alternative, nearby cities.
Begin choosing dates. When choosing dates, you'll see different prices displayed under each day on the calendar. This is the CHEAPEST flight that Google can find on that day. You'll see that Wednesdays, Thursdays, and Fridays are usually cheaper. Consider choosing one of these to save money.
Choose dates CLOSE to your planned trip dates. They do not need to be exact, and you can easily change them later. You want to be able to compare prices for different days. Consider when the earliest day is that you'd leave, and the latest day is that you'd come back. Remember, any money you save on your flight could be used toward staying in a hotel longer!
In this example, I chose March 29th (one of the cheapest days to leave) and April 11th. Most return flights cost about the same, as long as I returned on a week day. Based on this chart, I expect the CHEAPEST flight will be $561. I might not like this flight, but it tells me that these days are cheaper to fly compared to other days.
Finish choosing the dates and the search will begin.
Compare flights. Now you find yourself on a screen with different flights. That cheapest flight for $561 is usually displayed at the top. Other good deals are displayed in the "Best departing flights" table. Be sure to check the "Other departing flights" table below also.
Look for: whatever is important to you! I care about what time of day the flight leaves-- not too early, not too late; I care about how many stops and how long my layovers are, so I check the number of stops and total trip length (nonstop or 1-stop maximum), and I care about the price.
Let's double-check the price next. Above the results, to the right, click on "Date grid." Here, I can double-check if it'd be cheaper to leave a day or two earlier or later... or return a day or two earlier or later. I see that leaving a day earlier and returning a day later would be cheaper-- but only by $6, so I'll keep my dates the same.
Let's filter out flights which are unacceptable to me by using the filters near the top of the screen. For "Stops," I chose "1 stop or fewer." I see that some flights have very long layovers, and some don't... so for "Duration," I chose "Under 18 hours."
Now I'm left with a reasonable list of flights. Any of these should work for me. I see one for $546, even cheaper than the $561 from before. Other reasonable flights range up to about $700. I think I've found the best flights I can find.
Choose one to select your outgoing flight and click "Select flight."
Choose a returning flight (you have options), and note how those could change the price.
Finish booking, and you're done!