Plaza Mayor in Madrid

Almost every town and city in Spain has a main square, and this is invariably called Plaza Mayor. This central square played an important role in the history of Madrid. It was the stage for important events like bullfights, soccer, street markets and even some more gross activities like executions.

These days the Plaza attracts many tourists and locals because of the shops and tapas bars around it. Although not the cheapest restaurants in the area, you will find good quality food and good service. In the narrow streets that lead out of the Plaza Mayor you can also find small and less fancy bars where you can indulge in a nice bocadillo de calamares, calamari roll, and a beer.

The famous Christmas market takes over the square from the beginning of December or even earlier, until the end of Christmas on 6th of January. Christmas is still a very traditional festivity in Spain and Spaniards end the celebrations on the last day of Christmas, 6th of January, the day of the Epiphany. If you are looking for cheap sales, unfortunately, you won’t be able to find them between 25th of December and 6th of January, as Christmas presents aren’t commonly exchanged in Spain and people get their presents from the Three Wise Men on the Epiphany. So, everybody will still be shopping around for presents during those days.

If you aren’t in Madrid during this period, the Plaza Mayor is still a fantastic destination. You can enjoy watching street artists at work drawing their caricatures, taking pictures of the buildings or simply sitting down to drink a beer and watch people walk by.

Not far from the Plaza Mayor is a very special café, Chocolatería San Ginés. This café is reputed to serve the best chocolate con churros in Madrid. This chocolate con churros is drinking chocolate served with a hot fried savoury cake made with fried dough. It may not be your healthy choice, but it sure is tasty.

Categories: General