get the best views of Madrid It is very simple. As is the case with other large cities in the world such as New York o London, the capital of Spain has many skyscrapers. And also some monuments that, due to their height, offer a wonderful panoramic view of the city.
If you add to this the peculiar orography of Madrid, with several higher points, you have a good range of possibilities to see it from above. Even on the roof of some buildings, viewpoints have been installed that offer you a 360 degree panorama of the city. As the offer is very wide, we are going to show you only some of the places that offer you the best views of Madrid.
The English Court of Callao
You have probably shopped at El Corte Inglés de la Callao square. This same square is already a spectacle in itself, with buildings such as the homonymous cinema, the Carrion with its mythical poster of a popular drink or the Palace of the Press. But, in addition, it is the mouth of streets as important as Carmen, Preciados or Gran Vía.
You may not know that you can go up to the terrace of El Corte Inglés which is located at number two in the square. The views are spectacular and it's free. you will see the Royal Palace (just on the cornice of this you have another great viewpoint), the Plaza de España , Cathedral of the Almudena and all the magnificence of the aforementioned Gran Vía with its modernist and eclectic buildings.
As if that were not enough, on the same terrace you have a first class gastronomic offer, with bakeries, restaurants and ice cream parlors. Thus, while you have a drink or eat, you can enjoy one of the best views of Madrid. But you can also go up, simply, to contemplate the panorama. Drinking is not compulsory.
Círculo de Bellas Artes, a classic among the best views of Madrid
By itself, the Círculo de Bellas Artes building is worth a visit. Located at number 42 Calle de Alcalá and designed by Antonio Palacios, presents a eclectic style with neo-baroque roots. Equally spectacular is its interior, with a grand staircase and a no less beautiful theater.
You can also go up to its roof to see Madrid. In this case, you will have to pay, but it costs just four euros and the reward is magnificent. The entrance is from the same reception and there is an elevator that takes you directly to the terrace and that has glass doors at the last stop.
Once there, you will find a cafeteria and a monumental bronze statue of Minerva, goddess of Wisdom, created by John Louis Vassallo. But, above all, you will have an unparalleled 360 degree panorama of the city, from the Sierra de Guadarrama to the north to the Cerro de los Ángeles to the south.
Lighthouse of Moncloa
As its name suggests, this construction, officially called the Madrid City Council Lighting and Communications Tower, is located in the district of Moncloa-Aravaca. Fruit of a design Salvador Perez Arroyo, was inaugurated in 1992 and is the eleventh tallest building in the city.
It is 110 meters high, which makes it visible from anywhere in the northwest of the city. However, his crescent shaped gazebo and closed with glass is at 92. To go up to it, there are two exterior elevators and also glazed. Previously, you must go through the visitor reception room that is in its base.
You can access this spectacular viewpoint from Tuesday to Sunday from 9:30 a.m. to 19:30 p.m. However, it has a limited capacity for security reasons. In any case, if you go up to it, you will get one of the best views of Madrid, at least in terms of its northern part.
Tower of Madrid
This name is given to a spectacular building located in the Plaza de España and between Calle Princesa and Gran Vía. It was designed by Julian and Jose Maria Otamendi and built between 1954 and 1960. It is currently the sixth tallest in Madrid, with 162 meters including the antenna that crowns it. To give you an idea of its dimensions, we will tell you that the project was to accommodate 500 shops, several galleries, a hotel and even a cinema.
Also, for a few years it was the tallest building in Spain. Currently, it houses precisely a hotel on its first eight floors and private homes on the rest. You can also go up to its terrace and get wonderful views of the central streets where it is located, but also of the House, Royal Palace and mountains near the city for the North.
On the other hand, very close to this impressive viewpoint, you have another no less spectacular one. We talk about the rooftop of the Hotel Riu Plaza. It is located on the 27th floor and is not suitable for people with vertigo. We tell you this because, in reality, there are two terraces and you can go from one to the other through a glass floor walkway.
Casa de Campo cable car
Precisely in the Casa de Campo that we have just mentioned you have another magnificent instrument to get the best views of Madrid. We are talking about the cable car, which also has the advantage that it offers you a moving panorama of skyline city.
On his journey, which begins in Painter Rosales, passes over the rose garden of the Parque del Oeste, the Príncipe Pío station, the hermitage of San Antonio de la Florida or the Manzanares River to finish at the Garabitas Hill of the Country House.
In total, it covers almost two thousand five hundred meters and reaches a maximum height of 40. It takes about eleven minutes to cover that distance and has 80 gondolas, each of which can hold five people. But, above all, imagine the views it offers you of the city. And, as if all this were not enough, at the end of the journey, in Casa de Campo, you have a restaurant to regain strength after the trip with parking for cars.
In addition, just near the cable car, from some ruins, you also have magnificent views of the west part of Madrid. Likewise, you see the country house lake, Manzanares riverside and, if the day is clear, the sierra.
Uncle Pio Hill
It is located in the district of Vallecas Bridge, more specifically in the neighborhood of Numancia, already close to Moratalaz. It was an area where many emigrants settled who came to improve their living conditions in the capital, but today it is a park. At its highest point, there is a architectural ensemble with a gazebo and sculpture illusory royal triangle of the Enrique Salamanca.
From there, you have spectacular views of Madrid, especially at sunset. The panorama encompasses almost the entire city, from the telephone building on Gran Vía until Chamartin Towerspassing through the famous Lollipop of communications.
Temple of Debod
This construction of Ancient Egypt was installed in the west park, next to the Paseo del Pintor Rosales, which we already mentioned when talking about the cable car. It is a stop where the Mountain Barracks were located. The temple was donated to the Spanish state in 1968 by the Egyptian Government in gratitude for our collaboration in precisely saving the most important nubian temples.
It is over two thousand years old and is dedicated to Amon of Debod and Isis. Its core is Chapel of Adijalamani or of the Reliefs which, as its name indicates, is decorated with scenes alluding to the aforementioned god Amun. In addition, the set has mammisi or Isis adoration hall, the Osiriac chapel, the wabet or purification area for priests and the so-called Treasure Crypt, among other elements.
However, if this construction is of interest as a monument, it is no less home to the looker that there is at the end of the park where it is. It has paid binoculars and offers you a different perspective of the Royal Palace and the Cathedral of the Almudena, but the view also reaches to the amusement park.
Palace of Cibeles
Located in the square of the same name, this impressive building currently houses offices of the Madrid City Council and functions as an exhibition hall. But it is also known as telecommunications palace for having been a post, telegraph and telephone center. Its construction dates back to the beginning of the XNUMXth century and it has a modernist style with neo-plateresque and baroque elements on its façade.
In addition, it offers us a spectacular viewpoint located in its central tower at the height of a seventh floor. You can go up to it for only two euros. In exchange, you'll get spectacular views of the Paseos del Prado and Recoletos, as well as the Castellana. As if all this were not enough, on the sixth floor you have a restaurant.
In conclusion, we have shown you places that offer you the best views of Madrid. However, there are many others. For example, the viewpoint located in the dome of the Cathedral of the Almudena; the one of Green Wedge Park, in the neighborhood of La Latina, or the Manzanares Linear Park, where, in addition, you have archaeological remains of great value such as the town of La Gavia or the Roman villa of Villaverde. Which of these viewpoints do you find most interesting?