The Most Instagrammable Places in Madrid
As Madrid is one of our favorite cities in the world, we spent quite some time in the city. During our visits to Madrid, we loved finding all the pretty insta-worthy photo spots. Luckily, Madrid has many of these photo spots, so we would always leave the city with full memory cards and lots of photos for our Instagram feed. This blog post is filled with all the Instagrammable places in Madrid, including links to their locations!
Retiro Park
Retiro Park is Madrid’s large city park and is filled with beautiful gardens, iconic buildings and a large artificial pond. Retiro is not only the perfect place for a stroll through the park, but also to take some very pretty Instagrammable photos.
Retiro Pond
Retiro Pond (Estanque Grande del Retiro) is the artificial pond in the middle of Retiro Park. We love renting a rowboat here and paddle across the pond. There are many Instagrammable spots along the pond and taking photos from the row boat is beautiful too.
Crystal Palace
Crystal Palace (Palacio Cristal) is our favorite building in Retiro Park and you really can’t miss it during your visit. Entrance to the building is free of charge and it’s a beautiful insta-worthy spot. Play with the shadows from the structure on sunny days. Crystal Palace is also very beautiful from the outside. Walk around the building for some unique photo spots. The view from across the pond in front of the building is beautiful too. The photography possibilities at Crystal Palace are endless!
Cecilio Rodriguez Garden
Cecilio Rodriguez Garden (Los Jardines de Cecilio Rodríguez) is our favorite garden in Retiro Park. The garden is beautifully designed with lots of flowers, interesting structures and beautiful tiles. You can find many Instagrammable spots wandering around the garden. There are a few peacocks living in the garden as well, make sure to check those out too!
Rose Garden
Another beautifully designed garden in Retiro Park is the Rose Garden (La Rosaleda). We haven’t seen the garden when the roses were at its peak bloom, but there are always some roses blooming in the summer. There’s a beautiful fountain at the center of the garden, which is the perfect Instagrammable photo spot. If there are more roses blooming, every corner of the garden is Instagrammable.
Book Market
Close to Retiro Park there’s a second hand book market called Cuesta de Moyano. The wooden book stalls are a perfect backdrop for your Instagram photo. Wander along the stalls to find the perfect one for your photo. Some stalls also have lots of decorative plants which we really like.
Royal Botanical Garden
The Royal Botanical Garden is a perfect spot to get your Instagram photo fix. We especially loved the greenhouses in the Botanical Garden. Both the inside and outside of the greenhouses work very well as a background for your Insta photos. There’s a cactus garden close to the greenhouses, that is a perfect Insta-worthy spot as well. The Botanical Garden is actually pretty big and we can really recommend walking around to see what kinds of plants and flowers are growing during the time of your visit. You might stumble upon a few more Instagrammable spots!
Tropical Garden in Atocha Station
Atocha is Madrid’s main train station and inside the station hall, there’s a tropical garden. The garden is really a unique sight to see, featuring tall palm trees and other tropical plants. It gives the train station a relaxing vibe and it feels like you’re actually in a tropical rainforest instead of a busy train station. All the greenery makes it a perfect Instagrammable place!
Royal Palace
The Royal Palace is actually Instagrammable from all around the building. The architecture of the Palace is beautiful and we loved checking out all the perspectives. You need to buy an entrance ticket to the Palace to take a photo in front of the building, but the building is also very Instagrammable from Plaza de Oriente and the Sabatini Gardens. We can really recommend visiting the Royal Palace and seeing the rooms though.
Plaza de Oriente
Plaza de Oriente is the square that connects the Royal Palace to the Opera of Madrid. The square is beautifully designed, with lots of greenery, flowers and statues. We loved taking a photo with the flowers and colorful buildings in the background. Wandering around the square, you can find much more Instagrammable perspectives.
Sabatini Gardens
The Sabatini Gardens (Jardines de Sabatini) are located right behind the palace. The most beautiful spot of the gardens is the fountain. Sitting along the pond with the Royal Palace in the background is the perfect Insta-worthy photo spot. When the fountain is off and there’s no wind, the water creates a beautiful reflection of the Royal Palace.
Parque del Oeste
Parque del Oeste is a city park in Madrid which is loved by locals. On summer evenings, the park is always very crowded. We loved strolling around the park and looking for Instagrammable spots. We think the palm trees and tropical plants are a perfect backdrop for your Insta photo.
Temple of Debod
Temple of Debod (Templo de Debod) is a unique sightseeing spot and is perfect for photos. The temple, built in the 2nd century, was a gift from Egypt and is one of the few ancient Egyptian architectural works outside of Egypt. Temple of Debod is especially beautiful during sunset. When the pond around the temple is filled with water, it creates a beautiful reflection of the temple and the sky. However when we were there in summer, the pond was completely dried out, unfortunately. You can’t miss this Insta-worthy spot during your visit in Madrid!
Plaza Mayor
Plaza Mayor is Madrid’s most famous square. The square is surrounded by pretty orange-colored buildings and it makes a perfect backdrop for your Instagram photo. Be aware when taking photos here though. Plaza Mayor isn’t only famous by tourists but also by pickpockets. Luckily, our pockets have never picked, but it’s always good to be cautious.
Rooftop of Corte Ingles Callao
On the rooftop of the Corte Ingles at Callao you can find a Gourmet Experience with different kinds of food stalls. What we love most about the Gourmet Experience is the stunning view over Gran Vía, Callao and the rest of Madrid. From up here, you can take a beautiful photo of the Capitol building across the street.
Azotea del Circulo de Bellas Artes Rooftop Bar
The rooftop on top of the Circulo de Bellas Artes Museum is a perfect Instagrammable spot. The view over the city from up the rooftop is amazing. It’s a nice place to have drinks as well. Sunset is the best time of the day to visit the rooftop, but it’s also the most popular time of the day. If you’re going there for sunset, make sure you’re well in time. Lines to get up the rooftop can get quite long and it would be a shame to miss sunset because of a queue.
Chocolateria San Gines
Chocolateria San Gines is one of the oldest chocolateries in Madrid and their churros are amazing. We love the interior of San Gines and it makes the perfect Insta-worthy photo spot. The white marble tables together with the green details, freshly fried churros with chocolate sauce and a hot coffee are just the perfect combinations for your Instagram photos. Besides taking photos here, San Gines is also a must-visit to try the original Spanish churros.
Bridge of Toledo in Madrid Rio Park
The Bridge of Toledo (Puente de Toledo) in Madrid Rio Park is a beautiful Instagrammable spot, especially during sunset. The view from up the bridge over the park is beautiful. The park itself is also a nice place to walk around.
Cerro del Tio Pio Park
Cerro del Tio Pio Park is our favorite sunset spot in Madrid. The park is located on top of a hill with a beautiful view over orange houses and mountains in the background. We think Cerro del Tio Pio Park is the most Instagrammable spot in Madrid. The park is loved by locals and you won’t find many tourists here, which is a plus. If you love sunsets, you have to go here!
El Rastro
Every Sunday, there’s a large flea market called El Rastro in the neighborhoods La Latina and Lavapiés in Madrid. It’s very fun to walk around the flea market and seeing all the different kinds of things they’re selling. We love the Galerías Piquer which is a pretty courtyard filled with antique shops and statues. The courtyard works perfectly as a backdrop in your Instagram photos and is really worth checking out!
Streets of Lavapiés
Lavapiés is one of our favorite neighborhoods in Madrid. Lots of buildings in Lavapiés are yellow or orange-toned and you’ll find a lot of graffiti on the walls. We really love the edgy look of the Lavapiés streets and think it works very well as a background in your (Instagram) photos. It’s really worth wandering around the neighborhood, looking for unique photo spots.
Cine Doré
Cine Doré is a movie theater dating from the 1920s. The building is very pretty and is the perfect Insta-worthy spot. We love the orange-painted walls and the bright white details. You can’t leave Madrid without having a photo of Cine Doré to add to your Instagram feed. The cinema is still operating, but we never visited it.
We hope we’ve inspired you to visit Madrid. Have you ever been to Madrid or is it still on your list? Let us know in the comments below!
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