Madrid has some of the best museums and palaces in Europe. Lots of Madrid’s best things to do are inside, which is perfect for a rainy day. Here are the top things to do in Madrid when it rains.
Visiting Madrid in the cooler months of the year can be a great way to escape the crowds and save money. I think Madrid is at its best in early spring or late autumn, when the tourist crowds are lower and you can get good deals on accommodation. But travelling at this time of the year means that there’s a risk that you’ll have some rainy days in Madrid. Spring and autumn in Madrid can be beautifully sunny, but you can also get some rain. But that’s ok. There are still lots of amazing things to do in Madrid when it rains.
Madrid has some of the best museums and palaces in Europe. All of these are inside, so you’ll be able to enjoy all of these attractions even if it’s raining. As well as traditional art museums, Madrid also has some quirky, fun museums. There’s the amazing Royal Palace, the Cathedral, and you can take day trips in the rain as well. Plus there are loads of great restaurants, food markets and tapas bars that you can enjoy even when it rains. So here are all of the best things to do in Madrid when it rains.
1. Enjoy the art at Museo del Prado
One of the top sights in Madrid is the Museo del Prado. This famous art museum is one of the best art museums in Europe. It’s all completely inside, so it’s the perfect thing to do in Madrid when it rains.
You can buy tickets for Museo del Prado online, which gives you a guaranteed entry time. It’s good to buy the tickets in advance so you can skip the queue for tickets. And then you won’t need to wait outside in the rain, and you can just go straight inside the museum.
Museo del Prado is a large museum, with lots of fascinating art to see. I spent about 2 hours here, but you could easily spend longer if you want to look at the paintings and sculptures in detail. As well as beautiful art, it’s a nice building as well. Visiting the Museo del Prado is definitely one of the top things to do in Madrid when it rains.
2. Marvel at the state rooms in Madrid’s Royal Palace
Another of the best things to do in Madrid is visit Madrid’s Royal Palace. The Royal Palace state rooms are completely inside, so it’s a great rainy day activity in Madrid. It’s best to book tickets for the Royal Palace of Madrid online in advance, as the queues for tickets can be really long.
Inside, the state rooms of the Royal Palace of Madrid are just spectacular. It’s one of the most impressive royal palaces in Europe.
Each room is decorated differently, with some amazing chandeliers in a lot of the rooms. A highlight is the throne room, with amazing red and gold colours. The dining room is really impressive as well.
You can easily spend a few hours in the Madrid Royal Palace, enjoying the amazing decoration of the rooms.
3. Watch a Flamenco show with a glass of Sangria
A highlight of any trip to Madrid is going to see a Flamenco show at a traditional local Tablao. These Flamenco shows are completely inside, so it’s another one of the great things to do in Madrid when it rains. I went to a Flamenco show at Cardamomo Flamenco, and it was a great show. The show lasts about an hour, and your ticket includes a glass of Sangria to enjoy while watching the show.
The show featured several dancers and also musicians. It was amazing to listen to the music and watch the dancers. It was a really enjoyable evening.
4. Eat tapas in a local bar
Madrid has some of the best food in Spain, with many tapas bars all over the city. Even if it’s raining outside, you can still sit inside a tapas bar and enjoy some of the amazing food on offer. One of my favourite tapas bars in Madrid is Los Gatos, near the centre of Madrid. It’s a tapas bar full of fun, quirky decoration. And the food here is amazing.
Make sure you try traditional local tapas dishes such as Jamón Ibérico (Iberian Ham), Croquetas de jamón (ham and cheese croquettes), chorizo, and Queso Manchego (Manchego cheese).
5. Visit the Madrid Football Museum
For any football fans, the Madrid Football Museum is a must-visit attraction. Even if you’re just a casual football fan, there’s still plenty of interesting things in this museum. You can see football kit worn by famous football players, and also learn a lot more about the history and development of football kit and the sport of football. The museum shows how football has become one of the most popular sports in the world, and also the different trophies from various tournaments.
6. Visit the Madrid Cathedral
Madrid Cathedral was completed in 1993, so it’s a slightly more modern Cathedral than many Cathedrals in the area. It’s a really beautiful building, with lots to do inside. The visitor tour of the museum begins with a small Cathedral museum, with religious artefacts on display.
The visitor tour then leads you up lots of steps, to the top of the dome. The views from the top of the Cathedral are amazing. The viewing area is outside, which isn’t ideal in the rain, but you can easily just step out for a few minutes to take some photos before heading back inside. I really enjoyed the views from the top of the Cathedral over the orange roofs of Madrid and across to the Royal Palace of Madrid.
After seeing the great views from the top of the Cathedral, you can then head down into the main Cathedral. It’s a really impressive space with beautifully colourful stained glass windows and ornate golden structures.
5. Eat tapas at Mercado de San Miguel
Another of the best places to go in Madrid for food is the food market called Mercado de San Miguel. This indoor food market has a great selection of food. Take some time to walk around the browse the different stalls before deciding what to have.
My favourite food here was the croquettes – especially the cheese ones. There’s an amazing olive stall as well, with a huge variety of different types of olives, often served with other things like sundried tomatoes and cheeses. There’s also stalls selling the famous Iberian ham, and also Spanish churros as well.
6. Have fun at the Video Game Museum
For a fun, interactive museum, head to the Video Game Museum. It’s a great place to visit for any fans of video games. But even if you’re not a big video game fan, it’s still a really fun museum. It’s a nice change from all the traditional art and palaces in Madrid. The Video Game Museum in Madrid tells the story of the development of video games. There are lots of old video games and old video game consoles on display, and you can have a go at playing a lot of the games. It’s a great way to play old video games that aren’t around anymore. I really enjoyed playing games like Pacman, Space Invaders, Street Fighter, Snake, and more.
There are so many games that you can have a go and play. And it’s fascinating to see how much video games have developed and changed over the years. The rate of the technology improvement in such a short space of time is just fascinating.
7. Eat traditional Spanish food at a restaurant
There’s more food to enjoy on rainy days in Madrid. As well as tapas bars, Madrid also has a great selection of restaurants. At the restaurants, you can get traditional Spanish classics such as Paella. This famous Spanish rice dish can be served with seafood, or you can also get chicken or vegetarian versions. The restaurant called Los Galayos, near Plaza Mayor, serves amazing Paella.
You can also try local specialities in restaurants around Madrid, such as roast suckling pig. This is a delicious meat dish, and you can find it at many restaurants. For the most famous version, book a table at the restaurant Botín. This restaurant is in the Guinness Book of World Records as the longest continually running restaurant in the world, so it’s a great place to visit if you can get a table.
8. Go shopping at El Rastro flea market on Sundays
If you’re in Madrid on a Sunday, it’s worth spending a couple of hours at the El Rastro flea market. Although the market is set up around streets so there are a lot of outdoor parts, each market stall is under cover so you can step out of the rain when you’re browsing the market stalls.
The market is centred around Plaza de Cascorro from around 9am. There are stalls selling all kinds of different things – clothes, books, ornaments, video games, and so much more.
9. Warm up with churros and chocolate in a cafe
If you’ve been out in the rain in Madrid, you can head into one of Madrid’s cosy cafes to dry off and warm up. Another of Madrid’s most famous food is churros. You can find cafes selling churros all over the city. But one of the most famous places is Chocolatería San Ginés. They sell the traditional small churros, and also the larger churros called ‘porras’. I really liked both – it was hard to choose which was my favourite.
The churros are served with a cup of warm, melted chocolate. It’s the perfect way to dry off and warm off on a rainy day in Madrid.
10. Take photos of Plaza Mayor in the rain
Even if it’s raining, you should definitely still visit Plaza Mayor. It’s one of the top things to do in Madrid, even when it rains. It’s a beautiful square in the centre of Madrid, with bars and restaurants around the edge. The buildings are beautiful, with the statue in the middle of the square.
It can look really beautiful at night in the rain, when the lights from the buildings reflect off the puddles in the centre of the square.
11. Eat a Calamari Sandwich
There’s still more food that you can enjoy on a rainy day in Madrid. Another local speciality is the ‘bocadillo de calamares’ – the calamari sandwich. The best place to get a calamari sandwich in Madrid is La Campana. It’s a restaurant and take-away shop near Plaza Mayor. The calamari here is so delicious – it’s so fresh and cripsy. And the bread is beautifully soft as well.
It’s a really simple sandwich, but it’s great. The restaurant can often have long queues, so you can get a takeaway sandwich and shelter from the rain around the edges of Plaza Mayor to eat it.
12. Take day trips to El Escorial, Segovia or Toledo
The last of my top things to do in Madrid when it rains is to take day trips out of Madrid. There are lots of great places that you can visit by train from Madrid. And all of these can be enjoyed, even in the rain. One of the best day trips from Madrid is to El Escorial. This huge monastery is a really impressive place, with one of the most beautiful Basilicas and libraries in Europe.
You can also visit Segovia in less than an hour from Madrid. This pretty little city has an amazing Alcazar, that looks like a Disney castle with all the turrets. Segovia also has a famous Aqueduct, a bridge that dates back to the Roman times. You can find out more here about taking a day trip from Madrid to Segovia.
Another great option for a day trip from Madrid is the pretty small city of Toledo. It’s only half an hour from Madrid, and really easy to reach by town. My favourite part of Toledo is the view across the river to the town. The town is really pretty, with a great Cathedral and lots of sword shops. Find out more here about taking a day trip from Madrid to Toledo here.
Enjoy the top things to do in Madrid when it rains! Make sure you also check out my guide to visiting Madrid in 3 days, and also how to take a day trip from Madrid to Segovia and a day trip from Madrid to Toledo. You can also check out my guide to the famous food in Madrid here. There are lots of other great cities to visit in Spain as well. Check out my guides to Seville, Cordoba, Granada, and the Andalusia’s white villages and mountains. Or check out my guide to Barcelona and the Montserrat monastery in the mountains.
