traveldk.com

British Airways and Iberia are the main carriers to Madrid from London (Heathrow and Gatwick) and Manchester; BA also flies from Birmingham. The best cut-price option is EasyJet, with regular flights from Liverpool and Luton. Flights from the UK take around two hours.

Iberia flies direct to Madrid from New York, Miami and Chicago. Delta Air Lines also fly from the East Coast. Air Europa offers less frequent but cheaper flights from New York. Flights from New York take around seven hours.

All the major European airlines fly to Madrid, including KLM, Air France, Lufthansa and Alitalia.

Madrid’s airport is 16 km (10 miles) east of the city. There are three terminals: Terminal 1 for international flights, Terminal 2 for national and some Iberia flights within Europe, Terminal 3 for regional flights and the Madrid– Barcelona shuttle. In 2006 a new terminal area, accessible by monorail, opened in the north of the airport. Facilities include banks, bureaux de change, ATMs, hotel and rail reservation service, pharmacies, tourist information, left-luggage, post office, shops, cafés, restaurant and bars, and car hire.

The 115 airport bus de- parts every 9–12 minutes and goes to the Avenida de America coach station (journey time 30–40 minutes). Taxis into the city (road A-2) take at least 30 minutes, depending on traffic. The Barajas metro link (line 8) is the fastest route, taking only 12 minutes to Nuevos Ministerios.

You can travel directly to Madrid from France or Portugal. The national Spanish rail operator is RENFE. Madrid’s two main railway stations are Estación de Chamartín in the north and Estación de Atocha in the south. Both are connected via the metro. Tickets can be obtained from stations, from the RENFE office or from a travel agent.

Chamartín serves trains from France, Catalonia and northern Spain. Facilities include money exchange, cafés, car hire, post office, tourist information, hotel reservation, and shopping centre.

Atocha (see Estación de Atocha) serves trains from southern Spain and Portugal. The AVE terminal handles the high-speed Madrid–Seville service. From 2005 it will also handle the Madrid– Lleida service to Barcelona. The station has exchange facilities and a large shopping centre.

The main coach station is Estación Sur de Autobuses. Travellers from France, Portugal and Spain’s major cities arrive here.

You’ll need two days to drive to Madrid from the UK, either via the cross-Channel ferry or the Channel tunnel. A third option is the ferry to northern Spain (Bilbao or Santander), followed by a six-hour drive to Madrid. Road conditions in Spain are generally good, but expect heavy traffic on the outskirts of Madrid.