azepine00

We arrive in MAD arounf 6 pm and have a flight out next morning arounf 11. Family of 4 (6 yo kids) and i hope to check bags for the morning flught the night before.

I can stay at airport hotel or take renfe and find some place next to train station (like holiday inn piramides for example). Would be nice to walk a bit, grab a reasonable dinner and breakfast (or some deli takeout for one last bite of ham) which may be limited/pricey at airport hotel.

Whats the most the most practical way to handle that?

SecondGo

I would definitely stay within Madrid itself, and taxi is only 20 min or so. How about around Opera - nice restaurants like Candela, and not far to walk to the palace in the morning? Plus Chocolateria San Gines for family breakfast.

LupineChemist

+1 for staying in the city. And with 4 people a taxi is pretty reasonable at 30€ fixed rate inside the main ring road.

Though the plan isn't a bad one and the Holiday Inn Pirámides is fine, though that area is a lot more residential. You can get a nice walk around the Madrid Río park around there and there is a decent amount to eat right by there.

Palal

Another option to consider is Barajas itself (the town).

azepine00

Thanks for tbe feedback.
If we manage to check our bags the night before i'd rather take a train vs taxi (looks like about eur10 for 4) assuming i can get a reasonable hotel next to c1 stations.

Palal, if staying in Barajas town - are there hotel options with restaurants or at least a supermarket with deli etc nearby?
In theory can prob stay at crowne plaza airport (eur55 only!) and take a taxi to restaurant somewhere nearby in Barajas...

Have hilton and ich top tier which may help with hotel breakfast options..

schrodingerdog

Go to the Holiday Inn - Madrid Bernabeu

A bit more expensive (in random dates i'm trying), but 5 min walking from Nuevos Ministerios (C1 train), in front of Santiago Bernabeu stadium (if you like football they may run late evening tours), plenty of places to take nice dinner / breakfast around, you can take overground or train and be in central Madrid in 5 min to make a quick tour plus you have El Corte Inglés in front of the train station which have plenty of (a bit overpriced) deli stuff

MSPeconomist

Once when I had a rental car, I stayed at a Parador that looked close to MAD. It was a mistake, as finding my way to the airport on complicated secondary roads through small towns was scary in the morning, although I didn't miss the flight.

tvguy1975

I just did this Friday. Arrived about 5:30pm. We stayed at the Hotel Tach, which is in the town of Barajas near the airport. The hotel has a free shuttle from the airport, and has a restaurant on site.
If you're flying out at 11am-- even checking bags the night before-- they want you at the gate 90 minutes prior. MAD is HUGE, especially if you are going out of T4S. It's a 20 minute walk and tram ride once you clear security/customs.

My wife and I hopped on the Metro stop that's 400M from the hotel, and went into the city. 30 minute trip. L8 to Nuevos Ministerios, and switched to L10 and got off at Tribunal. We hit the Mercado de San IlDefonso. Great fun, family friendly, etc. Very easy to do. There also appeared to be several restaurants in Barajas town if you didn't want to deal with a metro trip into the city.

LapLap

ˇBienvenido! tvguy1975

Thanks for your insight.

lkar

Just stayed there a couple of weeks ago to see a Champions League game. It's a decent deal with points, but I'm not sure it would be up there on my list if there were no football. There are so many great places in Madrid. Convenience to the C1 can't be beat, I guess, if you have limited time, but the Metro is only slightly more involved from T4 and opens up lots of options. The trip from T4 to Neuvos Ministerios only takes a few more minutes than the C1 by going via metro, and then you can connect all over the place. (Though the metro to and from the airport for a family is actually a bit more pricey because of the airport supplement.)

For 20,000 points, it was great to be able to walk 200 meters and get to sleep while 80,000 others were trying to find their way home, but it wasn't much more than a bed and a reasonable shower. Small room, no view. But certainly fine. For a family of 4, you'd need two rooms -- might be better to see if you can find a hotel with family size rooms (admittedly hard in Madrid, but not impossible).

For what it's worth, there is also a Carrefour Express in the mall adjacent to the Holiday Inn that's even closer than the El Corte Ingles (less selection though).

I second tvguy's note about the distances at MAD. When looking down some of those hallways, it seems like you can almost see the curvature of the Earth. Fast-track, though, definitely helps if you have it. It's one of the most efficient and pleasant airport priority security situations I've ever used.

kokonutz

We have a stopover next month but very different priorities.

We'll get in Saturday around 6 PM and want a hotel that'll be among the night life.

Stayed at the Westin Palace a few years back but seemed to be a walk to the nightlife.

We're looking to among the night life when we walk out the door of the hotel.

Any recommendations?

LupineChemist

What's your style of nightlife? Indie bars, low key drinks among friends, massive discos with electronic music, pubs filled with expats and foreigners? That will determine what neighborhood is best.

kokonutz

Wine bars/restaurants specializing in local food. ^

Maybe a classy cocktail bar for a nightcap.

LupineChemist

I would go with La Latina area in that case. Specifically try to be near calle de cava baja.

kokonutz

Found a great rate at Catalonia Puerta del Sol, so holding a room there currently.