3 nights in Madrid cost HOW much?

Here’s the lowdown on how much 3 nights in Madrid cost 2 people, including transport, accommodation, spending money and everything else!

All ticketed activities are included in this cost, and we always have a bit of a buffer for each trip [around £50] for contingency. For transparency, I have a 12 month travel insurance policy with Puffin Insurance, and so I do not include this cost in any of my trip budgets as it was paid for separately. Some other things that can help bring the cost down can be found here.

We also found that travelling in September/October and so just out of peak season definitely brought the costs down.

“Most of my 'best time to visit' recommendations are not only based on the weather, but also cost, and so take a look at these in my city guides!”

Travel - £133

We actually got the train from Lisbon to Madrid as this was part of a bigger trip. We then got the train to Barcelona, and so costs may differ if you were flying in and out of UK. Also included in these costs are the Uber we took from our apartment in Lisbon to the airport. I find that people always overlook the cost of travelling to and from Airports, however it can be a hidden cost that can catch you out if you’re not prepared! For my full Spain and Portugal #itinerary, you can keep reading over here.

I always use Skyscanner to find the best flights for my trips, as they display flights with all airlines, so it makes it super easy to find the best deal.

That being said, when flying long haul I'd recommend either flying with the same airlines regularly to build up Air Miles & Frequent Flyer Points, or opening up multiple cards and accounts so you can always capitalise on the best deals! More on that can be found here.

Accommodation - £267

We stayed at Dear Hotel in Madrid, which I could not recommend enough. The location was great and very easy to get to everywhere from. They also have a rooftop pool and bar which we absolutely took advantage of.

It’s worth remembering that lots of European cities have a ‘city tax’ that is usually payable upon arrival, and this is typically €2 per person per night. To avoid getting charged this fee in a different currency on your card, we always use our WISE card.

our wise card has saved us heaps of fees over the years.

Daily spend - £378

The daily spend includes food, drinks, miscellaneous items such as sun cream, plasters, souvenirs etc. For reference, we ate out for lunch and dinner everyday, and grabbed a pastry and coffee to-go each morning. The places we went to ranged from cheap ‘grab and go’ eateries to boujie restaurants. It was Dan’s birthday whilst in Madrid, and so we did spend a little more here than normal on dinners and drinks. For the full rundown of everything we ate, check out my Madrid Food Guide. We usually allocate £108 per day for the 2 of us on average, and so far we have not gone over! We could absolutely manage on less, however this is the sweet spot for us with seeing, eating and experiencing whatever we want. This might be different for you depending on your priorities.

Activities - £25

I always like to book my #activities in advance so I can relax during the trip knowing I don’t have to faff around booking things. This also usually means that I get the cheapest rate for all tickets and activities as things typically get more expensive closer to the time or when paying on the door. Most things are always flexible should I need to cancel or change them, and it just means I can really maximise my time in each place.

We only had 1 paid activity in Madrid, which was the Las Ventas Bullring. This was honestly a once in a lifetime experience and although it was quite shocking that this still takes place, I am glad that I went. It’s a bit like if gladiators were still around, you’d have to go and see it for yourself. Tickets were pretty cheap and the arena is EPIC.

Total Cost - £803

Average cost per day: £267 // pp £133

I found Madrid overall to be a pretty reasonably priced city! There are many factors that could increase or decrease the total cost, of which a few are:

- The time of year you visit

- What your priorities are for your trip [eating out, sightseeing etc]

- Your travel style [hostel, hotel, villa etc]

- How far in advance you book

- What sites you use to book

Here are some tools that I always use to ensure I'm getting the best value for my trips and that there are no hidden costs.

We actually spent 9 nights in total across Spain and Portugal, and the full itinerary that includes Lisbon and Barcelona can be found here.

We would NOT be able to plan a trip without our trusted budget spreadsheet. It helps us see what we can (and can't) afford, whilst also helping us see how much we need to save each week to be able to do everything we want!

All our trips are self funded and saved for whilst working full time! To see how we budget and save for our trips and to get a copy of our spreadsheets, head to our budgets page!