5 Best Shopping Streets in Madrid

Calle Gran Vía is a centrally located 1.3-km-long street. It’s nicknamed ‘the Spanish Broadway’. Also known as ‘the street that never sleeps’, Calle Gran Vía is lined with theatres, cinemas, restaurants, and shops. H&M, Zara and Lacoste are just a few of the world-class brands that have a boutique here. Larger department stores such as El Corte Inglés are also found on this upscale shopping street famed for the awe-inspiring architecture of some of its buildings.

Calle de Preciados is a pedestrian street located just south of Calle Gran Vía. Running for around 500 metres, it’s one of the most vibrant shopping streets in the centre of Madrid. Here, you’ll find a great range of products including video games, men’s and women’s fashion, and much more in small boutiques and large department stores like the FNAC and El Corte Inglés. The first segment of Calle de Preciados is packed with tapas bars and restaurants, offering cool places for a break during your shopping spree.

Calle de Serrano is an almost 3-km-long street, just north of the city centre. Only the southern half is popular for shopping, hosting shopping malls, watch and jewellery stores, designer shops, and many international luxury franchises such as Gucci and Louis Vuitton. Calle de Serrano is a true ritzy shoppers’ haven, but also features a good choice of dining options, many of them inside shopping malls such as Serrano 43. If this sounds like your kind of street, we recommend you take a look at the available accommodation in the Salamanca district for your pending visit to Madrid.

Stretching northward for 1,500 metres between Calle Gran Via and the Monument to Quevedo circle, Calle Fuencarral is a quirky modern shopping street popular for its alternative fashion brands. Here, you’ll obviously find big names such as Diesel, Kipling and GI Joe, but also barely known but very talented fashion designers. Featuring tattoo and piercing parlours, as well as Asian boutiques, quaint cafés and restaurants, Calle Fuencarral has a pleasant Bohemian feel.

El Rastro is the most popular flea market in Madrid. Held every Sunday on Plaza de Cascorro and on the streets that spread from it, this market offers you a real Madrid experience. You’ll find new and second-hand items from funky clothing to pets to stamps to electronic gadgets – virtually anything you can think of. It’s a great place to walk around on a Sunday morning before lunching at one of the many tapas bars and restaurants available in this lively district. It can get pretty crowded and pickpockets have been known to operate there, so keep your valuables safe, or keep them stowed away in your hotel room nearby.  Accommodation near El Rastro market is fully recommended.