The historic centre of Madrid may lie at Plaza Mayor, but the Spanish capital’s geographic centre is at another well-known square, the Puerta del Sol. Considered the Times Square and Picadilly Circus of Madrid, there is never a dull moment to be had.
Visitors can’t turn their head on the Puerta del Sol without spying a famous Spanish landmark. A mounted statue of King Charles III sits near the Old Post Office building, a magnificent neoclassical façade which currently plays host to the president of Madrid and its regional government offices. A plaque on the square denotes Madrid’s “kilometro cero”, the point from which distances are measured. More than a simple geographic symbol, this exact centre of Madrid has formed a hotspot for demonstrations and protests, most recently for the anti-austerity movement in Spain.
As the absolute centre of the city, nearly every form of transport touches Puerta del Sol. Both the Madrid Metro and Intercity trains serve the city with platforms that are always bustling with energy.
In Madrid’s medieval days, the Puerta del Sol was the site of the walled city’s eastern gate. Each morning, the sunrise crowned the gate until it became known as the Puerta del Sol, one of Spain’s most recognisable meeting points.