Agent’s Cause a Heatwave in Madrid!
Rooftop selfie at the Circulo de Bellas Artes, Madrid
In October we took five lucky travel agents on a special FAM trip to the stunning city of Madrid in Spain with Nathalie our Product Manager, Sarah our Marketing Manager and Nicole our Agency Sales Executive.
It was a bright and early start to travel from London Gatwick to Madrid with easyJet after a quick coffee we were swiftly on our way to soak up the 27 degrees heat!
Our rooms at the 7 Islas Hotel. Madrid
Circulo de Bellas Artes, Madrid
The view from Circulo de Bellas Artes, Madrid
Once we touched down our first stop was to drop our bags at the very cool 7 Islas Hotel where we would be staying. A modern earthy designed hotel with an amazing quiet central location (just off Gran Via where all the high street shops are). The hotel receptionist recommended a rooftop bar close by called Circulo de Bellas Artes so we headed straight there – and wow we were not disappointed. The views were just unbelievable, we could see for miles and the sun was so nice we even had to put sun cream on!
Taberna del Chato, Madrid
We then wandered over to a lovely little tapas restaurant called Taberna del Chato which was about a 15 minute walk. We were met there by Visit Madrid who were treating us to some very tasty local dishes – from squid to ibérico ham and lots of desserts to share!
Restaurante Botín, the oldest restaurant in the world, Madrid
Plaza Mayor, Madrid
Inside the food market, Mercado de San Miguel, Madrid
At the restaurant we were met by Martha – our very own private tour guide for the afternoon for a walk round the historical Old Town! We were all given individual headsets to tune into Martha which were a god send – as the streets were buzzing with life! From the oldest restaurant in the World to the grand squares – we loved every minute of the tour and learnt so much about Madrid’s royal history.
It was back to the hotel for a quick freshen up ready for dinner and the main event – our Flamenco show! We had some lovely drinks in the hotel bar to start the night and then off we went.
Flamenco show, Casa Patas, Madrid
Flamenco show, Casa Patas, Madrid
Flamenco show, Casa Patas, Madrid
A huge rustic wooden table awaited us at the packed out Casa Patas restaurant. Once again we were eating copious amounts of delicious tapas and red wine, giving us a real Spanish evening feast. It was then time for the show which was also in the restaurant in another room so we could even take our drinks with us! We were all seated right next to the stage and wow the Spanish really can move – we were blown away with the energetic and emotional performance that lasted about 2 hours.
The Royal Palace, Madrid
Sarah & Elaine, Royal Palace, Madrid
Inside the Royal Palace, Madrid
It was a fresh early start with a full buffet breakfast at the hotel then a swift check-out as we were getting picked up for a special tour of the masterpiece that is the Royal Palace in the warm morning sunshine! It truly is a very spectacular building and the interiors inside were unimaginable – very royal you could say. We were all really taken back at how beautiful and pristine it was.
Artichoke hearts with ham. Westin Palace Hotel, Madrid
The last supper! Westin Palace Hotel, Madrid
Our very last stop after our royal Palace visit was for a beautiful lunch at the very opulent 5-star Westin Palace Hotel – it was such a nice send off for us all as it was now time to get on the road to head back to the airport and catch our flights home after a very busy and hot couple of days!
With love from Madrid!
Jaqui, Sunways “What a wonderful trip, and a great group of people to share the experience with. Please pass on my thanks. Was lovely to meet you all. Loved Madrid, and will definitely be recommending it to everyone.”
Elaine, Elaine’s Travel “Thanks so much for a lovely 2 days I really enjoyed Madrid far more than expected and will be able to sell the destination so much easier now!!! Also the group was fab and I really enjoyed everyone’s company.”
Sheila, Go Travel “Would like to say a big thank you for such a lovely time I had with you all in Madrid, I have been raving about it to all my friends and colleagues.”
Stephanie, Baldwins Travel “Thank you!! for a brilliant trip, I had a great time and learnt a lot about Madrid.”
Emma, Baldwins Travel “Thank you to you, Sarah and Natalie, I had a lovely time with you all and it certainly gave a me a good insight to Madrid, we was so lucky with the weather too.”
