Find the Best Things to Do in Atocha
By Sarah Rogers
About Atocha
Photo courtesy of Lauren Manning
The Atocha area is widely known for important attractions like the Reina Sofia Museum and Spain’s biggest railway hub, Atocha train station, which the area takes its name from. There you can catch a high-speed train to other parts of the country, a commuter train to the mountains or the capital’s efficient metro system to another neighborhood. A few of the city’s important streets, such as the Paseo del Prado, Calle de Atocha and Paseo de Delicias, also converge there.
See & Do
Apart from the eponymous train station, the busy Atocha area is full of attractions like the Anthropology Museum; the Royal Tapestry Factory; CaixaForum Madrid, a contemporary art exhibition center; and Spain’s most important contemporary art museum, the Reina Sofia. The museum combines the historic San Carlos hospital with the newer Nouvel building and holds treasures like Pablo Picasso’s Guernica.
Eat
Being so close to major museums, Atocha train station and a number of government buildings, the area’s restaurants tend to cater to convenience-seeking tourists, travelers and government workers. That doesn’t mean you won’t find some good eats here, though. In fact, you may be pleasantly surprised dining in an often-overlooked part of Madrid’s culinary landscape.
Stay
The area is full of interesting old buildings, a number of which have been revitalized and turned into hotels that pride themselves on the location: in the heart of Madrid’s downtown hustle and bustle and near Madrid’s most important attractions. Staying here is a good alternative to the hotels clustered around the Sol area.