fishmeal From United States of America, joined Jun 2001, 61 posts, RR: 0 Posted (11 months 2 weeks 6 days 1 hour ago) and read 2794 times:
I've been told that the airport in Madrid is very spread out and that it takes a long time to get from international arrival gates to baggage claim and customs, and from check-in back to a gate. We have a 9 hour layover there in October: would it be worth our while to try to leave the airport to visit the city for a few hours?
HT From Germany, joined May 2005, 6473 posts, RR: 27 Reply 1, posted (11 months 2 weeks 6 days 1 hour ago) and read 2789 times:
The only thing to keep in mind is that terminals 1 thru 3 on one hand and (fairly new) terminal 4 (with its satellite) are in different locations on the field.
Having said that, distances at T4 might be a tad bigger than at other airports, but still nothing to worry about.
Surely is 9 hours between flights more than enough time to head to Madrid's city center for some sightseeing, food, drinks, sleep, and back to the airport.
Alternative could be to rent a hotel room for a few hours to get some sleep, if times are favorable for that.
-HT
Carpe diem ! Life is too short to waste your time ! Keep in mind, that today is the first day of the rest of your life !
iahworldflyer From United States of America, joined Feb 2012, 99 posts, RR: 0 Reply 2, posted (11 months 2 weeks 6 days ago) and read 2778 times:
I've gone in and out of the Terminal 1-3 side, and while there was a definite hike down to baggage claim, it wasn't any worse than most big US airports. The Madrid Metro has a station right at the airport, and it takes about 35 minutes and 1 transfer to get to the central downtown area. With 9 hours between flights, I think that beats sitting around the airport all day!
reifel From Germany, joined Feb 2005, 1135 posts, RR: 1 Reply 3, posted (11 months 2 weeks 5 days 23 hours ago) and read 2774 times:
It's not that bad. As said before, T4 (Iberia/Oneworld mostly) is a little longer, as the buiding is huge and depending where your plane is docked it can be quite a long walk to the middle of the building, where immigration is located.
The next step is taking an underground automated train which takes approx 5 minutes, and then a short walk throught luguage claim. It's not as bad as it sound but count between 15 and 30 minutes depending where your plane is docked.
Exception for non Schengen flights in Europe (i.e. London) which do NOT dock at the remote terminal 4S (Satelitte), Then you will be out faster. That's for T4.
For all other airlines it's fairly straightforward (T1/2/3) and not worse than in other airports. However once landside it's sometimes quite a hike to the car park or metro depending on which terminal you arrive.
mad99 From Spain, joined Mar 2012, 196 posts, RR: 0 Reply 5, posted (11 months 2 weeks 5 days 7 hours ago) and read 2715 times:
Quoting iahworldflyer (Reply 2): The Madrid Metro has a station right at the airport, and it takes about 35 minutes and 1 transfer to get to the central downtown area. With 9 hours between flights, I think that beats sitting around the airport all day!
deltaguy767 From United States of America, joined Jun 2005, 633 posts, RR: 2 Reply 7, posted (11 months 3 days 3 hours ago) and read 2071 times:
Quoting fishmeal (Reply 6): Thanks for all of the information and advice. I think we'll make plans to head downtown and see how it goes.
Having lived in Madrid for a few months last year, I would urge you to take the opportunity to spend a few hours in the city. Getting to downtown via public transportation isn't too difficult, the 8 line Metro will get you to Nuevos Ministerios in 20-25min and from there to Sol (city-center) isn't much longer.
Braniff747SP From United States of America, joined Oct 2008, 2627 posts, RR: 1 Reply 8, posted (11 months 3 days 1 hour ago) and read 2037 times:
You can take the Metro (Line 8) to Nuevos Ministerios and the connect onto the rest of the city, or you can take the Airport Bus which stops at all terminals and passes through Cibeles, ending at Atocha Station. It's quick, and you'll go above ground.
The 747 will always be the TRUE queen of the skies!
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