Just got an email from some folks who have just set up stall in Madrid and thought I’d post about it. BookWorld España already has stores along the coast where there are many thousands of British tourists but has now decided that it will try it’s luck at selling books in the heart of Spain. The shop is located at Calle Goya, 56 – nearest at METRO stop GOYA (the exit to take being General Diaz Portier) and its pening hours are Monday to Saturday 10am – 8pm.
Category Archives: Madrid Shopping
December Suggestions from Metrópoli
Metrópoli has a really good guide to what you can do in Madrid this December – it is in Spanish, though. They have come up with 150 suggestions for what you can do in the coming weeks – eat, drink, be merry and much more. Interestingly, they have broken them down into 15 categories – based on different types of personality. These range from the sportsman (woman), the art lover, the over 65’s, under 18’s, the shopaholics, singles, and a good few more. There are some really cool suggestions here – there is even a category for those who think they’re cool!!
Christmas Programme for Madrid
If you’d like an "exhaustive" programme of activities on in Madrid this Christmas, download [pdf] the esMadrid magazine. Be aware this is quite a "beefy" 8MB pdf!!
J and J Books and Coffee
I haven’t done a visitor recommendation for quite some time now so it was nice to receive an email from someone last week. Here’s what Greg had to say:
I recently found your site and saw that the best bookstore in Madrid is actually not listed on your site. It’s a new and used bookstore with a bar/coffee shop attached. It has the best selection of English books in all of Madrid. Over 25,000 books and also different activities throughout the week for meeting new people and hanging out.
The place is called J&J Books and Coffee
It’s located on C/Espiritu Santo, 47 in Madrid’s center.I seriously hope that you will add them to your site because it’s the best place there.
Thanks for the recommendation Greg and if anyone else has been there, please let me know.
Buying “Typically Spanish” Products
I just came across an interesting review on the Metrópoli site. In it they review a shop in Madrid’s c/Jorge Juan, which offers a range of products ‘Made in Spain’ that are primarily focused on tourists. Madrid, like any tourist destination, has its fair share of kitsch souvenir shops selling lighters, plastic flamenco dolls and felt bulls! However, Romero Díaz is quite different in that it offers good quality, traditional crafts – pottery, handcrafted tiles, candles, honey, jewellry and hand made fans and shawls.
Their most important products are their handmade mantónes de Manila or embroidered silk shawls, which are made in Andalucía and their Valencian fans. You will also find a good selection of Spanish, olive oil, honey, chocolates and wine. If you do end up going there, I would suggest popping over to the Cervecería Santa Bárbara (on the corner of c/Goya and c/Alcalá) and which serves great beer on tap.
Address
Jorge Juan, 64 (Next to Teatro Alcalá) – Map
Metro
Goya or Príncipe de Vergara
Good Quality Shopping Centres in Madrid
If you enjoy shopping, here are 3 shopping centres that you should think about visiting: the Moda Shopping Centre, the ABC Shopping Centre and the Jardin de Serrano. The Moda Shopping Centre is located near Madrid’s football mecca, Santiago Bernabeu, and has a wide range
of shops – from smart designer shops to jewellry shops and antiques shops. You can also find a number of places to have food or a drink. From one side of the centre you will see Madrid’s largest building – the stunning Torre Picasso. From here you can walk across to the departmetn store El Corte Ingles and/or visit the shops on c/Orense.
The ABC Centre is located in a building that the well-known (‘very’ conservative!) newspaper ABC occupied until 1989. It has two principal entrances – one is the Paseo de la Castellana and the other c/Serrano, Madrid’s ‘poshest’ street. It has a fine selection of shops, from clothing and jewellry to shops where you can buy nick nacks. During the summer its summer terrace (on the 4th floor) offers fantastic views across the city. There is a nice shop for kids there called Imaginarium, which even has a special ‘little’ door for them to go in through!
The third shop is located a short walk from the ABC Centro (right next to Serrano Metro stop) and though it’s called Jardín de Serrano, it’s located in c/Goya! This place has a neat selection of good quality shops and clothes boutiques – women’s clothes, jewellery, picture framing shops, handbags, children’s clothes, etc. You can also find the Mallorca restaurant, where you can have a good quality, reasonably priced meal or wonderful pastry in very pleasant surroundings.
As the latter is located at the start of c/Serrano, you can walk up to the designer shops which are located on or jutting on to this street.
Bomec – a Tea Salon in Madrid
Coffee is definitely the preferred hot beverage in Madrid (well, throughout Spain) but if you would just prefer a cup of decent tea, you should head over to Bomec – a tea shop which is tucked away just behind the Metro in the Tribunal area. Bomec has on offer over 160 varieties of tea, all neatly displayed in metal tins behind the counter, and which come from China, Japan, Taiwan, Thailand, Africa and India.
The shop is unlike other shops in the city centre – it is quite dark inside and seems to be inspired by the Orient. Bomec’s tea shop, which also sells all manner of tea accessories, is open during the morning and afternoon, whilst the wonderful little tea salon is open just in the afternoons. If you live in Spain, you can also have tea delivered to your door by Bomec. Also on the same side of the street you will find a traditional book binders – you can actually see them at work from the front window! Nearby, in c/ Fuencarral you wil find Corripio, a great place to stop for a glass of cider.
Location
Address: C/ San Joaquín, 8 – Madrid (corner of Fuencarral nº 73 )
Metro: Tribunal
Reproductions of Medieval Art in Madrid
I just came across an interesting website for a medieval shop in Madrid. It appears that Arte Medieval creates authentic reproductions of medieval art using the same materials and techniques as employed by craftsmen of medieval times. – most products are done by hand and include mural paintings, paintings done on stone, wood and stained glass.
Address
c/ Alcalá, 107 (View streetmap)
Metro: Retiro
Flamenco-World.com opens its first shop
For over 8 years Flamenco-World.com has had a web presence and has grown into on of the major flamenco web sites in the world. Now, as a result of demand from its readers/customers, it has opened its first shop in Madrid. The shop is located in Madrid’s well-known c/Huertas and has two rooms which display a variety of flamenco-related products, from CD’s and DVD’s to books, shoes, postcards, guitars, shawls, box drums and accessories. Their intention is the following:
“We want to cater to the demanding enthusiast, but also to the tourist and the curious seeking a place representative of that part of Spanish culture which is flamenco, presented enticingly and seriously, as heritage of the people and not just of sybarites”.
Walking along c/Huertas, which is one of the main centre’s of Madrid’s nightlife, a couple of weeks back I couldn’t help but see the shop front in daytime with its deep red colours – this is quite strange as the bars & restaurants of this famous nightspot tend to be invisible in daytime!
Related Article
Flamenco-world.com inaugurates its first store
Address: c/Huertas, 62 (view map location)
Metro: Antón Martín
Real Madrid Shop in centre of Madrid
Walking up the Calle del Carmen, one of the streets off the Puerta del Sol, you will find a shop dedicated to everything related to Real Madrid. You wil find shirts of all the stars (including Beckham, Figo, Zidane and Ronaldo), tracksuits, signed autographs, baby clothes and many other items. With the latest digital editing equipment, you can even buy a picture of yourself holding the Champions Cup with Ronaldo!
If you can’t wait to get to Madrid and want a David Beckham Football Shirt now, why not buy one on Amazon?
Metro: Puerta del Sol
Booksellers – English Bookshop
Booksellers has been around for at least 10 years and offers a lifeline to those English-speaking people who live in Madrid and want to buy books written in English – I´m sure it is also a great place for those travellers who wish to stock up on books. For those learning English the shop has a huge range of English language materials, from books to CD´s and DVD´s.
Address: c/ José Abascal, 48
Metro: Gregorio Marañón, lines 7 & 10
Craft Fair – Paseo de Recoletos
On the Paseo de Recoletos the annual arts and crafts fair of the “Comunidad de Madrid” is currently being held. There are over 200 stalls, with a wide variety of arts and craft mainly from greater Madrid area. You will find everyting from leather purses, art deco mirrors, a wide range of pottery, wooden clocks to wonderful children´s toys and avrious paper products. It is well worth a visit and the prices are very reasonabe for such high quality goods. The fair runs until the 5th January and you can get to it by catching the Metro to Banco de España and walking 50 metres to the start of Paseo de Recoletos. Whilst there I would recommend going to Café de Gijón (Paseo de Recoletos 21).
Christmas fun at El Corté Inglés
Like every Christmas, the famous department store El Corté Inglés has decorated one side of its store in the Puerta del Sol, for the entertainment of children. You will find a number of different scenes with animated characters, loads of scenery and all accompanied by music. For many Madrileños, this has become an annual ritual, often followed by chocolate with churros in the Chocolatería San Ginés. Great fun for all!
The times are: 11 am, 12 pm, 1pm and 2pm and 6, 7, 8, 9 and 9.30 pm from Monday to Thursday and 12, 1, 2 and 3 pm followed by 5, 6, 7, 8, 9 and 10 pm on Saturday and Sunday.
Metro: Sol.
Address: Calle del Maestro Vitoria (parralel to the main opening)
Serrano – Shopping, embassies and architecture
Calle Serrano belongs to one of Madrid’s wealthiest barrios, Salamanca. It is here that you will find all the designer clothes stores, expensive jewellry shops and some of Madrid’s smartest buildings. It is an extremely long street but the part that most interests shoppers starts at Puerta de Alcalá and runs for around 8-10 blocks. On the left-hand side walking up you will pass the Archaelogical Museum and the Plaza de Colón (Columbus square), which has a statue of Columbus pointing westwards.
If you’re looking for shops, lets get started:
Jardin de Serrano – not actually on C/ Serrano but 2 or 3 doors up from it on c/Goya, 6-8
El Corté Inglés
Practically every traveller to Madrid has ended up in El Corté Inglés. El Corté Inglés is Spain’s most popular department store. Established in 1935, it can now be found all over Spain, it even has its own brand of out-of-town hyper stores. The store sells a vast array of goods and services, from clothes, houseware and CD’s to holidays, food and electronic goods.