Madrid Barajas Airport
Lasting Impressions....
Memorable comments left by travellers:
FEATURED REVIEWS
by frijol84, 9/9/2009
I spent one night in the arrivals section of Terminal 1. I found a quite corner on the hard marble floors and was soon joined by a few other people sleeping in the airport waiting for connecting flights the next morning. I had read this site and was afraid that the restrooms might close overnight. But I found that this was not the case. SOME restrooms are closed from 10pm to 5 or 6am, but there are always some restrooms open. I knew I would be sleeping in the airport so I brought a blanket and a coat to put between be and the cold marble floor. I found people sleeping upstairs near check-in, but would advise against this as it is quite loud and there was always a lot of traffic, plus annoying announcements over the loudspeaker. I found absolutely NO benches to sleep on (except in the boarding area). So I staked out a bit of floor on the Planta 0 arrivals section of terminal 1. There were a few arrivals at 2am and 4am, so there was activity in this section, but it was otherwise quite and clean. There is also a cafe near by that is overpriced but serves good food.
The left baggage/storage lockers were quite handy to use and I left my luggage there and explored the city for the afternoon prior to my overnight stay.
by sasiren, 8/30/2009
It was very hard to sleep in this place. I was in Terminal 4 and the seats had armrests. I found a bench at a restaurant and shared it with two strangers. One of them had the crustiest looking feet I have ever seen. I had to laugh.
Another thing u should be aware of is when u leave ur stuff in Left Luggage, the male staff person said u can open and close at will.
The female stated u must pay to re close the locker but to reopen is free!
Also the Iberia staff is very rough with luggage and at 8pm I had to go into the city center, buy a new suitcase and then come back to the airport. It was getting very late. I was apprehensive about taking the Metro at nite, but it was very safe (many others around).
Airport staff are not helpful either. I had to call collect to a USA insurance company to report unusable luggage and no one would let me use the phone. I finally found someone who gave general instructions to the public phones and all told me they did not know how much even local calls are or how to call the USA.
I was happy to leave Madrid! And the best meals I had was at McDonalds (sausage McMuffin) and dinner at Burger King. The prices were outrageous but the food was comforting.
Cleaning staff were rude. I had to redirect a staffer who thought nothing of hitting my feet with her broom. Too bad I didnt speak enough Spanish to recommend that she ride her broomstick instead.
Airport Guide
Here is some information that we've picked out of from your reviews. Be sure to read the review pages for the most up-to-date experiences:
- limited seating in arrivals and check-in halls
- benches without armrests in "arrival lounge 6" (terminal 2?)
- gates have seats without armrests
- frequent announcements
- WiFi
- prayer room
- cafe with long benches and seats
Madrid Discount Travel Links
- Hostels and Budget Accommodation in Madrid - I've booked my own accommodation on this site. If you are too old for hostels and too cheap for hotels, like me, you'll find some good properties. They offer dorms, private rooms, B&Bs, Apartments.
