Sol is Madrid's crossroads: Kilometre Zero, a major Metro and Cercanías interchange, and the point where many first-time itineraries naturally begin. The convenience is superb; the trade-off is that this is also central Madrid at its busiest and most visitor-focused.
Puerta del Sol is not literally the geographic centre of Spain, but it does contain the famous Kilometre Zero marker from which Spain's major radial roads are measured. The square also holds the Bear and the Strawberry Tree statue, the equestrian statue of Charles III and the Casa de Correos clock associated with Spain's New Year's Eve tradition of eating twelve grapes at midnight.
Several major streets radiate from here, including Calle Mayor, Arenal, Alcalá and Preciados. That is why Sol works so well as a navigation point even if you never plan to 'sightsee' the square for long.
From Sol, Plaza Mayor is only a few minutes away. Continue west and you reach Mercado de San Miguel, the Habsburg-era streets around Plaza de la Villa, then the Royal Palace and Almudena Cathedral. Walk east instead and you quickly connect with Gran Vía, Cibeles and the Paseo del Arte museum axis.
I would think of Centro as a web of short walks rather than one attraction district. The distances are easy; the danger is overloading the day because everything looks close on the map.
For a first visit of two or three nights, Sol can be extremely efficient. You can walk to many headline sights and the transport connections are excellent. If you arrive tired and want the city to be simple, that convenience has real value.
The downside is intensity: crowds, street activity, tourist-oriented restaurants, deliveries and late-night foot traffic. I would choose a quieter street just off the main squares rather than paying extra simply to have a balcony directly over Sol or Plaza Mayor.
Official Madrid tourism currently lists Sol Metro on Lines 1, 2 and 3, plus Madrid-Sol Cercanías. Nearby stations including Callao, Ópera and Sevilla give you more options depending on your hotel. This is one of the few parts of Madrid where 'we will mostly walk' and 'we want excellent public transport' can both be true at the same time.
Central Madrid has excellent food, but the most obvious tables on the most photographed squares are often selling location as much as cooking. I would use Plaza Mayor for the architecture, Mercado de San Miguel for a curated tasting stop, then move into side streets, La Latina, Lavapiés, Chueca or Barrio de las Letras for more deliberate eating.
That does not mean every central restaurant is a trap. It means menus with huge multilingual photo boards and aggressive pavement touting deserve more scepticism than places that are busy with a mixed local-and-visitor crowd.
Sol and the surrounding shopping streets attract dense foot traffic, so normal big-city anti-theft habits matter: keep phones and wallets controlled in crowds, close bags on Metro escalators and do not let a distraction separate you from your valuables. There is no need to treat Centro as unsafe; it simply creates more opportunities for opportunistic theft than a quiet residential street.
Early morning is the easiest time to appreciate the square itself. Late afternoon and evening deliver the energy most visitors associate with central Madrid. Around major celebrations — especially New Year's Eve — Sol becomes a controlled event space rather than an ordinary square, so access and transport can change significantly.
You can cross Sol in five minutes, but a useful Centro loop takes half a day. A strong route is Sol → Plaza Mayor → San Miguel → Plaza de la Villa → Royal Palace, with food or coffee away from the busiest frontage. If you also want Gran Vía, add it as a separate arc rather than zig-zagging back and forth.
I would base a short first Madrid trip near Sol for convenience, but not necessarily on the square itself. Stay one or two streets back, use the transport, walk everywhere, and let the centre be your launch pad rather than your entire Madrid experience.
Cheers, Carpe Diem & use Kilometre Zero as a start, not a finish! 🍻⏳🧭
TATS Man
The central-Madrid navigator who likes convenience best when it still leaves room to wander