Close your eyes and imagine Madrid a century ago. Two centuries. Five centuries! What was it like when this city was a Moorish fort? How did the city transform when it became the seat of the Castilian Crown? During this 2.5 hour Madrid for Kids private tour, we'll seek the answers to these questions and immerse ourselves in the history of the city, visiting the famed Plaza Mayor and Puerta del Sol. Our expert guide will be a historian with significant training in Visual Thinking Strategies and lots of experience working directly with kids. Our guides come prepared with hands-on activities to make Madrid's history come alive and teach children how to see a city through a new lens.

Beginning near the Opera House in central Madrid, our tour will take us back through time. We will start by learning about the founding of Madrid and discovering the vestiges of the Muslim settlement—its 9th century walls—where we’ll consider life during these primeval years and conceptualize how the walls might have been built. We will also spend some time at the exterior of the refined Royal Palace, where we’ll consider the young princes and princesses who inhabited the castle. How did their lives differ from the average citizens of the times? What might it have been like to be a part of the monarchy in this city? Through engagement-focused activities, our expert guide will lead us through these questions to seek our own answers.

We will also visit the Plaza Mayor, where we’ll imagine the various uses of the square over the centuries—it held markets, bull fights, and even soccer matches. We’ll envision what was sold in the shops which hide under the archways. We may even stop briefly in a nearby a historic cafe, still used by madrileños today, for a break over a beverage and traditional sweet.

We will make our way through the small back streets to the city’s current central square, Puerta del Sol, where we’ll also have a chance to talk about Madrid as it is today. We will come away from the experience having had an introduction to Madrid's current landscape and how it has evolved throughout its centuries of history.

In addition to our family program tours, we may be able to adapt certain other tours to the needs of families, though please note such adaptations would not incorporate special activities. Please contact us for more details.

Will this tour include the Royal Palace? 
Our tour will examine the palace from its exterior. We will not enter the palace on this tour.

Will this tour be engaging for parents as well? 
Our guide will be able to answer your questions but the overall focus will be geared towards your children.

Is this tour walking-intensive and/or wheelchair accessible?
 This tour is fairly walking-intensive and the route may include narrow sidewalks and cobblestoned streets. Please contact us to discuss in more detail your mobility concerns so that we can best advise. We are also happy to discuss possible adjustments for visitors with mobility concerns.