Should i rent a car as a tourist in madrid?

Question

traveling with five adults in february 2006.

Answer 1

you´ve got a good net of trains, subways, and busses, to visit most important & symbolic places in Madrid!!!

if you rent a car you-re going to have more freedom, but it isnt so indispensable to have a car...

good luck, have a nice journey and have fun too!

Answer 2

From your question, it sounds like this is your first visit.  Madrid is a bustling metropolitan and unless you're accustomed to driving around in Europe with its unique road signs and street sign location, Madrid can be a difficult place to navigate.  Parking is also a bear!

I think you'll enjoy the city more if stick to: the Metro, taxis, and the hop-on-hop-off tour buses. You won't have to worry about other drivers, getting tickets, asking for directions in a language you might not speak well.

Rentals are good if you want to drive outside of the city: El Escorial, Valle de los Caidos, Segovia, Cuidad Encantada, etc.  But even some of those trips are covered by Pullman Tours. While they are limited in terms of time, they provide knowledgable English speaking guides and you'll be able to enjoy the scenery more.  

I'd save the rental car for second or third visit.

If you do decided to drive this visit and you have a GPS system, remember that you can download maps of Spain and Portugal for a fee and load them onto your GPS system.  That might make the driving less stressful.  But it still won't take away the parking headaches.

Answer 3

I guess the question is a bit vague (sp?). I recomend to my friends to rent a car in Spain since there are so many places to see whithin driving distance from Madrid. Spain has a great road system and it is easy to travel from one city to another. Once you get to a city, park the car and take taxis since parking can be difficult and it is difficult to find your way around in any new city.