{"id":3944,"date":"2015-11-08T19:11:50","date_gmt":"2015-11-08T18:11:50","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/www.shmadrid.com\/blog\/en\/?p=3944"},"modified":"2015-11-10T19:26:34","modified_gmt":"2015-11-10T18:26:34","slug":"gran-via-great-way-in-madrid","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.shmadrid.com\/blog\/en\/gran-via-great-way-in-madrid\/","title":{"rendered":"Gran Via (Great Way) In Madrid"},"content":{"rendered":"

\"Gran<\/a>One street in Madrid that you should spend time exploring is Gran Via<\/a>.<\/strong> \u00a0Not only is it an important area for shopping, but also is one of the liveliest areas.<\/p>\n

Along with a great selection of shops and restaurants there are several cinemas here. \u00a0But what really makes this street so special is the design of many of its large buildings. \u00a0As you stroll along Gran Via take time to glance up once in a while. \u00a0This will allow you the chance to be able to take in and admire the grand edifices that are wonderfully decorated.<\/p>\n

You should begin your walk along this street in the square known as\u00a0Plaza de Alcal\u00e1<\/a><\/strong>. \u00a0You will then finish your walk in another square called\u00a0Plaza de Espa\u00f1a. \u00a0 As you make your way along Gran Via (Great Way) there are plenty of shops<\/a>, bars and restaurants to explore. \u00a0Plus of course you could always stop and take in a show at a theatre or a cinema.<\/p>\n

Madrid’s most central street<\/h2>\n

It is often considered to be Madrid’s most central street, so offers the perfect place for you to stay when visiting the city. \u00a0Along with the usual hotels there are several tourist apartments to rent. \u00a0Also why not consider staying in a hostel, which are usually small family run hotels.<\/p>\n

Work on this street didn’t start until the middle part of the 19th Century. \u00a0This was when the city’s urban planners<\/strong> decided that a new thoroughfare was needed. \u00a0One that connected Calle de\u00a0Alcal\u00e1 \u00a0with Plaza de\u00a0Espa\u00f1a<\/strong>. \u00a0 As a result of this quite a few buildings were demolished in the center of the city. \u00a0 Yet it would be several more years after their being demolished that work on the street itself begun. \u00a0In fact work on Gran Via<\/strong> didn’t begin until around 1906 and was finally completed in 1929.<\/p>\n

\"Gran<\/a>With the construction of this new road it offers architects in the city an opportunity to create some large building. \u00a0These were all designed using the architectural styles that were in fashion at the time. \u00a0The first building that is going to catch your eye is the most famous of them all on Gran Via. \u00a0It is the Metropolis Building<\/strong> (Edificio\u00a0Metr\u00f3polis<\/strong>). \u00a0It was erected between 1907 and 1911 and designed by Jules & Raymond\u00a0F\u00e9vrier<\/strong>.<\/p>\n

Then further along the street you’ll find the next building worth taking time out to view. \u00a0Located on the left hand side of the street is the Grassy Building (Edificio Grassy)<\/strong>. \u00a0 This one is distinctive because of the small tower built on the corner of it.<\/p>\n

As you reach this building you’ll find that you have great views of one of Madrid’s tallest buildings<\/a><\/strong>. \u00a0You’ll see the 290ft (88m) high tower of the\u00a0Telef\u00f3nica building (Edificio Telef\u00f3nica<\/strong>). \u00a0This was built between 1926 and 1929. \u00a0Unlike other buildings along the Grand Via this one was actually designed by an American architect called Louis S Weeks.<\/p>\n

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One street in Madrid that you should spend time exploring is Gran Via. \u00a0Not only is it an important area for shopping, but also is one of the liveliest areas. Along with a great selection of shops and restaurants there are several cinemas here. \u00a0But what really makes this street so special is the design […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":15,"featured_media":3947,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":[],"categories":[1567],"tags":[1007,1006,125,1002,1003,1004,1005,171],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.shmadrid.com\/blog\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/3944"}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.shmadrid.com\/blog\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.shmadrid.com\/blog\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.shmadrid.com\/blog\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/15"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.shmadrid.com\/blog\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=3944"}],"version-history":[{"count":4,"href":"https:\/\/www.shmadrid.com\/blog\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/3944\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":7114,"href":"https:\/\/www.shmadrid.com\/blog\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/3944\/revisions\/7114"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.shmadrid.com\/blog\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/3947"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.shmadrid.com\/blog\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=3944"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.shmadrid.com\/blog\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=3944"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.shmadrid.com\/blog\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=3944"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}