MANDARIN ORIENTAL RITZ MADRID IS A GEM IN THE GOLDEN TRIANGLE
There are grand hotels, and then there’s the Mandarin Oriental Ritz Madrid — a Belle Époque icon restored with almost museum-like care. Located in the city’s Golden Triangle of Art, the hotel sits between the Prado and the Thyssen-Bornemisza. For more than 115 years, the building has welcomed royalty, dignitaries, and the glamorous, and today, after the largest renovation in its history by Rafael de La-Hoz and French duo Gilles & Boissier, it feels reborn in a way that it honours its past while and looks firmly ahead.
images courtesy of MANDARIN ORIENTAL RITZ MADRID
The 100 rooms and 53 suites follow the philosophy of soft neutral tones and light wood. The renovation reduced the number of rooms to make everything feel more spacious. Bathrooms are finished in Dolomite stone and Emperor marble with spacious showers and bathtubs. Suites add living rooms, dressing areas and, in many cases, views over the garden or the Prado. The top categories — including the Royal Suite — feel more like private apartments, complete with dining areas, original artworks and touches that reference building’s history.
With Quique Dacosta — one of Spain’s most celebrated chefs — at the helm, Mandarin Oriental Ritz Madrid is as much a dining destination as it is a hotel. Two-Michelin-starred Deessa is the showstopper, situated in the gilded Alfonso XIII room and serving tasting menus that play with memory, heritage, and innovation. Palm Court, under a soaring crystal canopy, is where locals mingle with guests over Afternoon Tea or light plates with Dacosta’s signature touch. For something sparkling, the Champagne Bar is an eight-seat jewel box dedicated to caviar, oysters, truffles and the city’s most prestigious champagne list. And for cocktail hours that turn into nights, there’s Pictura — a bar wrapped in a mural of Spanish artisans, with a unique selection of spirits and classic cocktails. Outside, El Jardín del Ritz offers paellas, ceviches, cocktails and that uniquely Madrid sense of ease.
While the restaurants and bars offer the social experience like no other, the Beauty Concept Spa brings a softer, slower rhythm to the hotel — a sanctuary of warm light, curated treatments, and a heated indoor pool that glows beneath a ceiling echoing the city’s starry sky. There’s also a vitality pool, hammam, steam room, and Technogym-equipped fitness centre, all designed to create a full holistic experience.
For celebrations, launches, weddings, or anything requiring a sense of occasion, the hotel offers 11 restored event spaces with views of the Prado, natural daylight, and a design inspired by nature and the city’s artistic heritage. The Royal Ballroom, with its inlaid parquet floor and decorated ceiling, feels was clearly made for a night you wouldn’t want to forget.
Despite its opulence, the hotel is fully committed to creating a better future. It minimises waste, eliminates plastics, uses LED lighting and automatic systems to reduce energy consumption, and sources ingredients responsibly — from sustainable seafood to cage-free eggs. It also commits thousands of community-service hours each year and holds official GSTC certification, placing sustainability at the centre of its luxury philosophy.