About this place
Shaped like a wide half-moon, the Puerta del Sol has been Madrid's living room for five centuries. It began as a gate in the city wall, decorated with a carving of the sun, and grew into the square where Madrileños gather to protest, celebrate, and simply meet. The curved red building on the south side is the old Post Office, now the seat of the regional government, crowned by the clock whose chimes every Spaniard follows on New Year's Eve while swallowing twelve lucky grapes. In front of it, a small brass plaque in the pavement marks Kilometre Zero, the point from which every national road is measured. Nearby stands the beloved statue of the bear and the strawberry tree, the emblem of the city.
Key facts
- 1950 year — The bronze statue of the bear and the strawberry tree, the symbol of Madrid, was installed here
- 12 grapes — Are eaten by Spaniards, one per chime, as the Sol clock strikes midnight on New Year's Eve
- 0 kilometre — Marks the origin of Spain's six radial national roads, set in the pavement outside the Post Office
📍 Barrio de los Austrias, 28013, Madrid