
The ornate Cibeles Palace began as a communications headquarters, built to manage the expanding postal and telegraph networks of modern Madrid. Its monumental façade gives infrastructure a palace-like presence, while its later civic role reflects the building’s changing relationship with the city.
Guide preview
This palace-like façade was designed for a working communications system. The building now called Cibeles Palace was constructed as the headquarters of Madrid’s Post and Telegraph services, designed by Antonio Palacios and Joaquín Otamendi and inaugurated in 1909.
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Quick facts
- The building was designed by Antonio Palacios and Joaquín Otamendi.
- It opened in 1909 as the headquarters for Post and Telegraph services.
- It became Madrid City Hall in 2007.
More places in Madrid

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Almudena Cathedral took more than a century to complete, changing from a neo-Gothic proposal to a more classical exterior beside the Royal Palace. Its long construction reflects Madrid’s delayed status as a diocese and the political and financial interruptions of modern Spanish history.

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Campo del Moro Gardens
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Casa de Campo
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Casa de Campo Cable Car
The Casa de Campo cable car was designed to turn a long urban crossing into a brief aerial passage between Madrid and its great park. Since its 1969 inauguration, the ride has offered a changing view of the city’s western landscape and the Casa de Campo beyond.