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From historic candy makers and milliners to Loewe and Ágatha Ruiz de la Prada, The Palace’s new experience reveals the craftsmanship shaping modern Madrid.
I was struck by a wall installation in Madrid by the sculptor Gloria García Lorca composed of more than 300 handmade ceramic pieces glazed in black, brown, white, and yellow. The artwork is displayed at Casa Loewe, the brand’s flagship store in the Salamanca district, and epitomizes Spain’s rich history of craftsmanship and contemporary design.
This was part of a new fashion and shopping experience offered by The Palace, a storied hotel located in Madrid’s central Huertas neighborhood. Commissioned by King Alfonso XIII in 1912 and declared a Site of Cultural Interest by the Madrid government in 1999, the hotel recently emerged from a 100-million-euro renovation that restored its facade and refreshed its 470 rooms and suites.
The new tour, “Made in Madrid,” provides guests with a behind-the-scenes look at the creativity behind the jewelery, accessories, clothing, and confectionery produced in the Spanish capital. It’s also a chance to observe the well-heeled crowds shopping at designer boutiques in the prestigious Salamanca district.
We began the morning at La Pajarita, an artisanal sweetshop that opened in 1852, which features its original line of boiled candies in 17 flavors. I tried the violet flavor, a Madrid classic.
Next, we went to Mimoki, a milliner that specializes in fascinators and other headwear for weddings, baptisms, and other special occasions. The owner, Ana María Chico de Guzmán, got her start making brooches as a teenager, before discovering her knack for hats. In the atelier downstairs, one of her artisans was making a sombrero out of golden-brown sinamay, a lightweight fabric.
Over at the jewelry workshop of Suma Cruz, I found a team of craftspeople busy cutting, soldering, and 3D printing at various stations. The brand’s brass and silver pieces include rings, earrings, and elaborate chains—many featuring animal, insect, and plant motifs. “I have very baroque tastes,” says founder Susana Cruz, whose grandfather was also a jeweler. “I like big pieces that envelop you and form part of you.”
The new guest experience was developed by Heather Evans, a professional guide who moved to Madrid from Santa Monica, California 18 years ago. “I think travelers are increasingly looking for experiences that help them understand how a city lives today, not just how it lived in the past,” she said. “Madrid’s makers, designers, and artisans offer that window. They show visitors a city that is creative, thoughtful, and still deeply connected to their traditions through the people who shape it every day.”
Spain’s exuberant spirit was vividly embodied in our next stop, the flagship store of fashion designer Ágatha Ruiz de la Prada, whose bold aesthetic is easy to spot around town. Oversized silhouettes, whimsical shapes, and explosively vivid colors define the brand. “Black is forbidden,” says Manolo Jarillo, one of the design leads, who creates around 200 new patterns a year but always draws from the brand’s signature motifs: hearts, flowers, stars, clouds. “We don’t follow trends,” he explains. “The trend is Ágatha.”
We finished at Casa Loewe on Calle de Serrano, a three-story boutique in a stately 19th-century building complete with a central staircase made of Campaspero stone and Valencian ceramics underfoot. Founded in 1846 as a leather workshop, Loewe has evolved into one of Spain’s defining luxury houses— not least under the influence of Jonathan Anderson, creative director for 11 years, who was succeeded in 2025 by New York duo Jack McCollough and Lázaro Hernandez.
Marking its 180th anniversary this year, the maison released a special collection that includes a new Puzzle bag inspired by the iconic, square-shaped Amazona first introduced in 1975. “Clients who have the Amazona are lifelong clients,” a salesperson told me. “For a new generation, we took this classic and gave it a twist.”
Back at The Palace, lunch awaited at its La Cúpula restaurant, handsomely furnished with Castilian leather-upholstered stools, 16th-century tapestries, and a restored stained-glass dome made of 1,875 panels.
Elisa Barral, the general manager, said the hotel’s design reflects the refined tastes of its guests. “What truly excites them is discovering hidden gems,” she said. “A private tour, meeting artisans, accessing spaces normally closed to the public, or a recommendation that only someone who lives and breathes Madrid can offer.”
Read the original article on Travel & Leisure
