Príncipe Pío Station

The current Príncipe Pío station, inaugurated in 1995, was known for many years as Estación del Norte (North Station) because it was built by the Compañía de los Caminos de Hierro del Norte de España (Northern Railway Company of Spain) – a French-owned company – as the terminus of a railway line linking Madrid to the French border.

The station building, listed as a landmark building, is an example of late 19th-century Modernist architecture. Built by the French architects Bairez, Grasset, and Ouliat in 1879, it features a façade flanked by two towers. In a historicist style, it still retains many of its original elements. Inside, the most outstanding feature is the lobby.

After ceasing to function as a railway station, it remained closed for many years until it reopened after extensive renovations. In 1990, it was transformed into a major transport hub with metro stations, commuter rail and an interchange for urban, intercity and long-distance buses, but it has also become a leisure and cultural center, featuring the Gran Teatro CaixaBank Príncipe Pío and a shopping center with all kinds of shops and restaurants.