Torre Emperador Castellana
A Filipino brandy company bought and renamed one of Madrid's tallest towers — after their product.
Coming soon on iOS — be first to walk Madrid offline.
Designed by Henry N. Cobb of Pei Cobb Freed and topped out in March 2007 with a fireworks ceremony attended by Madrid's mayor, this 230 m, 57-floor tower briefly held the title of Spain's tallest structure. Its unusual form earned it a slot on Discovery Channel's Build It Bigger. Four embassies — British, Canadian, Australian, and Dutch — operate inside.
What to look for
- The tower's distinctive silhouette, unusual enough in form to land it on Discovery Channel's Build It Bigger
- Torre de Cristal immediately next door — it surpassed this building's height just one month after completion, in April 2007
- The main entrance shared by four national embassies: British, Canadian, Australian, and Dutch
Exterior viewing only; active office and embassy building north of Paseo de la Castellana in the Cuatro Torres Business Area.
Torre Emperador Castellana is one of 31 sights worth the detour in Madrid, all bundled offline in Voyage GO — download the Madrid pack and it sits on your map with no signal, filling your travel passport the moment you walk past.
More to see in Madrid
- BernabéuThe only stadium on earth to host both a UEFA Champions League final and a Copa Libertadores final — and the first in Europe to crown both a World Cup and a Euro.
- Museo del PradoThe Spanish royal collection — 7,600 paintings accumulated over centuries — opened to the public in November 1819 and never looked back.
- Metropolitano StadiumThe pitch that staged the 2019 Champions League final will host another in 2027 — and is shortlisted for the 2030 World Cup.
- Royal Palace of MadridThe original Alcázar burned to the ground on Christmas Eve 1734 — what the Bourbons built in its place is the largest palace in Western Europe.
- Museo Reina SofíaGuernica — Picasso's 1937 painting of wartime devastation — hangs here at full scale, in person.
- Real Academia Española (Royal Spanish Academy)A duke's private library meeting in 1711 grew into the institution that still rules what counts as correct Spanish — for Spain and 22 other Spanish-speaking nations.