Madrid to Bordeaux distance

Madrid to Bordeaux by road

The fastest driving route is 686 km (426 mi) long and takes about 7 hr 30 min without stops or traffic. It runs mostly on the A-1 (258 km), the A63 (205 km), and the AP-1 (196 km).

Of the 686 km, 468 km are in Spain and 218 km are in France. That’s an average of 91 km/h (57 mph). Spain’s traffic authority (DGT) recommends a break every two hours or 200 km: with 3 stops of 20 minutes, the trip takes about 8 hr 30 min. The time is OSRM’s estimate with OpenStreetMap data: no traffic and speeds somewhat below the limits, so real trips can differ.

Straight-line distance and bearing

In a straight line, the shortest distance over the Earth’s surface, Madrid and Bordeaux are 553 km (344 mi) apart. That’s the geodesic on the WGS84 ellipsoid, the distance “as the crow flies”.

The road is 24% longer: for every 100 km in a straight line you drive 124. That’s a normal detour between two cities. Of the 34 Spain–Europe driving pairs in this series, it ranks 22nd for detour (the average is 31%).

From Madrid, Bordeaux lies to the northeast (bearing 26°), and from Bordeaux, Madrid lies to the southwest. The straight line reaches Bordeaux on a bearing of 29°: on a sphere the bearing keeps changing along the way, which is why the shortest route looks slightly curved on a flat map.

Halfway between Madrid and Bordeaux

Halfway along the straight line, 277 km (172 mi) from each city, is the point 42.6411° N, 2.1913° W. It falls near Piedramillera (Navarre, pop. 46), 1.5 km away. The nearest town of 20,000 people or more is Logroño (La Rioja, pop. 152,150), 28.1 km away.

By road, the halfway point is 343 km (213 mi) from each city, near Iruña Oka/Iruña de Oca (Álava, pop. 3,704), 3.0 km away. The nearest town of 20,000 people or more is Vitoria-Gasteiz (Álava, pop. 260,699), 8.6 km away. The two midpoints are 51.7 km apart: if you want to meet halfway, the one on the road is the useful one.

Time zone and flight

Madrid and Bordeaux share the same time all year: both are on Central European Time.

A direct flight would take about 1 hr 10 min. That’s an estimate: 30 minutes for takeoff, climb, descent and landing, plus the 553 km straight line at 800 km/h (about 497 mph), a typical airliner cruising speed. Real schedules depend on wind, routing and airports, and not every pair has a direct flight.

The two cities

Madrid has 3.5 million people (INE population register, January 1, 2025) and Bordeaux 265,328 people (GeoNames).