Madrid

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A statue of Diego Velázquez stands before the main facade of the Museo del Prado on the Paseo del Prado, Madrid, Spain

The Museo Reina Sofía, home to Picasso's Guernica, occupies a former hospital building near Atocha station, Madrid, Spain

The Palacio de Cristal in Retiro Park was built in 1887 for an exhibition on the Philippine Islands, Madrid, Spain

Rowing boats circle the Great Pond of the Retiro beneath the monument to King Alfonso XII, Madrid, Spain

About Madrid

Madrid, Spain's capital, sits on a high plateau in the center of the Iberian Peninsula. It became the seat of the royal court in the sixteenth century and grew into a city of grand boulevards, leafy parks and lively plazas. Its museums hold one of the world's great concentrations of European painting, and its social life runs late, spilling out of tapas bars well past midnight.

The so-called Golden Triangle of Art anchors many visits: the Museo del Prado, with Velázquez, Goya and El Greco, the Reina Sofía, home to Picasso's Guernica, and the Thyssen-Bornemisza, which spans centuries of Western art. Beside the Prado, Retiro Park offers a boating lake and the glass Palacio de Cristal. In the older western quarter, the Royal Palace faces Almudena Cathedral, and the arcaded Plaza Mayor leads toward the Puerta del Sol, the city's symbolic center. The Mercado de San Miguel is a busy place to sample tapas, and Gran Vía is the main avenue for shopping and theaters. At sunset, crowds gather at the Templo de Debod, an ancient Egyptian temple gifted to Spain.

Madrid suits travelers who enjoy art, food and city energy. On Sundays, the Rastro flea market fills the streets of La Latina. Toledo, Segovia and El Escorial are popular day trips. Summers are very hot, and August can feel quiet as locals leave.

Best seasonApril to June and September to November bring comfortable temperatures; July and August are very hot.

Ideal stayThree to four days covers the major museums and neighborhoods, plus a day trip to Toledo or Segovia.

ArrivingAdolfo Suárez Madrid-Barajas Airport is the main gateway; high-speed trains arrive at Atocha and Chamartín stations.

WiserMap travel guideMadrid Spain Prado Mornings Retiro Strolls and Tapas NightsExplore Madrid's best places: the Prado, Retiro Park, the Royal Palace, Plaza Mayor, tapas in La Latina and lively barrios, with seasons, transit and day trips.Read the guide

12 Ways to Experience Madrid

Museums 3

Museo del Prado

Opened in 1819, the Prado holds the greatest collection of Spanish painting anywhere, plus superb Flemish and Italian works gather...

Museo Reina Sofía

Spain's national museum of modern art fills an eighteenth-century hospital near Atocha station, extended by Jean Nouvel's red-roof...

Museo Thyssen-Bornemisza

Facing the Neptune fountain on the Paseo del Prado, the Thyssen fills the gaps left by its two great neighbors, tracing Western pa...

Parks 1

Retiro Park

Created as a royal retreat in the seventeenth century and opened to the public in the 1860s, El Retiro spreads over about 125 hect...

Landmarks 4

Royal Palace and Almudena Cathedral

Built after the old Alcázar burned on Christmas Eve 1734, the Royal Palace is the largest royal palace in Western Europe by floor...

Plaza Mayor

Enclosed by three-storey buildings with more than two hundred balconies, the Plaza Mayor was completed in 1619 under Philip III, w...

Puerta del Sol

This bustling semicircular plaza is the symbolic center of Madrid and of Spain, with a pavement plaque before the Real Casa de Cor...

Templo de Debod

This genuine Egyptian temple, built in the second century BC near Aswan, was given to Spain in 1968 in thanks for help saving the...

Neighborhoods 1

Gran Vía

Cut through older neighborhoods in stages from 1910, the Gran Vía is Madrid's showcase street, often compared to Broadway for its...

Food and Markets 2

Mercado de San Miguel

Set in an elegant iron-and-glass market hall from 1916 just west of the Plaza Mayor, the Mercado de San Miguel was restored in the...

El Rastro Flea Market

Every Sunday and on public holidays, the streets of La Latina fill with Madrid's famous open-air flea market, centered for centuri...

Entertainment 1

Santiago Bernabéu Stadium

Home of Real Madrid since 1947, the Bernabéu on the Paseo de la Castellana has been transformed by a major renovation that added a...

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