A Trip To Madrid
Your complete, no-nonsense guide to Madrid's world-class museums, royal landmarks, iconic squares, parks, markets and neighborhoods — with maps, hours, tickets and insider tips for every stop.
Explore Madrid by Category
Museums & Art
From the Prado's Old Masters to Reina Sofía's Guernica — Madrid's Golden Triangle of Art and beyond.
Browse Museums & Art →Royal Landmarks
Palaces, cathedrals, and monuments spanning imperial Spain to the modern Royal Family.
Browse Royal Landmarks →Squares & Avenues
Madrid's grand plazas and boulevards, from Gran Vía's lights to Plaza Mayor's arcades.
Browse Squares & Avenues →Parks & Gardens
Retiro, Sabatini, Casa de Campo and more — where Madrid goes to breathe.
Browse Parks & Gardens →Markets & Gastronomy
Tapas crawls, historic markets, and the oldest restaurant in the world.
Browse Markets & Gastronomy →Neighborhoods & Culture
Barrios, flamenco tablaos, football temples and the creative pulse of the city.
Browse Neighborhoods & Culture →Madrid's Must-See Attractions
must seeMuseo del Prado
Spain's national gallery holds the deepest collection of European painting anywhere, anchored by Velázquez's Las Meninas, Goya's Black Paintings, and Bosch's Garden of Earthly Delights.
must seeReina Sofía National Art Centre
Spain's national museum of 20th-century art, built around Picasso's Guernica, with deep holdings of Dalí, Miró, and the Spanish avant-garde.
must seeThyssen-Bornemisza Museum
A single private collection spanning 700 years of Western art, from 13th-century Italian gold-ground panels to Pop Art, completing Madrid's Golden Triangle.
iconicCaixaForum Madrid
A former power station reimagined as a suspended cast-iron cultural center, famous for Patrick Blanc's living vertical garden wall and rotating contemporary exhibitions.
must seeRoyal Palace of Madrid
Europe's largest functioning royal palace: 3,000+ rooms of Bourbon excess, a world-class armoury, and the last word in Spanish state pomp.
must seeAlmudena Cathedral
Madrid's main cathedral pairs a somber neoclassical-Baroque exterior with a shockingly colorful, pop-art-style modern ceiling inside.
iconicPuerta de Alcalá
A grand five-arched neoclassical gate from 1778, once the ceremonial entrance to Madrid, standing free-standing in its own plaza by Retiro Park.
must seeRoyal Seat of San Lorenzo de El Escorial
A monumental 16th-century palace-monastery-mausoleum-library complex 45km outside Madrid, built by Philip II and among Spain's most important historic sites.
iconicMetropolis Building
A Beaux-Arts landmark from 1911 crowned by a gold-leafed dome and winged victory statue, marking the corner of Calle de Alcalá and Gran Vía.
New to Madrid? Start With the Essentials.
Weather by season, getting around, safety tips, and how to build a realistic itinerary.