Museum of the Americas
Museum in Madrid, Spain.
A collection of the Americas under one roof, and a calmer first stop before the busier royal sights.
Morning · 2 hrDay 1
Royal Madrid from plaza to palace
plaza de España
Square in Madrid, Spain.
Morning · 45 min
Oriente square
Square in Madrid, Spain.
Afternoon · 45 min.jpg?width=800)
Royal Palace of Madrid
Official residence of the Spanish Royal Family.
Two hours covers the state rooms and the armoury; the Salón del Trono is the set piece.
Evening · 2 hrThe Royal Palace is saved for the evening; aim to arrive as the day's visits wind down, when the state rooms are at their calmest.
Day 2
Gates, a convent and the Prado
Gate of Toledo
Cultural property in Madrid Distritos: Centro y Arganzuela, Spain.
Morning · 1 hr 30 min%2007.jpg?width=800)
Convent of Las Descalzas Reales
Monastery in Madrid, Spain.
Morning · 2 hr%2002.jpg?width=800)
Teatro de la Zarzuela
Spanish theater and arts center.
Even without a ticket, the facade and foyer are worth a slow look; this is the home of Madrid's own musical theatre.
Afternoon · 1 hr.jpg?width=800)
Museo del Prado
Spanish national art museum in Madrid, Spain.
Two hours suits the main floor's Spanish masters; choose a dozen rooms instead of rushing the whole museum.
Evening · 2 hrGive the Prado two focused hours on the main floor; the evening is the calmest time to meet its best-known works.
Day 3
Madrid's own story in stone and paint
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Madrid History Museum
Museum in Madrid, Spain.
Morning · 2 hr%20(14203354114).jpg?width=800)
plaza de Cibeles
Square in Madrid, Spain.
Morning · 45 min
Alcalá Gate
Cultural property in Madrid Distritos: Retiro y Salamanca, Spain.
Afternoon · 1 hr 30 min%2007.jpg?width=800)
Sorolla Museum
Museum in Madrid.
The painter's home and garden are the point; the studio remains much as he left it.
Evening · 2 hrThe Sorolla Museum is a house as much as a gallery; wander the garden rooms as the day fades.
Day 4
Modern art, gardens and a grove of memory
Museo Nacional Centro de Arte Reina Sofía
National museum of art in Madrid, Spain.
Go straight to the twentieth-century collection and Guernica; the rest can wait for another visit.
Morning · 2 hr
Royal Botanic Garden of Madrid
Botanical garden and research centre in Madrid, Spain.
Morning · 2 hr%2008.jpg?width=800)
Forest of Remembrance
Remembrance of the 2004 Madrid train bombing.
Leave time to sit rather than pass through; there are no labels to read, only the olive and cypress trees.
Afternoon · 45 min%2001.jpg?width=800)
National Museum of Anthropology
Anthropoloy museum in Madrid, Spain.
Evening · 2 hrAt the Forest of Remembrance, slow down. This stop asks for silence rather than photographs.
Good to know
Is four days enough for Madrid?
Yes, at a moderate pace. This route pairs a palace or museum with a square each day and leaves room for long lunches and slow walks across the old centre.
Can I walk between the Prado and Reina Sofía?
Yes. They sit at the same end of the Paseo del Prado, meeting at the Royal Botanic Garden, with the Forest of Remembrance and the Anthropology Museum a short stroll further.
Which Madrid museums suit one quiet traveller?
The Sorolla Museum and the Madrid History Museum are smaller and calmer than the Prado, while the Museum of the Americas makes a gentle morning start.
Is the Sorolla Museum worth visiting?
Yes. It is the artist's former home and studio, with the garden he painted often; smaller than the big national museums and best seen in the evening.
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