Prado Museum
One of the finest art collections in the world and the best collection of classical art in Madrid. It includes many different collections: the Spanish (El Greco, Velázquez, and Goya), the Flemish and Dutch (Rubens, van Dyck, and Brueghel), Italian (Botticelli, Tintoretto, Titian, Caravaggio, and Veronese) and German (Albrecht Dürer, Lucas Cranach, and Baldung Grien). Some highlights not to miss at the Prado include the Bosch masterpiece The Garden of Earthly Delights, Velázquez's masterpiece Las Meninas, the Black Paintings, The Third of May 1808, and a pair of paintings known as The Clothed Maja and The Naked Maja by Goya, Adoration of the Shepards by El Greco, and David with the Head of Goliath by Caravaggio. Be sure to walk along Paseo del Prado, a pedestrian walkway full of fountains and trees near the museum. Visitors can bypass the often extremely long queues by purchasing tickets beforehand by phone or online, for an additional €.90 fee per ticket. Tickets purchased online can be printed or downloaded onto a smart phone; all pre-purchased tickets can be picked up (with a reference number) or presented at the main (Jerónimos) entrance in the northeast corner of the building. If you are planning to spend a full day at the museum, it is possible to leave (e.g. for lunch) and reenter by getting your ticket stamped at the 'Educación' counter just inside the main entrance. An affordable café and cafeteria-style restaurant are on the ground floor, along with a gift shop. No food, drinks, backpacks or umbrellas are permitted (a bag check is just inside the main entrance). Photography not permitted.
Mon-Sat 10:00-20:00, Sun 10:00-19:00; closed/shortened hrs on some holidays; extended hrs for special exhibits; last admission 30 min before closing·€15 (adults), €7.50 (seniors 65+), free (children/students under 25); free admission within 2 hours of closure; additional obligatory fee for special exhibits
A private centre particularly well-known for the 'vertical garden' by Patrick Blanc installed on a wall in front of the museum, as well as the quite special architecture of the building itself. The vertical garden can be seen from the street outside, just a block south of the Thyssen-Bornemisza and across from the Prado. The museum only displays temporary exhibitions, usually of a very high quality, in fields ranging from archaeology to contemporary art and architecture.
Daily 10:00-18:00, open holidays·€6, free (La Caixa account holders), free on 15 May, 18 May, 9 Nov