Another visit that was high on the list of things to do in Madrid…read more I bought passes that came with an English guide. I enjoyed having that, but you could easily come through on your own without a guide and be fine. Our guided tour was about 90 minutes, but you could also stay as long after as you desired. We ended up staying about another hour to catch some of the things the tour didn't stop at. Note that you cannot take photos inside. It also seems to get pretty busy early, so it might be a good idea to go fairly early or closer to closing. Would highly recommend the Prado.

We checked into our hotel kind of late and already had 5:30 PM reservation tickets for Museo del…read morePrado that we bought about a month in advance. It was close to our hotel but not close enough to make it there on time since we were literally just leaving the hotel at 5:30 PM. The hotel attendant immediately suggested taking a cab because we were already running behind. When we arrived, I swear the line looked a mile long! Thankfully my bf asked one of the attendants before we jumped in line because apparently all those people were waiting for the free admission window. We found out that they offer daily late-entry free admission Monday-Saturday from 6 PM-8 PM. Since we already had tickets, they scanned us right in and there was basically no wait. Huge tip: if you purchased tickets in advance, do NOT automatically follow the giant line! Walk directly toward the front and ask an attendant where ticket holders should enter. It will save you so much time! Lol. I mainly wanted to come here for the Francisco Goya artwork. The museum definitely feels very old world European and is heavily centered around royalty, religion, and classical art. After a while it can start to feel emotionally heavy even for a Catholic like me. If you really enjoy soaking in the artwork and taking your time, I'd recommend visiting earlier in the day so you don't feel rushed trying to see everything. My one complaint is that the directions to the toilets/restrooms were not very clear. We spent a while walking around trying to find one before eventually giving up and leaving since we were already exhausted and super jet lagged. Thankfully our hotel was only about a 20-minute walk away. It was still a great experience and definitely something I'd recommend if you're visiting Madrid. P.S. Photos are not allowed inside, so don't expect to be taking pictures of the artwork while visiting.

The last time Jamie W and I vacationed in Madrid over 15 years ago, we made the big mistake of…read moretrying to squeeze this museum and the Prado into the same afternoon. We had to race through the Reina Sofia without allowing the requisite time to appreciate the masterworks constantly hidden by the crowds. We didn't make the same mistake last week and decided to focus a full afternoon here. There was no avoiding the long line that snaked around the plaza even though we bought the 32,8€ Paseo del Arte passes which covers all three of Madrid's essential museums. We still had to redeem our passes to get our museum tickets. It only took about 25 minutes before we made the beeline to the museum's spotlight masterwork, Picasso's "Guernica" on the second floor. Viewing was packed and unmovable, but it's still the definitive visualization of the horrors of war made striking by the monochromatic palette (Video 1). The building was once an 18th-century hospital before it became an art museum as recently as 1988. It houses Spain's most significant collection of 20th-century art. Along with Picasso, other contemporary masters are also on display here. Artists represented include Salvador Dali (Photos 3 & 5), Joan Miro (Photo 2), and Rene Magritte (Photo 7). Up on the third floor is even more contemporary art dating back only to 1975 including works by Andy Warhol (Photo 6) and Robert Mapplethorpe (Photo 4). This was our favorite of Madrid's Golden Triangle which includes the Prado and the Thyssen-Bornemisza. Definitely take your time perusing. RELATED - Exploring Madrid? Here's a collection of places I've visited and reviewed: https://yelp.to/qwUK6nAE-z

I was very excited for my visit here as I wanted to see a Picasso piece in person, as well as take…read morein some more modern contemporary art. They had great pieces and I enjoyed my time. The staff were friendly and helpful with my questions and the museum was clean. I was disappointed to find that both the garden and third floor were closed the day I visited, so I felt like I missed out on some things.

One of the golden triangle of Madrid art museums, you need three to four hours for this one. The…read morebest order, if possible, is the Prado the first day (which takes all day) because one can learn so much from the very detailed descriptions there that will help frame the order the art here is arranged in. The collection spans from a couple of pieces from the 13th century to contemporary, with especially good collections of Spanish medieval, Dutch masters, French impressionist, expressionist, cubist, modernism, post abstract realism, and 20th century sculpture. Although we bought tickets for all three when we went to the Prado, we found ourselves in line before Noon on free day Monday. The line was daunting it was so long, but once they opened we were in within about 20 minutes. The crowd wasn't as stifling as in the Prado, but worse than the Sofia, but you just don't want to miss this amazing art musuem just because it's too popular. Lots of sick people cough and sneezing, I would mask up.

This is a highly underrated museum that many people pass up. I get it, the Prado is amazing and it…read moreshould be visited. However, this museum, which is a private collection, should be on your Madrid itinerary. This museum contains a ton of art by well-known and not so well-known artist laid out in a very fluent manner. From 15th century realism to 20th century post-impressionism and everything in between, this museum contains beautiful pieces from Monet, Van Gough, John Sargent, Picasso, and many more. Additionally, it houses a rather large collection of assorted sculptures. The best part of all, you can take as many pictures as you want (unlike the Prado) just no flash. There's a large gift shop at the entrance of the museum and bathrooms downstairs under the gift shop. Be sure to visit...the gift shop that is, unless you need the bathroom then do that too. I recommend booking a tour to get the most out of your trip and money. Our tour guide, Luis, from "Fun and Tickets" booked through the "Get Your Guide" app was incredibly informative and insightful. There's no way we would have seen what we saw and experienced what we did without him. Overall, this is a great museum that needs more people to experience its wonder. Enjoy!

I love history and museums. However, I am not a huge fan of prehistory. I can't get fully onboard…read morewith the objectivity of such subjective items. Nevertheless, this was a good experience and our tour guide made it even better. The museum is packed with objects, most of which are authentic and not replicas. There are even some objects that are on display that are known fakes. There story behind them and how the museum acquired such objects is interesting. The best part was the digital display that overlays a topographical map of the Iberian peninsula. It tells the story of the Iberian migration of peoples over the centuries. Overall, not a bad museum, kind of boring in some areas but still a good experience.

One of the finest archeology museums anywhere. Every artificact here is from the Iberian…read morepenninsula or excavated by Spanish Archeologists. Good explanations from either physical or cultural anthropology, very up to date information on the evolution of humans. The descriptions and explanations are truly excellent. If you start downstairs you can work your way up in time from milliions of years ago to early modernity. Check for free concerts and lectures, I saw an interesting and talented saxophone quartet in the evening.

Not sure whether to call this a museum or a gallery because it's not an official museum. For now…read morewe'll just say gallery. And man what a nice one it is! They hold several exhibitions at a time and though relatively small they are impactful. I saw the tattoo exhibit and it was very nicely curated. I learned a lot and it was great to see how tattoo culture is different all across the world. The caixa forum building is stunning! The staircase is a centerpiece in itself and the design is architecturally stunning. I was left with a really great impression of this place!

What a cool space! There were a few rotating exhibits and art shows in this museum but the real…read morestar of this place is the modern Spanish design (as well as the vertical garden outside). I really enjoyed wandering around this space. I visited around 10am when it opened and the place was mostly empty. There multiple floors of theaters and classrooms that were not in use and ALL were designed really really well. I particularly enjoyed the white, wavy staircase that was a gaudy-esque modern space. It is free to enter the building and visit the small gift shop and a few open spaces (like the restaurant upstairs). However, it was only 6 euros to visit both exhibits and well worth the price. Stop by this place!

I do not understand how the naval museum has only 25 reviews so hi! Let me tell you why you need to…read morevisit here: The museum is donation based, I gave 5€ because history. It's not as big of a museum as you might think walking in because when you think Spanish navy, you think armada, and so I was thinking it'd be in a bigger space than it is, but what space it is in, it's crammed full of artifacts and history. I loved seeing all the old flags and cannonry, it's definitely something you need to see if you're a history lover like me. The gift shop has some cute ornaments inside it too, def be sure to check those out!

Loved it. But, then, I love all military museums. The…read moreSpanish are very proud of their naval history. There are myriad models ranging from 200 years old to yesterday. It was not crowded. €6 for 2

We had a nice time walking around outside of it. I'm enjoying the history. It's a pretty cool…read moremonument. It would've been nice to go inside, but we did not plan ahead and we did not have tickets maybe next time.

Because nothing says Spanish like a 2nd-century Egyptian temple chilling in a park. Let's check it…read moreout. Found out this was a gift from Egypt, reassembled stone by stone. In the 1960s, Egypt was building the Aswan High Dam, which was going to flood a huge area full of ancient Nubian monuments. UNESCO launched an international campaign to help save them, and a bunch of countries, including Spain, stepped up with money, expertise, and support to relocate temples and preserve cultural heritage. As a thank-you, Egypt gifted the Temple of Debod to Spain in 1968. Other countries got temples too. Italy got the Temple of Ellesyia, the Netherlands got the Temple of Taffeh, and the U.S. got the Temple of Dendur, now in The Met in NYC. See? Kindness is rewarded. You'll get a temple.

What a gorgeous space in the middle of the park! And they have free art exhibits everyday. There's…read morean impressive modernism exhibit going on right now by some well-known Spanish painters; I'd seriously love to purchase some of the paintings if I were a bazillionaire.

not sure why this is called the "palacio de velazquez" as it's more of an exhibition hall/museum…read morefilled with works of spanish art. it is more of a temporary collection of works as they frequently rotate artists whose work is on display. when i visited, they had works that reflected american culture, as most of the subjects were african-americans in harlem, a neighborhood in new york city. this was not one of my favourite museums to visit in madrid, since i'd prefer to see works based in spain, or europe at least, since i live in the states and have easy access to works based in america. once again, another free museum and you can easily see everything in about 30 minutes.

So I love dec arts. I visited this museum for the first time…read more They had a wonderful show of jewelry by Chus Bures on the ground floor. BUT if you want to get into the 1st or second floor you must deposit your bag in the lockers. Not having a euro coin I could not do this. Even though No hablo espsanol, the lady spouted screeds of Spanish to me. WTF? It turns out only the ground floor was worth the visit. A very weird museum, with no climate controls. Do not go out of your way.