The Spanish capital occupies the central place, the heart of Spain. It is the biggest and most populous city in the country. It covers an area of about 605,77 km2, hosting around 3,1 million of inhabitants who have the opportunity to enjoy all the beauties this metropolis has. It is beautiful in each season of the year, but around Christmas it is the most recommendable time to visit it. The Spanish tradition, history and culture will leave you impressed while the traditional kitchen and the friendly local people will make you want to stay there forever. Therefore, no matter how long you stay there, we have a list of places you would love and wish you visited Madrid before.
1. The Royal Palace of Madrid
You should check the residence of the Spanish Royal Family which is used only for state ceremonies. However neither the King Felipe VI nor the Royal Family live inside it. They choose the more modest one, The Palace of Zarzuela, outside the city to live in. The palace has as much as 3,418 rooms.
Image by Adrien Sifre via Flickr
Image by Joan via Flickr
2. Prado Museum
The main Spanish national art museum is exactly the Prado Museum, one of the most visited places in the capital. It’s a places where one can see the finest collection of European art. It was founded with the idea to be a museum of paintings and sculptures back in 1819. Nowadays it turned out to be one of the biggest museums not just in Spain but in the world in general.
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3. The Gate of the Sun
The Gate of the Sun, or more known as Puerta de Sol is the busiest spot of the city. It is located in the very center and it also contains the old clock famous for its bell ringing on the New Year’s Eve representing the eating of the twelve grapes as well as the beginning of the following year. There are several famous buildings on this square such as the old Post Office which functions nowadays as an office of the President of Madrid, the statue of Charles III of Spain, the Bear and the Strawberry Tree. To sum up, it’s a busy but a place worth visiting as there are a lot of things to be seen that represent some important points of the culture of both Madrid and Spain.
Image by Ramón Durán via Flickr
Image by PromoMadrid via Flickr
4. Santiago Bernabeu Stadium
Since the year 1947 Santiago Bernabeu is the home of the world’s best known and leading football teams, Real Madrid. Thanks to Real Madrid’s fame and success it became the second most visited place in the capital of Spain. It has a capacity of 81,044 seats. There is a museum inside it which offers a tour inside the museum as well as the stadium so the real fans could feel the spirit of the football, see all the success of the team along with the trophies, get to know the whole history and walk on the same ground as their idols do. It is the dream of every real football fanatic.
Image by Gilbert Sopakuwa via Flickr
5. Crystal Palace
According to many visitors the best thing about the famous Parque de Retiro in Madrid is the Crystal Palace, or El Palacio de Cristal as they call it in Spanish. The architecture of this beautiful yet small fairytale place is Ricardo Velazquez Bosco which was built in 1887. The whole building has a shape of the Greek cross and it is made entirely of glass. The visitors can enjoy the beautiful view on the nature surrounding the building which is flora and fauna brought from the Philippines from the time of the Spanish colonial possession.
Image by Abel Pau via Flickr
Image by J. A. Alcaide via Flickr