El Retiro Park
Parque del Buen Retiro
A 125-hectare former royal garden with boating on the big pond, the Crystal Palace, and the Alfonso XII monument. It is Madrid’s weekend living room and a UNESCO World Heritage Site.
El Retiro was originally the garden of the “Buen Retiro” country palace built in the 17th century by Philip IV. It opened to the public in 1868 and covers 125 hectares. In 2021, it was inscribed as a World Heritage Site together with the Paseo del Prado as the “Landscape of Light.” Its highlights include the central Estanque Grande, where you can rent a rowboat (about 6–9 euros for 45 minutes). The colonnade of the equestrian Alfonso XII monument on the east shore is the best spot for photos and sunbathing. The Crystal Palace (Palacio de Cristal), built in 1887, is a glass-and-iron greenhouse that now serves as a contemporary art exhibition space for the Reina Sofía Museum. Admission is free, and it looks especially striking reflected in the small lake. The nearby Velázquez Palace is also a free exhibition space. The Rosaleda (rose garden) is at its most beautiful in May and June. The “Fallen Angel” statue is said to be the only public sculpture in the world that commemorates the devil, and it is located at an altitude of exactly 666 meters. On the south side are a baroque flower parterre designed in 1934 and a 400-year-old Montezuma bald cypress. On weekends, the park fills with street performers, puppet shows and tarot card readers, and local families picnic on the lawns. In June, the Madrid Book Fair is held on the park’s main avenue. The park has many entrances. The most convenient are the Felipe IV Street entrance behind the Prado Museum and the standalone gate beside Retiro metro station on line L2. Entry is free. Parts of the park close during strong winds or red heat alerts. It is best to combine a visit with the Prado Museum on the same day: look at paintings in the morning, then walk and go boating in the park in the afternoon.
Opening hours
Apr–Sep 06:00–24:00; Oct–Mar 06:00–22:00
Nearby sights
- Puerta de Alcalá
- Prado Museum
- Royal Botanic Garden of Madrid
- Plaza de Cibeles & Cibeles Palace
- National Archaeological Museum
- Thyssen-Bornemisza National Museum
- Reina Sofía Museum
- Chueca