Things to do in Madrid & Toledo

Madrid's art triangle on the Paseo del Prado brings together the Prado Museum, with Velázquez's Las Meninas, Goya's Black Paintings and Bosch's The Garden of Earthly Delights, Picasso's Guernica at the Reina Sofía Museum and centuries of European painting at the Thyssen-Bornemisza National Museum. Tour the state halls and Royal Armoury of the Royal Palace of Madrid and the tapestries of the Gallery of the Royal Collections next door, then rent a rowing boat below the Alfonso XII monument in El Retiro Park and walk on to its 1887 Crystal Palace. In the old town, the arcaded Plaza Mayor leads down the steep steps of the Arco de Cuchilleros, and the 1916 cast-iron Mercado de San Miguel serves tapas until late; football fans can tour the trophy museum and changing rooms of the Bernabéu, and Parque Warner Madrid mixes intense roller coasters with gentler family rides. Day trips reach Toledo Cathedral, with Narciso Tomé's Baroque Transparente and El Greco's The Disrobing of Christ, and the Roman Aqueduct of Segovia, whose 167 arches cross the city, paired with the spiral stair up the Alcázar's Tower of John II.

Good to knowThe Prado and the Thyssen-Bornemisza both have free-entry hours (queues for the Prado's last two hours form early), the Reina Sofía is closed on Tuesdays, and the Royal Kitchens at the Royal Palace need a separate timed ticket. On match days and the day before, the Bernabéu tour skips the changing rooms and pitch-side benches, and on match days it ends five and a half hours before kick-off. Last entry at Toledo Cathedral is 30 minutes before closing, and Parque Warner Madrid's opening days vary by season, so check its calendar first.