One of my favorite things to do in Madrid on weekends or after work was wandering in one of the town’s numerous museums. Even though I am not a fervent museum visitor, I loved exploring the best museums in Madrid—it allowed me to learn more about the city and country that I called home for more than two years.
You have the top Spanish museums in Madrid like Prado Art Museum or the Reina Sofia Museum (home to Picasso’s “Guernica”).
However, there are also many lesser-known museums in Madrid that I got to know as a local. Get ready for museum-hopping in Madrid, one of my favorite things to do in Spain!
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How to explore the Best Museums in Madrid, Spain
If you’re visiting Madrid for a few days, I recommend getting the Madrid Museum Pass to visit several museums at a reduced price (especially if you love to see museums when you travel).
As mentioned, when I travel, I usually don’t visit EVERY museum at my destination. But since I was living in Madrid for so long, I developed a natural curiosity about the local Madrid museums.
And I got hooked immediately! The museums in Madrid are very different from each other. You’ll learn a lot about Madrid’s and Spain’s past and culture, and ultimately learning about culture is a top benefit of slow and sustainable travel.
It’s all about taking your time.
I’ve visited all the Madrid museums mentioned in this post. For convenience, I’ve divided this post into two parts: first, the “must-visit” museums in Madrid (for any traveler), and second, my personal best museums in Madrid from a local’s perspective.
Buy your Madrid Museum Pass here.
1. El Prado Museum
How to visit El Prado Museum in Spain
Tickets: Get tickets here
Metro: Banco de España
Where: Paseo del Prado
If you visit only one museum in Madrid, then El Prado Museum is it! You’re probably not the only visitor, so be ready for the queue! I highly recommend getting your skip-the-line ticket for El Prado Museum.
El Prado Museum is Spain’s national art gallery. It’s like the Louvre in Paris. In El Prado Museum, you’ll find the most emblematic and significant art pieces of Spain’s history. The Madrid museum’s collection includes European art from the 12th to 19th century and paintings from big names like Diego Velazquez, Francisco Goya, and El Greco.
“Las Meninas” by Velazquez, “The Garden of Earthly Delights” by Hieronymus Bosch, and “the Colossus” by Goya are among my favorite paintings in El Prado Museum. El Prado Museum is definitely a must-see Madrid activity, even if you only have one day in Madrid.
I also warn you that you shouldn’t go with the expectation of visiting the ENTIRE El Prado Museum. You’ll need more than a day for that! However, you should include Prado Museum on your visit to Madrid.
Get your Skip-The-Line tickets to El Prado Museum
2. The Reina Sofia Museum
How to visit Reina Sofia Museum
Tickets: Buy tickets here
Metro: Atocha
Where: c/ Santa Isabel, 52
If you are an art lover and want to see Spain’s most prestigious artists’ paintings, you can’t skip the Reina Sofia Museum. Located only a 10 minutes’ walk from El Prado Museum, Reina Sofia Museum mainly hosts 20-century art.
The Reina Sofia is often seen as Madrid’s modern counterpart of El Prado Museum. It’s divided into two buildings.
One of the museum’s buildings hosts a permanent collection with paintings from famous artists like Salvador Dali, alongside Pablo Picasso’s world-famous “Guernica.” The other half of the Madrid Museum is open to temporary exhibits.
Get your tickets to Reina Sofia Museum
3. The Thyssen Museum
How to visit Thyssen Museum
Tickets: Buy tickets here
The Thyssen Museum is located on the opposite street side of El Prado and is the 3rd of Madrid’s “Golden Triangle of Art.”
The Thyssen-Bornemisza museum is named after the art collector Heinrich Freiherr Thyssen-Bornemisza who gave his private collection to the Spanish state. Consisting of more than 1500 masterpieces from Van Gogh, Caravaggio, Degas, and many more, the Thyssen Museum fills the gap between El Prado and Reina Sofia.
The permanent collection in this Madrid museum is arranged in chronological order and includes art pieces from Albrecht Dürer to Pop art.
After the Prado Museum, the Thyssen Bornemisza Museum is one of the most famous museums in Madrid.
Get your tickets to Thyssen Museum.
4. The Royal Palace
How to visit the Royal Palace
Tickets: Buy tickets here
Metro: Ópera (line 5 & 2) and Principe Pio (line 10)
Where: c/ Bailén (s/n)
A visit to the Royal Palace in Madrid will leave you speechless! I included it on this list of Museums in Madrid because it’s a sight to behold.
I was overwhelmed by all the fanciness, wealth, and exuberance of this place. Visiting the Spanish Royal Palace will make you realize Spain was once the most powerful dynasty in the world.
Located close to the Opera House and overlooking the Sabatini gardens, the Royal Palace is the official residence of Spain’s king. However, he doesn’t really live here. Nowadays, the Royal Palace is mainly used for official ceremonies.
Being one of the largest palaces in Western Europe (more than 3000 rooms!), the Royal Palace will impress you with its fine sculptures, detailed paintings, and rich ornaments.
You may want to visit the garden behind the Palace, Campo del Moro, which has a free entrance and is a beautiful spot to include on your Madrid museum tour.
Get your tickets to the Royal Palace
5. The Sorolla Museum
How to visit Sorolla Museum
Tickets: Buy tickets here
Metro: Gregorio Marañon
Where: Paseo del General Martínez Campos, 37
I’ll admit that I didn’t know the painter Joaquin Sorolla Bastida before moving to Spain. However, many of my friends recommended this Madrid museum, and that’s how I ended up falling in love with the bright and soft paintings of Sorolla.
Originally from Valencia, his paintings are like a soft summer breeze in the Spanish Mediterranean.
Depicting local fishermen, scenes on the beach in the 19th century, always playing with the light, Sorolla’s museum is like a little escape to the Spanish coast.
The painter’s house itself is also well worth a visit. Inspired by Andalusian patios, the Madrid museum is surrounded by a peaceful garden and feels like an oasis of peace in busy Madrid.
Besides the paintings, the museum showcases Sorolla’s most personal belongings in a quaint setting.
The Sorolla Museum is one of Madrid’s top art galleries.
Book here your tickets to Sorolla Museum
6. The Museum of Romanticism
Metro: Tribunal
Where: Calle de San Mateo, 13
The Museum of Romanticism may not be one of the most famous art museums in Madrid. However, it hosts a beautiful collection from Romanticism (19th century), and it’s worth including this lovely Madrid museum on your trip to Spain.
The garden and the quaint cafeteria of the museum are, in my opinion, as attractive as the museum’s collection. It is well worth popping in only for a coffee or tea!
Located in Madrid’s hipster neighborhood Chueca and Malasaña, the museum boasts palace-like interiors including photography, drawings, stamps, etc. Each room has a very different atmosphere.
7. CaixaForum
Metro: Estación del Arte
Where: Paseo del Prado, 36
CaixaForum is for modern art lovers. The first thing you notice about CaixaForum is the impressive, modern building. Located a few minutes’ walk from El Prado Museum, the museum’s site includes a vertical garden.
The Madrid museum hosts modern photography and art pieces.
8. Naval Museum
Metro: Banco de España
Where: Paseo del Prado, 5
When I first visited the Naval Museum of Madrid, it felt like discovering a treasure box! The museum looks so inconspicuous from the outside.
But once you step in, you’ll feel like you’ve been transported back to the times of Francis Drake, Christopher Columbus, and the Explorers of the New World.
Even though Museo Naval is located in the Paseo del Prado, visitors often skip it—what a mistake! The exposition showcases Spain’s vast maritime history displayed in chronological order. It’s definitely one of the museums in Madrid you should explore.
The collection at the Naval Museum in Madrid includes weapons, maps (!!!!), nautical and scientific instruments, and submarine weaponry—I could have spent hours there.
9. Museum of the Americas
How to Visit The Museum of the Americas, Madrid
Metro: Moncloa
Where: Avenida de los Reyes Católicos, 6
The Museo de las Americas is located outside the city center of Madrid. However, it is easy to reach by metro. Include the Faro de Moncloa in your visit, a tower offering panorama views all over the town.
The Museum of the Americas, Madrid, is one of my favorite museums in the world! Showcasing pre-Columbian artifacts from different cultures in Las Americas, visiting Las Americas Museum is like going back to a lost world.
The pieces are unique and include jewels from important treasures, paintings, and artifacts from the social and religious reality of the “New Continent.”
The National Anthropology Museum was a total surprise for me. Located in a tiny 19th-century building, the museum hosts fascinating items from Africa, Oceania, Asia, and Europe.
For me, it was like visiting these places and somehow traveling in time to lost cultures around the globe. The exhibition covers rituals, beliefs, clothing, and much more. The National Anthropology Museum was created to foster intercultural understanding.
10. National Anthropology Museum
How to Visit The National Anthropology Museum
Metro: Atocha Renfe
Where: Calle de Alfonso XII, 68
The National Anthropology Museum was a total surprise for me. Located in a tiny 19th-century building, the museum hosts fascinating items from Africa, Oceania, Asia, and Europe.
For me, it was like visiting these places and somehow traveling in time to lost cultures around the globe. The exhibition covers rituals, beliefs, clothing, and much more.
The National Anthropology Museum was created to foster intercultural understanding.
11. El Matadero
How to Visit the El Materdero Museum in Spain
Metro: Legazpi (line 3, yellow)
Where: Paseo de la Chopera, 14
El Matadero is one of the most incredible museums in Madrid! Not only is it a museum, but it’s a creative space, hosting social gatherings, film projections, foodie events, flea markets, and much more.
Located along the river of Madrid, the former slaughterhouse hosts many temporary exhibitions and is a great place to meet young creatives. Don’t forget to visit its on-site restaurant serving typical Spanish food from Madrid.
There is always something going on in El Matadero, so be sure to check their activities calendar when you visit Madrid. On top of the Madrid River (Madrid Rio) is perfect for an afternoon stroll.
12. Museo del Traje
How to Visit the Museo del Traje of Madrid
Metro: Moncloa
Where: Avenida de Juan de Herrera, 2
The Museo del Traje (The Garment Museum) is located quite far from the historic center, in the zone of Moncloa and close to the Museo de las Americas. That’s probably why I liked exploring the Museo del Traje of Madrid: it gave me the sensation of discovering a hidden gem.
The museum’s collections contain many outfits, garments, and accessories from the 16th, 17th, and 18th centuries. It also hosts a substantial collection of garments from the 20th century.
I really enjoyed traveling in time and as a lil’ fashionista. I found it super interesting how outfits changed over the years, especially when it came to women’s garments and the process of liberation.
13. Lope de Vega Museum
How to Visit the Lope de Vega Museum in Madrid, Spain
Free entrance
Metro: Sol, Antón Martín
Where: Calle de Cervantes, 11
The Lope de Vega museum is located in the historic center of Madrid. The former house of the great 16th-century writer, Lope de Vega, was converted into a museum showcasing his private art collection and furniture.
I particularly liked the garden and the spirit of this house when the “Golden Age” writer was living the last 25 years of his life.
The museum’s neighborhood, Barrio de las Letras, was home to several of Spain’s most prestigious writers: Cervantes, Gongora, and Quevedo used to live here.
14. Conde Duque
How to Visit the Conde Duque in Madrid, Spain
Free entrance
Metro: San Bernardo, Noviciado, Plaza de España
Where: Calle Conde Duque 11
Conde Duque is my favorite place to spend warm nights! While living in Madrid, Conde Duque organized open-air cinema sessions on its patio serving light cocktails and tapas–a summer night’s dream!
The space of Conde Duque is enormous: the cultural center used to be army barracks. The collections of Conde Duque change very often, and they offer a large variety between photography exhibitions, theater performances, concerts, and dance shows.
The neighborhood of Conde Duque is one of the most vibrant, and you should definitely check the cultural agenda of Conde Duque when traveling to Madrid.
15. Bullfighting Museum
How to visit Madrid Bullring
Tickets: Buy tickets here
Metro: Las Ventas
Where: Calle Alcala 237
I understand that bullfighting is a delicate matter. However, I consider it part of Spain’s culture and traditions. Even though it is a tradition that is not as popular as it used to be, bullfighting still played an important role in Spanish society and heritage.
If you visit Madrid, don’t skip a visit to the Bullfight ring and its museum. The monumental site, known as Las Ventas, is the 3rd largest bullfight arena in the world.
Many refer to Las Ventas as the “cathedral of bullfighting.” That means that those bullfighters who triumph here are among the best in the world.
Besides getting a glimpse behind the scenes of modern bullfighting, the Bullfighting Museum Madrid showcases numerous items from Spain’s bullfighting history. I marveled at the bright colors of the bullfighter’s attire and the creative advertising posters (they are true pieces of art)!
For me, bullfighting is a fascinating world due to its crucial role in Spanish culture, and Madrid’s Las Ventas ring is a must-do on any Madrid sightseeing tour.
Buy here your tickets for the Madrid Bullring
16. Museo Lázaro Galdiano
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How to Visit Museo Lazaro Galdiano in Madrid, Spain
Metro: Rubén Darío, Gregorio Marañón, Núñez de Balboa, Avenida de América
Where: Serrano 122, 28006 Madrid
This is another gem of a museum that many Madrid travelers don’t include in their visit. Located in the sophisticated, upper-class neighborhood of Salamanca, the Museo Lazaro Galdiano showcases the collection of José Lázaro Galdiano.
He used to host literary gatherings in his home that were attended by some of Spain’s most famous writers of that time: Rubén Darío, Emilia Pardo Bazán, Miguel de Unamuno, and others.
Comprising over 12,600 sculptures, paintings, jewels, marble artifacts, weapons, and much more, the museum is a must for those who want to discover some rare art pieces. The items are from the 6th to 20th century and boast prestigious names of painters like Cranach, Constable, and many more.
However, its collection of Spanish painters is the most impressive. Be ready to enjoy the gems of El Greco, Zurbarán, Murillo or Velazquez. The museum also boasts a fantastic collection of paintings from Goya.
Lázaro Galdiano was an avid bibliophile, so be ready to enjoy handwritten letters by Lope de Vega and medieval manuscripts.
Before You Go: Top Tips for your Trip
- You’ll snap tons of photos and I love to take my GoPro in order to shoot even in extreme situations.
- Make sure to wear comfortable walking shoes and hiking sandals when traveling to warm countries.
- Sunscreen is key! I always take with me my eco-friendly sunscreen by Thinksport.
- I always carry a light rain jacket, just in case. Pack smart with these organic cotton clothing companies.
- Be environmentally friendly and get one of these awesome backpacks made from recycled materials.
- Get in the mindset with these amazing wilderness survival books.
- Travel insurance is essential! If you haven’t already obtained travel insurance for your trip, travel protected against all odds with HeyMondo.
To make the most of your trip, I recommend Lonely Planet Madrid
Hola! I’m Paulina, a seasoned travelette who crossed the Atlantic Ocean by Boat HitchHiking. On my blog, find expert insights for an extraordinary holiday through outdoor and sustainable travel like hiking, cycling, and sailing. Let’s embark on unforgettable journeys together! 🌍🚀
Dominika
Saturday 30th of March 2019
You made me wanna visit Madrid! Thank you for sharing all the tips!
Diana
Saturday 30th of March 2019
I loved Matadero, but still so many museums to visit in Madrid next time! Thank you for sharing Paulina <3