Museo Nacional del Prado

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Museo Nacional del Prado, or Prado Museum, is considered one of, if not the most, famous museums in all of Europe. Located one street over from Retiro Park, Museo Nacional del Prado is home to some of the most esteemed and world-renowned pieces of art. It is well known for its vast and exemplary collection of 18th-century Spanish art and the Spanish Royal Art collection: collections gathered by Spanish royalty over the past 800 years. This iconic museum is home to collections of some of the greatest artists in the world: Francisco Goya, El Greco, Diego Velázques, and more. Spend your afternoon soaking up inspiration and walking through the halls of Spanish history. Built in 1785, the original purpose of the musem building was to house the Natural History Cabinet under King Charles III. His grandson, King Ferdinand VII, decided it would serve better as the Royal Museum of paintings. In 1819 it opened to the public for the first time as the Museo del Prado. In just over 200 years, the Prado Museum has exhibited more than 2,300 paintings. In fact, the collection was growing so fast that the museum had to be expanded... twice. As one of the most popular museums in the world, Museo del Prado welcomes 2 to 3 million visitors per year. This museum is an absolute priority to have a perfect weekend in Madrid. The museum is FREE monday to saturday between 4 pm and 6 pm, and sunday between 5 pm and 7 pm. Students with identification get free entry as well! Be sure to check out the incredible Real Botanical Gardens to the south of the museum for only 6 euros! Photo by Fernando López from flikr