Madrid Maestro

The Royal Palace of Madrid isn’t just big—it’s gigantic. Covering over 135,000 square meters and boasting more than 3,400 rooms, it’s the largest royal palace in Western Europe (yes, even bigger than Buckingham). Built in the mid-18th century by King Philip V on the site of a former Moorish fortress, it’s a glittering example of Baroque and Classical architecture. While the Spanish royal family doesn’t actually live here today (imagine trying to heat that place in winter), the palace is still used for official ceremonies and grand state events. Inside, you’ll find opulent rooms draped in velvet and gold, a royal armory that could inspire any medieval knight, and even a collection of priceless Stradivarius violins. Fun fact: the grand staircase alone is carved from a single block of Spanish marble—making it as much an artwork as a walkway.

The Prado Museum, officially known as Museo Nacional del Prado, is the main Spanish national art museum, located in central Madrid. It is widely considered to have one of the world's finest collections of European art, dating from the 12th century to the early 20th century, based on the former Spanish Royal Collection, and the single best collection of Spanish art.

The Retiro Park is one of the largest parks of the city of Madrid, Spain. The park belonged to the Spanish Monarchy until the late 19th century, when it became a public park. A magnificent park, filled with beautiful sculptures and monuments, galleries, a peaceful lake, and a host to a variety of events, it is a green oasis in the heart of the city.

The Plaza Mayor was built during Philip III's reign and is a central plaza in the city of Madrid, Spain. It is located only a few Spanish blocks away from another famous plaza, the Puerta del Sol. The Plaza Mayor is rectangular in shape, measuring 129 by 94 metres, and is surrounded by three-story residential buildings having 237 balconies facing the Plaza.

The Gran Vía is a street in central Madrid, Spain. It leads from Calle de Alcalá, close to Plaza de Cibeles, to Plaza de España. The street, sometimes referred to as the "Spanish Broadway", is one of the city's most important shopping areas, with a large number of hotels and large movie theatres.

The Templo de Debod is a 2,000-year-old Egyptian temple gifted to Spain in 1968 after the Aswan High Dam threatened to submerge many ancient monuments. It was dismantled and shipped stone-by-stone, then reassembled near Plaza de España. It’s one of the few examples of Egyptian architecture outside Egypt.