It's free It's beautiful…read more It's not crowded. The Crystal Palace is close currently but you can check it out. People are just hanging around and just take pictures. There's places you can sit down eat or just grab a drink.

Retiro Park is like the Central Park of Madrid. This gigantic park has it all. Large grassy areas…read morefor a picnic or long pathways to run or walk. A big lake in the center to rent a row boat and ride around or a crystal palace to swoon over. Retiro is big and it can be hard to see everything on foot. There are lots of available rental bikes to make your trip throughout the park even easier.

A great city needs a great park, and Madrid is no exception. Just to give you a sense of scale, at…read more300 acres, it's a shade smaller than London's Hyde Park and a little over 1/3 of the size of Central Park. However, El Retiro (as locals call it) is over 200 years older than Central Park, starting as the private royal grounds. Its centerpiece is Estanque Grande (Grand Lake), a huge 17th-century artificial lake covered in rowboats on the weekend (Photo 3). Dominating the lake is the majestic Monument to Alfonso XII built in bronze and marble with an expansive colonnade (Photo 6). Because Madrid's most famous museums stand close to the park's western edge, we walked along the Statue Walk where Spanish monarchs are memorialized (Photo 7). Jamie W and I also visited another smaller lake that features the Art Nouveau-style Palacio de Cristal (Crystal Palace), but unfortunately it was closed. However, we took advantage of the Kiosco Nacional Palacio de Cristal, an open-air terrace cafe that served light lunch fare and coffee drinks (Photo). We couldn't help but indulge in a couple of desserts (Photo 2). Moreover, even though the park was plenty crowded, there was still a sense of bucolic serenity here. It wasn't a challenge to find a peaceful respite amid the overall greenery, especially with the sometimes overwhelming urbania outside the park. RELATED - Exploring Madrid? Here's a collection of places I've visited and reviewed: https://yelp.to/AwA0OI30NX

Retiro Park is an oasis in the center of Madrid. Is a gorgeous, immaculately maintained green space…read morein the heart of the city. There are numerous entrances into the park and walking paths throughout. On a pretty day, it's hard to find a better place to spend the afternoon. The people watching is fantastic, and there are multiple things to see and do inside the park, including the crystal Palace. I love to go sit by the lake and watch the people on the boats. They are often musicians playing, kids riding their bikes, and families enjoying all that Madrid has to offer.

Right next to the Palacio Real, this lovely garden is a nice spot to stop for a shaded walk. It's…read morenot nearly as nice as the Buen Retiro Park, but there are benches and shade and a nice view of one side of the Palacio. If steep stone stairs aren't your thing, there is an entrance a little further along that does not involve any stairs.

Worth a Short Stroll…read more Since you are going to visiting Palacio Real and Campo del Moro, it is very likely you'll be passing though or near here. Be sure to take some time to enjoy this beautiful space.

I stumbled across this largely by accident as I had arrived from my day trip to Toledo earlier than…read moreoriginally planned and still had the urge to explore something new. Unlike Retiro Park and other spots, this is one more partaken by the locals of Madrid rather than the tourists like me. Because of the heat, I didn't really explore the area in full. However, it's serene and blissful in the midst of a bustling metro. It's quite the way to escape from the madness. Fortunately there is easy metro access here so it isn't hard to reach.

The decision to place one of Madrid's highways underground provided an unprecedented opportunity to…read morelocate the city of Madrid within its surroundings, achieving a greater environmental biodiversity and a city that is greener, more habitable and sustainable.

Retiro gets all the hype, but Parque del Oeste is quite lovely and much quieter! The views from…read moreParque del Oeste are fantastic. You can see out for miles and there's a great view of the palace. There's lots of shady spots to cool down and beautiful pathways for walking. This is an under rated park on the west side of the city that is gorgeous!

This Western Park was once a land fill, in 1909 the mayor planted gardens, installed a fountain,…read moreput in paths & monuments. We walked through the Parque del Oeste go up & back yo Casa de Campo by the Teleférico de Madrid, a gondola lift. We passed a police presence & some walking dogs.

The park is lovely! It has a nearby Zoo (Zoo Aquarium de Madrid), Amusement park (Parques…read moreReunidos), and the Madrid Arena. There are plenty of running and biking routes, and lots of nature to explore. The best part is the Lago de la Casa de Campo, which has several restaurants nearby. The restaurants are overpriced, but still worthwhile for the relaxing outdoor terrace along the lake. There are three metro stops near by - one by the lake (Lago), Batán, and Casa de Campo, but all are on the periphery of the park, so expect a long walk. You can call a taxi, but there are none waiting in the park. While in the park, be sure to check out the Teleférico de Madrid, which is a good value at less than €5 for the 15 minute one-way trip, and just over €5 for the 30-minute round trip. The above-ground cable car runs from the middle of Casa de Campo to the Rosaleda de Madrid park near Argüelles.

Las Cruces is a green oasis in the heart of southern Madrid. Trees abound and its myriad paths lead…read moreyou to plazas with fountains, soccer fields, and quiet lawns that can help you forget you are in a large European city. It can be a little dangerous at night but during the day it is relatively safe and full of local families. It's popular amongst cyclists as it forms part of the Anillo Verde de Madrid (the "green circle" bike path that circumscribes the city.) Deep in the park is an amphitheater that looks out over an artificial lake. There is also a little chiringuito (small bar with a big patio) that makes one of the best frituras I have ever had and is a cool place to hang out on summer nights. Also, the park hosts a very healthy urban ecosystem of plants and animals. There are several exotic species of birds including beautiful green parrots that remind me of Telegraph Hill in San Francisco. Rumor has it that a pet store lost a shipment of parrots and they made the park their home; however, my guess is that they are likely an invasive species from Northern Africa. To get there take the RENFE or Metro to Aluche.

Meanwhile, the companion in some ways of the other review I just wrote, of the Palace of the Stock…read moreExchange in Portugal, this tour is definitely of a gaudy palace built by royalty with a whole *lot* of stolen gold and jewels, so I was glad to learn that it isn't *still* owned by the royal family, it's owned by the state and mostly used for state functions, other than its purpose as far as tourists are concerned, being a museum of a fraction of the riches Spain owns (and not a coincidence, presumably, that they also built a museum of *more* of the riches owned by Spain, on display right next door, for a combined, reduced price.) The self-guided tour is worth it if you like seeing a bunch of super ornate architecture, furniture, artwork, etc. We got snippets of the actual tour as we passed each other at various points - I was happier being able to walk through the route at our own pace, which took about an hour. I felt sorry for the people whose tickets were for any time the following day, though, as it was randomly closed all day the next day we were in Madrid a few months ago, which I gather isn't an altogether rare thing to happen, that they take reservations and then close last minute. We got in in the nick of time, it seemed. By the way, if you have bags, you do have to leave your bags downstairs in a locker at a small additional fee. It was small enough I do remember exactly how much it even was, though, so it clearly wasn't a big deal.

Palacio Real de Madrid is probably my favorite palaces we've seen on our travels…read more I loved that they had these massive air purifiers so it didn't smell stale or dusty (it was incredibly comfortable), but I also adored the absolutely gorgeous purple wallpaper and how much care had been taken in the decor inside the building. Absolutely do a tour if you have a chance as ours gave such a clear impression of the space and added such a nice depth to our visit. It was one of my favorite things we did while in Madrid, and I can't recommend visiting Palacio Real de Madrid enough.