We've got something to say to those who think Madrid is just a city of concrete and smoke. Although you might not notice at first, there are actually numerous parks and gardens around the city; some are hard to miss, and some are tucked away, the kind you can get to only if you know where they are. The result of our extensive search for green spaces in Madrid is this guide to 23 uniquely wonderful public parks, from the centre to the outskirts (and we all know there are many more).
The origins of this 118-hectare park date back to the construction of the Monasterio de los Jerónimos by Queen Isabela I and King Ferdinand II. Currently, it’s one of the most popular green areas for people to go jogging, boating, picnicking and walking with pets. It’s worth checking out the monument to Alfonso XII, a large colonnade by José Riera Grases overlooking the pond, the Casón del Buen Retiro, a majestic ballroom that nowadays belongs to the Museo del Prado, and the Palacio de Cristal, built for the 1887 Philippine Exposition.
Hidden away in an enclosed garden is this lovely café and tearoom, where you can get home-made cakes and pastries – perfect for breakfast or a snack. The garden café is in the Museo del Romanticismo, an ideal setting for those partial to the work of Gustavo Adolfo Bécquer, Goethe, Lord Byron and Rosalía de Castro. The museum houses a lovely collection of more than 1,600 pieces, including furniture, paintings, crockery, pianos, and more, which have been available for public viewing once again since 2009 after a massive remodelling.
Spain's most prolific playwright and poet, Félix Lope de Vega Carpio (1562-1635) spent the last 25 years of his life in this simple, tranquil three-storey house. The house and charming garden – remarkable survivors from the Golden Age – are the most interesting things to see. The furniture and ornaments, are approximations to Lope de Vega's household inventory rather than being the originals. However, even the garden, where Lope would sit after a day's writing, contains the same fruit trees and plants he detailed in his journals.
This more-than-30,000-square-metre rose garden is the perfect spot to woo your sweetheart, hone your photography skills, or simply stroll among the splendid flowers, fountains and greenery. It was built in 1956 by the head gardener of Madrid’s city government, Ramón Ortiz. In the centre of the rose garden you’ll find a pond where water lilies float, presided over by a statue of a nymph. The park’s many flowerbeds boast more than 500 varieties of roses, which are the subject of an annual competition for the most beautiful blossom. You can feast your eyes on them yourself for free year-round.
Joaquín Sorolla was a true proponent of Luminism, the celebration of light. Although Luminism doesn't wow everyone, with its look nearly akin to simple postcard motifs, Sorolla (famous during his lifetime for his paintings where the sun fills the frame, including portraits and family scenes on beaches and in gardens) is often considered a Neo-Impressionist, and his museum is worth a look-in.
This is one of the most charming secret gardens in Madrid. The Huerto de las Mojas was once protected by the walls of a convent, whose nuns turned the space into a garden. You can get in through a passageway between modern buildings at No 7 on C/Sacramento. In 1972, the religious building was demolished in order to build flats, though fortunately the garden remained untouched. In the centre you can admire a small fountain featuring three bronze cherubs at the centre of the space.
For reasons unbeknownst to us, this museum remains unknown to many in Madrid, yet its collection is extraordinarily ecclectic: 15,000 paintings and objets d'art covering 24 centuries of history, accumulated over more than 70 years by financier and bibliophile José Lázaro Galdiano (1862-1947). The museum hosts a variety of activities, including guided tours, workshops for children, concerts and conferences. We recommend you stop in and admire the four-storey mansion and its gardens, which also don't get many visitors.
This vast garden was named after a Muslim leader in the Middle Ages, Ali Ben Yusut, who attempted to capture the fortress that is now the Palacio Real. Unfortunately, it is only accessible from the Paseo de la Virgen del Puerto side, requiring a fairly long walk down Cuesta de San Vicente or Cuesta de la Vega. As a reward, however, you'll find a quiet, leafy garden (in complete contrast to its surroundings) with two fine monumental fountains where you can see peacocks and forget about the outside world.
There's a park in Madrid that even many locals don't know about, where the almond trees bloom each spring. It's the Quinta de Los Molinos, in the El Salvador neighbourhood. Its 21.5 acres are home to a large number of olive, pine and eucalyptus trees, as well as various fountains and a lake. But the real stars of the show are the white and pink flowers on the almond trees, which give off a heady scent.
In Alameda de Osuna in the district of Barajas, you'll find El Capricho (literally, 'The Whim'), a garden that is a jewel of Romanticism and a monument to 18th-century taste. Within its 14 hectares lie an artificial river, lakes, woods, gardens, simulations of temples and other surprising nooks. Building work was begun in 1780 on order of the Duke and Duchess of Osuna, the most cultivated couple among the aristocracy of their time, supporters of the ideas of the enlightenment and patrons to many artists.
Welcome to one of the most beautiful spots in the old centre of Madrid (known as Madrid de los Austrias). This neoclassical-style garden faces the north facade of the Palacio Real, between C/Bailén and Cuesta de San Vicente. With a large circular fountain and a small pond where tourists and locals cool off in summer, its French style has made it a unique green space in Madrid.
The 'Berlin Park' brings a piece of Germany to Spain. You'll find a fountain with three sections of the Berlin Wall presiding over it. The remnants of the wall that divided Berlin and Germany from its construction in 1961 until its fall in 1989 share space with a statue of Beethoven and a bear that symbolises the city of Berlin, which is a sister city of Madrid.
This huge park, which was opened as a green space when Madrid became the European Capital of Culture in 1992, lies between the airport and the Feria de Madrid trade fair centre. Although its trees have taken some time to grow enough to offer shade, the different gardens here, like Tres Culturas, the artificial river, the attractions for children and the fountains, have all made it a favourite place at weekends in good weather.
Go through the Brandenburg Gate take a photo in front of London Bridge, toss coins into Trevi Fountain, and pledge your eternal love to your partner in front of the Eiffel Tower – all on the same day and without leaving Madrid. Parque Europa, in Torrejón de Ardoz, offers a free quick tour of 17 European monuments, and there's plenty of other fun to be had in the park as well.
At over 1,722 acres, the Casa de Campo is Spain's largest green space. The park has a large lake, where you can hire a boat or a kayak, sports facilities, numerous paths through the trees and bushes for running and cycling, and various leisure facilities like the famous cable car, an amusement park, the Zoo Aquarium, a fairground and the Madrid Arena. There are plenty of restaurants scattered throughout the park, mainly around the lake.
The interminable works on the M-30 finally paid off and it’s now a pleasure to walk along the banks of the Manzanares. There are a considerable number of leisure areas with swings, ziplines and slides along these ten kilometres of green zone. There are also fountains and streams for kids to play with in summer and bars with extensive terrace seating. The park has majestic bridges that unite both banks, and plenty of green spaces. If you've got them, definitely bring along your bicycle or skates.
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