Gallery of the Royal Collections

The Galería de las Colecciones Reales is the museum Madrid waited about a century to build, and the best reason to give the Royal Palace a full morning rather than an hour. Patrimonio Nacional, the body that looks after the Spanish crown's palaces and monasteries, owns one of the richest art collections in Europe, but for generations most of it was scattered through royal sites or locked in storage. The gallery, opened in 2023, finally gives it a permanent home: a long, stone-and-concrete building set into the escarpment between the Royal Palace and the Almudena Cathedral, so that from the Campo del Moro gardens below it reads as a terraced cliff and from the Plaza de la Armería above it barely shows at all. Inside, the display runs across three huge exhibition levels arranged chronologically. The upper level covers the Habsburgs, from the Catholic Monarchs, Charles V and Philip II through the seventeenth century, with Flemish tapestries the size of house walls, parade armour, devotional painting and royal portraits. The middle level moves to the Bourbons, from Philip V and the eighteenth-century court through the nineteenth century, with Goya, Mengs and Tiepolo-era decoration, porcelain from the royal factories and furniture made for the palaces. A further level is used for temporary exhibitions and for the most theatrical objects, including state carriages and sedan chairs. Big names appear throughout, among them Velázquez, Goya and Caravaggio, but the real pleasure is the sense of seeing how a monarchy dressed, decorated and presented itself over five hundred years. The building is also an archaeological site: during construction, remains of medieval Madrid's walls were found and are kept on view, a reminder that the city began on this very ridge. Long windows frame views west over the Casa de Campo, and the scale of the rooms, high and calm, makes this one of the least crowded major museums in the city.

How to visit: the entrance is from the Plaza de la Armería, the great courtyard between the Royal Palace and the cathedral, and the nearest metro is Ópera. Tickets are timed and sold separately or as a combined ticket with the palace; the combination is the efficient choice, because it lets you do the state rooms first and then walk straight across the courtyard into the gallery while you are still in a royal frame of mind. Allow at least two hours, more if a temporary exhibition is on. Lifts and ramps connect every level, which makes this one of the most accessible major museums in Madrid for wheelchairs and pushchairs. There are free-entry windows near the end of the day for eligible visitors, with limited capacity, so book or arrive early if you want one.

Getting the most from it: start at the top with the Habsburgs and work down, as the layout intends. Give the tapestries time; they were among the most valuable objects a court could own, and the Flemish series here are spectacular in colour and detail. Look for the portraits that show the family face changing across generations, and for the armour made for princes as children. On the Bourbon floor, the porcelain, clocks and furniture explain the rooms you have just seen in the palace, which were designed to display exactly these things. The carriages are a highlight for children and for anyone who enjoys a little pageantry. The views from the windows across the western valley are a quiet bonus, best in late afternoon light. Weekday mornings, especially early in the week, are the calmest times.

Who it suits: art lovers who have done the Prado and want to see what the Spanish crown kept for itself; first-time visitors who are already at the Royal Palace and want to deepen the visit; families with older children, thanks to the armour and carriages; and couples looking for a grand, uncrowded museum. Pair it with the palace on a combined ticket, step into the Almudena Cathedral next door, and finish with lunch around the Plaza de Oriente or a stroll down to the Campo del Moro gardens. It is the museum that makes the royal quarter a full day out.