The ultimate guide to Madrid's top museums: tips for Prado, Reina Sofia & Thyssen-Bornemisza

The Golden Triangle of Art in Madrid has been on my bucket list for a long time. It boasts one of the most impressive concentrations of art in a single city. Madrid's museums are consistently ranked among the world's best. As a true art lover, I've been eager to visit them and admire the masterpieces within their walls. Finally, we visited all three museums during our trip to Spain in 2024. Keep reading to discover all the details and visitor tips for the Prado, Reina Sofía, and Thyssen-Bornemisza museums, catering to both those who want to save money and visit museums for free, as well as those who are willing to splurge to make the most of their museum experience.

You can purchase tickets for all of Madrid’s museums on their official websites. If you don't want to buy tickets from the official museum websites, you can always grab them on Tiqets. Tiqets is a ticket aggregator that allows you to purchase tickets for museums, attractions, and cultural experiences around the world. The platform offers easy and fast booking, often providing mobile tickets that can be scanned directly from your phone, saving you time and hassle. Tiqets also features customer reviews, ensuring you can choose the best experiences for your trip. Just a heads-up, the prices for the Reina Sofía museum and the Thyssen-Bornemisza museum remain the same, but you pay €3 extra for the Prado museum admission. Just click the links or widgets below to check the prices.

Tickets are usually available several weeks ahead, so it's a good idea to buy them as early as possible to secure your preferred time slot. Purchasing them online will help you avoid long queues at the ticket counter on the day of the visit. To make the most of your experience, aim for early morning or late afternoon slots, which are generally less crowded. The museum is often quieter if you visit right when it opens or in the last couple of hours before closing. And lastly, if you’re planning to visit not only Prado museum, look into combined tickets or passes that might offer savings. I’ll cover this topic below and explain which combined tickets are the best value.

The Art Walk pass (or Paseo del Arte) is a popular option for visitors who want to explore Madrid’s top art museums. Here’s what you need to know. The Paseo del Arte pass typically costs around €32 on the official website and €35 on Tiqets. It includes access to the permanent collection and temporary exhibitions at the Museo del Prado, entry to the permanent collection (featuring works by Salvador Dali and Pablo Picasso) and temporary exhibitions at the Museo Reina Sofia, and admission to the permanent collection and temporary exhibitions at the Museo Thyssen-Bornemisza. You have one year from the date of purchase to visit all three museums. Visiting these museums with individual tickets would cost €40. Therefore, I think it’s a good deal.

Museo Nacional del Prado: The museum offers free entry at specific times: from 6 PM to 8 PM on weekdays and from 5 PM to 7 PM on weekends and holidays. Note that these times can be very busy, so plan ahead. For example, we arrived at the Prado entrance at 6 PM on a Wednesday, and the queue stretched almost to the Velázquez monument. We got inside at 6:40 PM. So, if the queue looks too long, it might be worth waiting as people do get through fairly quickly. The speed of entry mainly depends on security checks.

To visit all the museums for free in one day, Monday is a good option: from 12 PM to 4 PM at Museo Thyssen-Bornemisza, from 6 PM to 8 PM at Museo del Prado, and Museo Reina Sofia until 9 PM. We also visited all the museums on a Monday but planned it slightly differently. We arrived at Museo Thyssen-Bornemisza at 12 PM and got in for free. Then, with a pre-booked ticket for €24, which included a guidebook, we visited the Prado at 3:30 PM. After that, we used a free ticket to visit Museo Reina Sofia until closing time. However, we returned to the Prado Museum for free on Thursday evening because we missed the room with Goya's Black Paintings.

By following these tips, you can enjoy a more efficient and pleasant visit to Madrid's museums.

Download the Prado Museum app, open the mobile guide of Thyssen-Bornemisza museum or just open the museums maps. Apps, guides and maps provide up-to-date information. They can also help you navigate the museum and plan your visit. If you prefer physical maps, they are available at the entrances of the museums.
Since all the museums are vast, planning which artworks or exhibits you want to see in advance is helpful. The museum’s website provides detailed information about current exhibitions and the permanent collection. Highlight the paintings you don't want to miss. You can find my list of the highlights in this post.
Be prepared for security checks at the entrance, avoiding large bags or items that could slow down the process is advisable. Arrive a bit before your scheduled entry time to ensure a smooth admission, especially if you have a timed ticket.
Plan your lunch and dinner in advance, and make sure to schedule breaks.
Be prepared for the fact that photography is not allowed in the Prado museum. Yes, not at all.
Consider guided tours. If you want a more in-depth experience, book a guided tour through the museums official website or a trusted tour provider. This can enhance your visit with expert insights and historical context.

The Triumph of Death by Pieter Bruegel the Elder
The Garden of Earthly Delights by Hieronymus Bosch
Self-portrait at 26 by Albrecht Dürer
The Third of May 1808 by Francisco Goya
Black paintings by Francisco Goya (This room is very easy to miss! It’s the last one in the corridor with Goya’s paintings, room number 67. That’s exactly what we did on our first visit, so we had to return to the Prado a second time just to see this room. In my opinion, Goya’s 'Black Paintings' are the most interesting part of the collection.)
Las Meninas by Diego Velázquez
The Three Graces by Peter Paul Rubens
David and Goliath by Caravaggio

Since we had a pretty packed schedule, we bought water at the Thyssen-Bornemisza Museum and had lunch at the Prado Museum, enjoying a Croque Madame and coffee. The prices were quite shocking (around 26€ for two), but we didn't have any other choice. On the way from the Prado Museum to the Reina Sofía Museum, we bought a pastry and a drink at Carrefour. I highly recommend planning your snacks and lunch between museum visits, as this activity can be quite energy-draining, and we barely made it to the evening. There are plenty of cafes and restaurants near the museums, and you can also walk to the city centre to grab a bite there.

Estación del Arte is a key transport hub for reaching the major museums in Madrid's Golden Triangle of Art. This is the nearest metro station, located on Line 1 (the light blue line). If you’re in the city centre, you can walk to Estación del Arte by following signs and maps to reach the Museo del Prado, Museo Reina Sofía, and Museo Thyssen-Bornemisza, which are all nearby. The museums are relatively close to each other, and if you enjoy walking, you can easily stroll between them.

The ultimate guide to Madrid's top museums

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