Community of Madrid
Museo del Prado
How to visit Madrid's Prado: when the free hours are worth the queue, which ticket to book, and the dozen paintings actually worth your two hours.
Where
Madrid, Spain
Opening hours
Monday–Saturday 10:00–20:00; Sundays and public holidays 10:00–19:00. A timed entry pass is required even on a paid ticket — pick your slot when you book. Always confirm your date on museodelprado.es.
Tickets
€15 general admission; €7.50 for over-65s; free for under-18s and students up to 26. Add ~€5 for the audio guide. Free for everyone in the last two hours daily (Mon–Sat 18:00–20:00, Sun/holidays 17:00–19:00), though temporary exhibitions are only half-price, not free, in that window.
Time needed
2 hours for the headline paintings; 3–4 hours if you want Goya, Velázquez and the Flemish rooms without rushing. The collection is huge, so go with a shortlist rather than trying to see everything.
In short
Visiting Museo del Prado
The Prado is Spain's national gallery and the one Madrid sight to do properly — Velázquez's Las Meninas, Goya's Black Paintings and Bosch's Garden of Earthly Delights are all here. A standard ticket is €15; it's free in the last two hours every day, but the walk-up queue then routinely hits 60–90 minutes, so the free slot only pays off if you arrive early and pick a tight route. Allow two hours minimum, more like three if you want the highlights without rushing.
Paid ticket or free hours — which to choose
The Prado costs €15 and it’s the one Madrid museum worth doing properly. It’s also free in the last two hours every day — Monday to Saturday from 18:00 to 20:00, Sundays and public holidays from 17:00 to 19:00 — which sounds like the obvious move until you see the queue. The free window is the busiest slot of the day, and the walk-up line regularly runs 60 to 90 minutes; on a Sunday it can be worse. The free slot only works if you treat it seriously: join the queue 30 to 45 minutes before it opens, go in with a shortlist of rooms, and accept you’ll have well under two hours on the floor.
If you’d rather have a calm, unrushed visit, book the €15 timed ticket for a morning slot instead. The Prado doesn’t sell out days ahead the way the Sagrada Família does, but a pre-booked slot lets you walk past the ticket desk and start at opening, when the galleries are quietest. Add the audio guide (about €5) if you want the symbolism in the Bosch and the politics behind the Goyas explained — otherwise the wall labels are enough.
What to actually see, and is it worth it?
The collection is enormous and trying to see all of it is how people leave numb. Pick the headline works and route around them: Velázquez’s Las Meninas in Room 12, Goya’s The Third of May 1808 in Room 64 and his unsettling Black Paintings in Rooms 67–68, and Bosch’s Garden of Earthly Delights in Room 56A. Do those four and you’ve seen the things the Prado is famous for; everything else is a bonus, not an obligation. Allow two hours for the highlights, three or four if you want the Flemish and Italian rooms too.
It’s an easy one to reach. The museum sits on Paseo del Prado, between Estación del Arte (Metro Line 1) and Banco de España (Line 2), about a 15-minute walk down from Puerta del Sol. Of Madrid’s big three galleries this is the one to prioritise — pair it with a stroll through neighbouring Retiro Park afterwards rather than stacking the Reina Sofía or Thyssen on the same day, because three world-class collections back to back is a quick route to art fatigue.
Planning the rest of your trip? See the Madrid city guide.
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Museo del Prado FAQs
Is the Prado free, and is the free slot worth it?
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