Museo del Prado
The Prado museum is thought by some to be the best in the world. Other museums are known for the sheer quantity and variety of works in stock, but the Prado provides access to an incredible concentration of masterpieces from specific masters. For Bosch, Velázquez, Murillo, Goya, or El Greco, even Rubens, this is the one place that must be seen.

Museo Reina Sofía (MNCARS)
Madrid's modern art museum, located within sight of the Atocha train station, is home to the works of Miró and Dalí, as well as key works by cubist Juan Gris and Picasso's famed Guernica, the mural that depicted a massacre of civilians committed by fascists during the Spanish Civil War. The painting often appears simple to those who see it in tiny reprints, but it is common to see captivated visitors standing or sitting in front of the huge canvas for prolonged periods of time.

Museo Thyssen-Bornemisza
This museum was built from the private collection of Baron Hans Heinrich Thyssen-Bornemisza, which consisted of over 800 paintings. There are works spanning 8 centuries, and tracing the most important movements and innovations in art and style in the evolution of modern Western culture. Americans will be fascinated by the landscapes of Winslow Homer and the unspoiled stretches of the East Coast, which are on display in Madrid's third great museum.

Palacio Real
The Royal Palace is thought to be the quintessence of Madrid's neoclassical building boom, and is replete with incomparable artwork, exemplary sculpture, Rococo furniture and fine implements for royal feasts. The complex is vast and awe-inspiring, beyond anything we postmoderns could imagine (or justify) as a residence.

Casa Museo Lope de Vega
This museum occupies the house where Spain's great poet Lope de Vega lived from 1610 until his death in 1635. A typical house-museum, the space is devoted to his life and work, and illustrates his connection to 17th Century Madrid.

Museo Lázaro Galdiano
A unique collection, prized by those who know as one of the best in Spain, decorative artwork and paintings by great European artists. The Lázaro Galdiano Foundation was created when the great collector left his collection to the Spanish government, in 1947. The museum opened its doors in 1951. Collection includes sculpture, silverwork, brozes, ivory carvings, as well as manuscripts, gems, weapons, clocks, textiles and glasswork.

Museo Nacional de Artes Decorativos
Spain's national decorative arts museum contains glassworks, gems, ceramics, Far Eastern art. There are as many as 30,000 objects from lavishly decorated palaces and mansions.

Museo Panteón de Goya
Goya's 'Pantheon' displays a rich series of religious frescoes by the Spanish master. The beautiful paintings adorn the dome of the small church of Ermita de San Antonio de la Florida, and illustrate the miracles of St. Anthony, for whom the church was named.

Museo Romántico
A museum designed to portray the romantic period through various arts and methods of décor. Housed in an 18th Century mansion, the collection includes fine paintings, antique crystal chandeliers and historic furniture evocative of the romantic movement in the arts.

Museo Sorolla
Museum devoted to the work of the painter Joaquín Sorolla, and housed in his own home. His best works are on display here, and the combination of sculptures, ceramics and design leaves the visitor with a feeling of having entered an authentic early 20th Century residence.