What to see and do

Take a segway tour

IT WON’T be your most stylish moment, but it is a great way to see the city. An hour-long tour (from £13, segwaytravel madrid.com) stops at the beautiful Almudena Cathedral (above left), which took more than 100 years to build; takes a lap of Atenas Park; and covers the history of the Royal Palace which, at nearly 1.5 million sq ft, is the largest in Europe.

Visit the Plaza Mayor

DON’T miss the Plaza Mayor, even if it is a tourist trap. Restaurants are expensive, but buying one coffee while you gaze at the architecture won’t hurt. The huge, 400-yearold bronze statue is of King Philip III, whom historians have described as an ‘undistinguished and insignificant man’.

Get arty at the Prado

THIS year, the Prado Museum is marking its 200th anniversary with the A Place Of Memory exhibition. The immense collection includes Picasso, Rembrandt and Caravaggio. Don’t miss Goya’s bizarre masterpiece The Dog. The museum is busy, and queues can be long, so avoid visiting from 10.30am to 1.30pm, or book a time slot online (tickets cost £13, museodelprado.es).

See Museo Reina Sofia

WHILE the masses fight over getting into the Prado, it might be worth settling instead for the Reina Sofia — although, with paintings like Picasso’s Guernica, it can hardly be considered settling! Generally, there are no queues, but, as ever, watch out for packs of school children (tickets from £8.60, museoreinasofia.es).

Stroll in Retiro Park

IT’S hard to resist taking a table at Cafe El Estanque after a busy day in the city. Sit, sip and enjoy views of the park, lake and the Alfonso XII monument.

Boating, although only £5 per boat, can be disappointing, as a circuit takes only a couple of minutes. Instead, go for a stroll past the 15,000 sculpted trees and visit the Glass Palace or the Velazquez Palace. esmadrid.com