Madrid Retiro Park Mysteries and Legends Tour

In this activity you will have the opportunity, for about 2 hours, to tour the largest and most famous urban park in Madrid. El Retiro has 118 hectares of surface and is considered one of the main tourist attractions of the Spanish capital. In 2021 it was declared a World Heritage Site by UNESCO .

Throughout this walking tour, you will learn, from an expert guide, about the history and architecture of both the park and the monuments inside. These include the following:

• Monument to Alfonso XII: it is made up of a colonnade with a large number of sculptures surrounding an equestrian statue of the king, located on one side of the pond.

• Palacio de Cristal: built in 1887 on the occasion of the Philippine Islands Exhibition, held that same year. Today, contemporary art exhibitions are held here.

• Parterre del Retiro: garden built inside the park, originally by Felipe V. In the Parterre garden is the Ciprés Calvo, the oldest tree in Madrid, with an estimated age of 400 years.

• Puerta de Felipe IV: the oldest entrance gate in the park, in baroque style, built in 1680 during the reign of Charles II of Spain in honour of his father, Philip IV.

• Royal Astronomical Observatory: built in 1790, during the reign of Charles IV, as part of the Spanish effort to promote the study of astronomy.

• Fuente de la Alcachofa (Artichoke Fountain): a limestone and granite fountain built in the last third of the 18th century. It was originally installed in front of the old Puerta de Atocha until it was moved to the Buen Retiro Gardens in 1880.

• Hermitage of San Pelayo and San Isidoro: you will see the ruins of this Romanesque temple of medieval origin. It was originally built outside the walls of the city of Ávila, but its remains were moved to Madrid during the 19th century.