Free Visit to The Prado Museum
How to visit the Prado Museum for free – all the possibilities. History of the museum, description of the collection. Where is Prado located, ticket prices 2023, opening hours.
The Prado Museum in Madrid is considered the largest art museum in Spain. And as such, it attracts the increased attention of tourists.
However, even despite the enormous popularity, Prado can be visited for free. Moreover, it is not necessary to be a child, to be a member of some societies or to be on the labor exchange! On certain days of the year and even weeks, anyone can get to the Prado with a free ticket.
Free Admission to Prado
Regardless of the date and time, the famous Madrid Museum can be visited for free by:
- citizens under 18 years
- of age students aged 18 to 25 years, regardless of citizenship
- students over 25 years of age studying in the field of arts
- people with a disability level equal to or greater than 33%
- people who are officially unemployed
- acting teachers
- members of large families with one adult and three children. Or two children, if one of them is disabled
- official guides, journalists, members of FAMP, APME, ANABAD, AEM, ICOM, the Spanish Royal Academy of History, the Royal Academy of Fine Arts of San Fernando, the Royal Academy of Spain, employees of the State Museums of Spain
Detailed information is provided on the official website of the museum – museodelprado.es/en/visit/opening-times-and-prices .
Hours of Free Access to Prado
You can view museum collections for free from Monday to Saturday in the period from 18 to 20 hours. Or on Sundays and public holidays, from 17 to 19 hours.
They also do not charge money for the entrance of all visitors on May 18, the International Museum Day, and November 19, the birthday of the Prado. You can also view the collections for free on the national holidays of Spain: October 12 and December 6. And also on May 2 – the Day of Madrid.
Description
Madrid’s Prado Art Gallery is rightfully considered one of the greatest museums in the world. It is no coincidence that there are a lot of real masterpieces of painting on display in its halls.
Preference is clearly given to Spanish artists. For example, there are 60 paintings by Diego Velasquez in the Prado collection! And there are more than 250 paintings by Francisco Goya!
Translated from Spanish, “prado” means “meadow”. And in fact, the museum is exactly there. The main building stretches from north to south.
In front of the central facade of the museum there is a monument to Diego Velasquez. And opposite the northern facade there is a monument to Francisco Goya.
In addition to it, today Prado is occupied by the former royal Palace of Casón del Buen Retiro. In 2019, the extensive building of the Salón de Reinos was converted for the needs of the museum, which significantly increased the total area of the exposition.
The Prado Museum is part of the “Golden Triangle of Arts” in Madrid. Along with two other collections nearby: Thyssen-Bornemisza and Reina Sofia Museums.
History
Prado is the first public museum opened in Madrid. The construction of the specialized complex began in 1785 – the project was developed by the famous architect of the classical era, Juan de Villanueva. And it ended only in 1814.
On November 19, 1819, the Prado Museum opened its doors to visitors for the first time. Since then, this date has been celebrated as his birthday. And the visit on this day is free for everyone.
The basis of the Prado collection at first consisted of works of art from royal palaces. At first there were few of them – only 311 paintings.
Today, several tens of thousands of paintings and etchings, engravings and sculptural works are stored in the halls and storerooms of Prado. At the same time, only about 2 thousand works are exhibited in the halls at the same time.
Famous Paintings
Prado houses the best works of Diego Velasquez. In particular, visitors can see his “Menines”, “Bacchus”, “Surrender of Delirium”, “Spinning Wheels”, “Volcano Forge”. Also on display in the museum is the famous Hieronymus Bosch triptych “Garden of Earthly Delights”.
The museum is also proud of its collection of paintings by Francisco Goya, the largest in the world. In particular, in the halls of the Prado you will be able to see “Colossus” and “Self-Portrait”, “John the Baptist” and “Thrush” by the master. There are a lot of paintings by El Greco, Murillo and Surbaran in the Prado.
In addition to paintings and sculptures, jewelry is also on display in the Prado. Today, visitors can see, for example, jewelry belonging to the Spanish branch of the Bourbons.
Useful Information
Address: Paseo del Prado, s/n, Madrid, Spain
How to get: metro stations Atocha (L1) or Banco de España (L2)
Opening hours: 10-20 from Monday to Saturday, 10-19 – on Sundays; closed on May 1, January 1 and December 25
Ticket prices: € 15 – inspection of the main collection by an adult visitor (€ 24 – with an audio guide), € 15 – visiting temporary exhibitions. A discounted ticket costs € 7.5.
Official website of the Prado Museum: museodelprado.es/en.
