Royal Palace via the Plaza Built Over the Caños del Peral Theatre

Fast-track access to the Royal Palace of Madrid, with a guided walk to it through two squares that are more interesting than they look.

The Plaza de Isabel II stands on part of the ground occupied by the Caños del Peral theatre between 1738 and 1817. Nothing of it is visible at street level, which is why it takes a guide to point it out. The Plaza de Oriente next door was laid out in 1844 and is the approach the palace was designed to be seen from.

Inside, the route covers the Throne Room, the Hall of Columns and the Royal Armoury, along with the history of the Spanish monarchy and how the decoration of the palace has been changed by each reign that used it. The guided part ends at the palace.

Read which option you are booking, because the two work differently. The guided versions, in English or in Spanish, run two hours in a group of no more than eight and meet beside the statue of Isabella II, where the guide holds an Amigo Tours sign. On those you have to find the guide to get in: the voucher on its own is not valid at the palace ticket office. The ticket-and-audio-guide option carries no live commentary and goes straight to Plaza de la Armería 2, at the palace itself.

Ópera is the nearest metro station.