Prado Museum Tours | Explore the National Museum of Spain With an Expert Guide
Originally built as a house of science, the Museo Nacional del Prado or the Prado Museum is one of the most iconic and distinguished art museums in Spain housing the world’s richest collection of Italian, French, and Spanish art ranging from the Renaissance and Baroque periods to the era of Picasso. The museum is home to over 20,000 artworks including prints, drawings, paintings, sculptures, and historical documents.
Known as a museum of painters rather than paintings, here’s your chance to admire the works of noted artists like Picasso, Salvador Dali, Velazquez, El Greco, Juan de Juanes, Bartolome Bermejo, Hieronymous Bosch, Francisco de Goya, and Rembrandt, among others. Read on to know more about why a Prado Museum tour would be the perfect way to explore this fine art gallery!
Why Take a Prado Museum Tour?
Prado Museum is one of the most popular and most visited museums not just in Spain but also in the world. Here are a few reasons why you should take a Prado Museum tour.
- A Prado Museum tour is your best bet to learn more about the iconic gallery because it includes an expert guide who knows everything that there is to know about the attraction.
- We recommend guided tours because it comes with a skip the line feature that allows you to skim past long queues and access the museum on priority.
- A guided tour offers an opportunity to gain more knowledge and information about the history of the museum including its art, artists, and architecture.
- The museum is quite big, which is why we suggest booking a Prado Museum tour for yourself because it gives you the chance to explore the place more efficiently.
- The tour guide knows the attraction inside out, which makes it convenient and easier for you to talk to them and gain more insight into one of the world’s first public art museums.
- Prado Museum is one of the most popular tourist attractions in Spain, which is why it usually sees huge crowds of tourists every day. Booking a guided tour will make access to the museum easier and quicker.
All Your Prado Museum Tour Options
Highlights Covered on Your Prado Museum Tour
Prado Museum has a vast collection of European paintings. Here's what you will see on your Prado Museum tour.
Spanish Paintings
Prado Museum boasts a huge collection of 2800 Spanish paintings from the 12th to 19th centuries. It has focused on displaying extensive works of individual artists. For instance, there are 140 art pieces by Goya and 48 artworks by Velazquez on display at the museum. The seven galleries on the ground floor of the museum are home to several artworks of other iconic Spanish painters like Greco, Juan de Flandes, Luis Meléndez, Pedro Berruguete, and Luis de Morales, to name a few.
Italian and French Paintings
Italian and French paintings made it to the Prado Museum only during the 16th century. Until then, the Spanish monarchs were not too keen on commissioning Italian, Venetian, and French painters except Titian whose works dominate the collection at the museum. Other painters whose artworks are on display at Prado Museum include Caravaggio, Luca Giordano, Guido Reni, Paolo Veronese, Tintoretto, Antonello da Messina, Jacopa Bassano, and Georges de la Tour, among others.
Flemish Paintings and Northern Schools
Prado Museum’s collection also includes over 1,000 Flemish paintings. Notable artists like Peter Paul Rubens, Anthony Van Dyck, Raphael, Rogier Van der Weyden, and Pieter Bruegel the Elder, to name a few. Between the 15th and 17th centuries, the oil painting technique flourished. A joint rule made it easy for the Spanish monarchs to get their hands on the best Flemish paintings and exhibit them at the museum. Some of the prominent and iconic artworks include Descent from the Cross, Adoration of the Magi, The Triumph of Death, and Saint George and the Dragon, among others.
19th Century Paintings
The Villanueva building inside the museum houses a large collection of almost 2700 19th-century artworks that were borrowed in 1971 from Museo de Arte Moderno, the Spanish National Museum. Displayed across 12 galleries, the artworks include themes ranging from neoclassical to romanticism. A few prominent works of art include Boys on the Beach by Joaquin Sorolla, Nude Boy on the Beach at Portici by Mariano Fortuny, and The Death of Viriatus by Jose de Madrazo, to name a few.
Sculptures and Decorative Arts
Made on the orders of the Spanish monarchs, Museo Nacional del Prado is home to 1000 pieces of sculpture and around 3500 pieces of decorative arts, including some from the Baroque and Renaissance periods. Some must-see pieces include Charles V and the Fury (a sculpture of Emperor Charles V), Epimetheus and Pandora (made of wood and painted with oils), and The Dauphin’s Treasure (a group of vessels made of hardstones like gold, diamonds, silver, and other precious gems).
Photographs, Prints, and Drawings
Another collection worth admiring at the museum is that of their prints, drawings, and photographs. Prado Museum has a massive collection of 10,000 photographs, 9,000 drawings, and 6,000 prints. In 1931, Spanish aristocrat Pedro Fernandez Duran bequeathed about 2,000 drawings from the 16th to the 19th centuries, including the preparatory drawings of the Last Judgment fresco by Michelangelo. The Spanish and Italian drawings, the Goya collection of prints and letters, and Juan de Villanueva’s Ground Plan and Elevation of the Museum drawings are a few must-see works of art at the museum.
Guided Tours vs Non-Guided Tours
Guided Tours
- Your Prado Museum tour includes an expert guide, who possesses in-depth knowledge of the museum and can provide you with all the information you need about the attraction.
- Prado Museum tour tickets include a skip the line feature, which allows you to avoid waiting in long queues and access the attraction on priority.
- These guided tours have a fixed itinerary that includes all the major points of interest and important artworks that you should check out inside the museum. It makes it easier to navigate an attraction as artistically and historically significant as the Prado Museum.
- Prado Museum tours include a small group of people to offer tourists a more immersive and interactive experience.
Non-Guided Tours
- With a general admission ticket, you can explore the attraction at your own pace.
- You can get yourself an audio guide to know more about the history of the museum, the artists, and the artworks on display.
- Keep in mind that you will not be able to skip the line or walk past huge crowds to enter the attraction with a general admission ticket. This means that you will have to wait in long lines to access the attraction. This could take anywhere between 30 minutes to a couple of hours.
Frequently Asked Questions About Prado Museum Tours
A. Yes. You can book a Prado Museum tour here.
A. You can book a Prado Museum guided tour online.
A. Prado Museum tours are priced at €35 and above.
A. There are two types of Prado Museum tours available – the Prado Museum Guided Tour and the Royal Palace of Madrid and Prado Museum guided tour.
A. Your Prado Museum tour includes a visit to all the galleries as well as a glimpse of the major and noteworthy artworks inside the attraction.
A. The Prado Museum guided tours are available in two languages – English and Spanish.
A. The Prado Museum guided tour covers all the major artworks inside.
A. It depends on the type of Prado Museum tour you book. The small group guided tour will have no more than 10 people while the other guided tours have a maximum capacity of 25 guests.
A. Yes. The Prado Museum tour is worth it because it is one of the most iconic and important art museums in the world. Their collection comprises over 20,000 artworks of legendary artists like Velazquez, Picasso, Salvador Dali, Francisco de Goya, and Rembrandt, among others.
A. Yes. The Prado Museum tours include skip the line access.
A. Yes. You can cancel your Prado Museum tour tickets up to 24 hours before the scheduled date and get a full refund.
A. The Prado Museum guided tour is 2 hours long.
A. Yes. Discounts are available for the Prado Museum tours. Find the best deals before booking your tickets.
