More gardens came to mind; Guell, Barcelona; Jardin de Luxembourg,Tuileries, Bois de Boulogne Paris;Regents Park,Hyde Park,London;Villa Borghese,Rome; Tiergarten, Berlin and on and on.....

Current temporary exhibition at the Palacio Real: The Portrait in the Royal Collections
http://www.esmadrid.com/en/whats-on/...-palacio-real/

I don't like Central Park ( safe for jiggers?)
but I agree about Luxembourg...
Guell is lovely but not central , same with Bois de B.
I find London parks without much character..., Tiergarten is o.k.to drive through
at night- it is nicely illuminated.

Hi CIMBRONE,

I really enjoyed the Palacio Real in Madrid. More than the palaces of Versailles and the Schonbrunn in Vienna - they have too much gilt and too many mirrors!

I particularly loved the fabrics in the drapes and upholstery at the Palacio. The outside terrace was lovely. Of course, we were there on a beautiful day in May so interior and exterior were shown to advantage.

Doesn't Palacio Real have the great collection of tapestries?

I was in Madrid in September and spent an hour in Retiro Park. I thought it was lovely. I'm from New York, so I know Central Park. Not really fair to compare the two. For a small museum I suggest Cerrablo Museum. The 37-room museum is the former palace of Enrique de Aguilera y Gamboa, 17th Marquis of Cerralbo, and contains works of art from paintings, armors and weaponry, ornate glass chandeliers and furniture, to just about anything else you can think of. These works of art were collected by the Marquis and his family.

I also liked Retiro Park More for the lake and the many families with their children. All parks go through hard times. I was in NYC in the 1980s and Central Park was a bit of a no go zone. Muggings, thefts.

I liked the Royal Palace.
We had an English-speaking guide.
I loved the Stradivari. There are actually enough for a string quartet, and they are loaned to musicians. You can buy a CD of them being used to play some interesting Spanish music. I did.

What I liked especially was the insight I got into the position of the Royals in Spain. On a number of occasions around Spain and reinforced here, we were told that the King had saved Spain from another bloody civil war. Educated by Franco to continue his Fascist regime, the King turned out to be a force for unity and moderation.

As I get older, I find that I am less and less interested in the houses of the rich and celebrated unless there is another important dimension.

Thanks everyone!! Much useful information here!