Crystal Palace: how to visit the most beautiful corner of Retiro (Madrid)

Are you from Madrid? You almost certainly agree with me that the Crystal Palace is most beautiful corner and charming Retirement park.

And if you are going to make a tourist trip to Madrid, Crystal Palace It is, without a doubt, a visit almost essential.

With a walk through Retiro Park, the busiest corner for visitors is the Estanque, with its imposing Monument to Alfonso XII.

But very close, to the south of it, you find the Crystal Palace, within a wooded area and in front of a small artificial lake.

Where is and how to visit the Retiro Crystal Palace

When you get to Crystal Palace, my advice is that you go around the lake, also passing through the interior of the artificial cave until you reach the steps of this building.

And the ideal is that you visit it in the morning, which is when, due to its orientation, the façade acquires its greatest splendor.

El Crystal Palace It surely reminds you of other buildings built at the same time, at the end of the 19th century, in which construction with a metal structure took on great prominence.

That is the case of Las Halles Market in Paris or Crystal Palace London, or in the city of Madrid itself, the Mercado de San Miguel.

In fact, Crystal Palace It is considered one of the best examples of metal architecture in Spain.

Curiosities about the history of the Crystal Palace

I will tell you below 6 curiosities and interesting facts about the Crystal Palace Retiro park in Madrid.

1.- When you are before him Crystal Palace, possibly reminding you of a characteristic greenhouse.

And, indeed, when 1887 The architect Ricardo Velazquez Bosco raised the Crystal Palace, was intended to host an exhibition of tropical flora within the framework of an exhibition dedicated to the Philippine Islands.

As a complement, the lake in front of its façade was also created.

2.- El Crystal Palace It is configured in three spaces, with a large dome in the center that has a height of almost 23 meters.

3.- After the exhibition, the Crystal Palace, among other functions, was the headquarters every two years of the National Exhibition of Fine Arts, housing the sculptures, an event that was managed by ehe Circle of Fine Arts of Madrid.

4.- In May 1936 the Crystal Palace It was used for the election of the president of the Republic, eventually, Manuel Azaña.

5.- In 1975 an important renovation of the Crystal Palace building, remaining as you can see it now.

6.- Finally, since 1990 the Crystal Palace of the Retreat It is one of the headquarters of Reina Sofía contemporary art museum, so that when you visit, you will always have the opportunity to see a temporal exposition of said cultural entity.

During your visit you will see the room of the palace and the works of the contemporary art exhibition that the museum has going on at that time.

Visiting hours of the Retiro Crystal Palace

El Visiting hours of the Crystal Palace exhibitions It is every day, from April to September, between 10 a.m. and 22 p.m.; in October and March, between 10 a.m. and 19 p.m.; and in February and November, between 10 a.m. and 18 p.m.

El Crystal Palace It is closed on certain holidays, specifically, January 1 and 6, May 1 and December 25, closing at 17 p.m. on December 24 and 31.

For visit the Crystal Palace, entry is free.

Photos of the Retiro Crystal Palace

Here you have more photos of the Crystal Palace in Retiro Park in Madrid.