This monumental gate, built by order of Carlos III to replace a previous one dating from the 16th century, was inaugurated in 1778.
The tour includes a tour of the main streets of the Salamanca neighborhood: Velázquez, Ortega y Gasset and Serrano.
The monument to Christopher Columbus presides over the square from the center of the fountain around which the traffic revolves. This neogothic style white marble sculpture, together with its imposing stone carved pedestal, measures 17 meters and was built in 1885 by Jerónimo Suñol, on the occasion of the celebration of the wedding between Alfonso XII and María de las Mercedes de Orleans. The square is also home to the Discovery Gardens, a park inaugurated in 1970, where you can admire various sculptures such as the monument dedicated to the discovery of America. In the basement is the Cultural Center of the Villa Fernán Gómez.
The National Library of Spain (BNE) is an autonomous body in charge of the deposit of the bibliographic and documentary heritage of Spain. Dedicated to gathering, cataloging and preserving bibliographic funds, it guards around thirty million publications produced in the national territory since the beginning of the 18th century: books, magazines, maps, engravings, drawings, scores and brochures. Through the Library Museum and the Exhibition Rooms, the collections, the functioning and the history of the National Library are disseminated.
Surrounded by the buildings of the Buenavista Palace (Army Headquarters), Linares Palace (America House), Communications Palace (formerly the headquarters of the Post Office and currently the Madrid City Council) and the Bank of Spain. The fountain represents the Roman goddess Cibeles, symbol of the land, agriculture and fertility, on a chariot pulled by two lions, the mythological characters Hipómenes and Atalanta. The goddess and the lions were sculpted in marble and the rest in stone. The sculpture of the goddess is the work of Francisco Gutiérrez. The two lions have been sculpted by the Frenchman Roberto Michel. The goddess is an icon for the followers of the Real Madrid soccer team, since the titles of the Madrid team are celebrated there, as well as the successes of the Spanish soccer team.
Designed and built by Antonio Palacios and Joaquín Otamendi as the headquarters of the Spanish Post and Telegraph Society, it was inaugurated in 1909. In 1993, it was declared a Site of Cultural Interest with the category of Monument. Following patterns of rationality and functionality, the building represents the union of tradition and modernity. Built of stone, iron and glass, the Palacio de Cibeles sits on land that had housed the old recreational gardens of El Buen Retiro.
Quite a decorative waste, awarded at the National Exhibition of Fine Arts in 1884. The building was built with the aim of providing the National Bank with a headquarters more in line with the importance of its functions, such as the single issue of coins and bills for all the Spanish territory. The interior of the building can only be visited by groups of educational centers and universities. Exceptionally, also by cultural and non-profit associations.
The Plaza de Canalejas, formerly known as the Four Streets; It is located in the Centro district of Madrid, it is located between Carrera de San Jerónimo and Calle de la Cruz, Sevilla and Príncipe.
The Palace of the Spanish Cortes, was built on the site of the old convent of the Holy Spirit that was used as the headquarters of the Congress between 1834 and 1841. On the main façade, a staircase ascends to the neoclassical portico, with six imposing fluted columns, of the Corinthian order, on which rises the triangular pediment decorated with reliefs by Ponciano Ponzano. The iconic lions that flank the entrance are the work of the same sculptor and were cast from iron from cannons captured during the African War. Under the pediment, the chiseled bronze door is only opened on very special occasions. Among the rooms in the building, with a symmetrical plan, the well-known Sessions room stands out, but also the library or the Conference room, better known as the "lost steps" room.
Both gods occupy prominent positions within the Greek mythological hierarchy and compete in the sporting arena, as Atlético de Madrid fans celebrate their victories in the Plaza del Dios del Mar, while Real Madrid do so in Cibeles. As part of Ventura Rodríguez's original project, both fountains were, at first, facing each other, looking at each other on one side of the Paseo del Prado. Both Cibeles and Neptuno underwent restructuring and relocation processes at the end of the 19th century, finally occupying the center of the Cibeles and Cánovas del Castillo squares, respectively.
Uniquely rich in paintings by European masters from the 16th to the 19th centuries, according to art historian and Hispanicist Jonathan Brown "few would dare to doubt that it is the world's most important museum for European painting." Its main attraction lies in the wide presence of Velázquez, el Greco, Goya (the artist most widely represented in the museum), Titian, Rubens and Bosco, of which it has the best and most extensive collections that exist worldwide, as well as what must be added outstanding groups of such important authors as Murillo, Ribera, Zurbarán, Fra Angélico, Rafael, Veronese, Tintoretto, Patinir, Antonio Moro, Van Dyck or Poussin, to name just a few of the most relevant.
Popularly known as "Los Jerónimos", its official name is the Parish Church of San Jerónimo el Real. It is located next to the Prado Museum, at its back, and is in the late Gothic style with Renaissance influences from the early 16th century. Although little remains of the original building because over the centuries it has been remodeled and restored on numerous occasions. Its name refers to its special relationship with the kings of Spain, to begin with it was built by order of the Catholic Monarchs and throughout history it became a place of spiritual retreat for several monarchs. In addition, for centuries it has been the scene of royal investiture in the absence of a cathedral and the wedding of Alfonso XIII was also celebrated here, for which the great staircase that leads to its door was built in 1906.
10 out of 10! Our guide was incredibly knowledgeable of not just lights but historic monuments along the tour! Laura answered lots of questions and even gave us tips on fun spots in the city! She was very accommodating for photos and made us laugh along the way! Highly recommended for anyone whether you’re a first time visitor or even new to the city!
Wonderful introductory activity in Madrid for our family- before our trip we hadn't thought of Madrid as a Winter Wonderland destination, but the Christmas lights were gorgeous and gave the city an amazing festive glow and holiday atmosphere. Our guide Carlos was knowledgeable, welcoming and expertly navigated us through the sites and the various light displays. We were very pleased with the tour.
What a fun little tour! Seeing the city lit up for the holidays was magical, but I also learned a lot about the history of Madrid and key landmarks from Carlos. I would highly recommend this tour!
Fun way to see the Christmas lights. Unfortunately because it was Christmas Day, some of the lights were not on. David was an excellent guide.
The lights display in Madrid is beautiful. Tuk tuk tour is a fun way to see the displays and we enjoyed speaking with our guide.
Great experience seeing all the Christmas lights: our driver Christian was wonderful and very knowledgeable.!he had blankets for us as well for the cold weather.
David was Excellent very knowledgeable and friendly. Thank you for the tour !! It was a nice experience for our kids.
Arturo and Gustavo were amazing. They were very entertaining while providing some very interesting and informative commentary. The lights were gorgeous and they were very efficient in driving us around all over the City the the best areas to view them. The music and the blankets made the tour on the chilly night even more memorable. Highly recommend.
Laura our driver was amazing. Knowledgeable friendly safe and fun! Highly recommend her and this tour! Great experience and great time! Thanks!
Didn't realize that almost every neighborhood in Spain was decorated for Christmas. Madrid has a lot of traffic and there is no way that we would have been able to experience all of the lights if not for the TukTuk tour. The driver was knowable and friendly.
It is a nice ride around Madrid to see the Christmas lights. Our guide gave us a good history of Madrid.
Probably not worth going. It wasn’t much different than walking around looking at the lights. Our guide wasn’t really informative and we had to ask questions to keep conversation going.
Our guide Alex was great. So knowledgeable and a great navigator of the area. The Christmas lights were beautiful!
The City and the excellent tour guide She had excellent English, knew the City and took the time for us to see special locations. EXCELLENT !!!
Great experience. The tour guide showed us all the holiday lights. They told great stories and answered all our questions
Great way to see the christmas lights of Madrid as well as some insights of places to revisit. Guide was knowledgeable and fun.
Great tour. The host Ana was very informative The route was just righty. The length was short due to all the traffic. . It could start later if it helps with the traffic
Totally recommend doing the Tuk Tuk Christmas Lights Tour in Madrid. Booked ahead of time, had great communication with Eco Tour. Our tour guide was very knowledgeable, took us through the Salamanca area, Gran Via. Tour is one hour. Highly recommended.
The Tuk Tuk was the first activity we did after arriving in Madrid. It was a wonderful way to see some of the city and the beautiful Christmas lights. Our tour guide Ana was fabulous.
The lights were beautiful and we saw many if the city sections! Our guide Pablo was very entertaining also!
Arturo was our tour guide and he was amazing. We arrived 10 minutes late but they were understanding and still accommodated us. He was very informative and fun. I highly recommend this tour.
Beautiful informative experience with a great host. Fun and efficient. 100 character minimum is annoying viator.
Even though it was a rainy night, we had a great time. Belén was fantastic! We even stop at St. Geronimo church. That was a treat.
Very fun and original tour through the streets of Madrid to see the Christmas lights. totally recommendable
A lovely way to see the lights of Madrid! The driver/guide was friendly and enjoyable and he showed us some parts of Madrid we hadn’t yet explored on our own. The kids enjoyed both the unique vehicle and the lights.
We had an excellent time with our driver, Ivan (not eye-van but ee-vahn) and the Eco Tuk Tuk tour of Madrid and the Christmas lights. They were punctual, clearly explained everything from the time of purchase through to the end of the tour. Ivan was extremely knowledgeable and fun and shared a lot of ‘secrets’ of Madrid with us but you will have to join him to find out what they are. Even though the weather didn’t cooperate with us, it was a truly enjoyable experience. We recommend booking this tour.
The tour was amazing our guide was funny and informative. Such a wonderful way to have a tour and see. Christmas lights. Would absolutely do this again.
Amazing service & a big well done to our guide Alex. Sure made it fun and interesting! It’s a must when you visit Madrid !!!
Amazing experience! Great guide and very nice tour. I fully recommend this visit. Everything was perfect. Great activity for spending time with your kids.
Top tour with Sergio! Sergio first shared the route we would be taking and gave us a couple options, we then started the tour. Sergio was very knowledgeable, super friendly and very clear with his English. The tuk tuk was comfortable. We really enjoyed the tour and would highly recommend to others!
Great experience, it is the best and easiest way to discover the city. Fast, small and widen the Eco tuk-tuk can go everywhere. The guide Nacho has been brilliant. Now we know and we love Madrid.
Super!!! We loved ,nice,friendly and good information .Very complete. A lovely walk. We recommend it!!!
A wonderful experience, a magnificent guide and super nice. Safi gave us a great time. We will definitely repeat!!! Thank you Safi!!
Me encantó, imposible ver tanto andando. Y Gloria un encanto, además de la interesante explicación y curiosidades de algunos lugares, fue muy amable y nos proporcionó hasta mantas. Agradable, interesante y genial en resumen
Super recommended experience to see the lights and hear history of Madrid! I loved Guide Lluis, and the whole tour. I'd definitely repeat. It's a great gift
chauffeur très agréable et intéressant le tour est très agréable et je n ai pas vu le temps passer. très belles illuminations. j aurai aimé des arrêts pour faire des photos.
We were very unhappy with his tuk tuk. It was very short and certainly not suitable for a Christmas light tour you could not see anything only the people who were on the sides. Getting on and off it was pretty complicated. Very friendly but uncommunicative driver. I didn’t want to comment before because I’ve been walking around Madrid since I live here and have been looking at other tuk tuks. Of course much taller and wider and many of the drivers wear a microphone and explain things. 150 € for what they gave us yesterday seems like an absolute scam. I have written to you with my complaint but have not received a reply.
El recorrido está muy bien y el conductor excelente! Muy ameno y agradable! Lo q no nos gustó fue la constitución de la motoneta, ya que las barras laterales del vehículo te dan justo en la cara y no puedes disfrutar el paseo! Tienes que agacharte todo el tiempo para observar las luces navideñas y es muy incómodo! una pena!
The guide was great and the tour very nice. Madrid looked fantastic and we enjoyed it a lot. The streets were lively and the atmosphere wonderful
Mi madre siempre había querido recorrer madrid viendo las luces de navidad y le regalé esta experiencia. Las dos hemos salido encantadas, lo repetiríamos mil veces. Nuestro guía Arturo una persona de 10. Lo recomiendo al 100%.
Excellent service! Punctual service. Information received was clear and related. They went beyond what was expected! Thank you!
Un viaje muy completo , vimos cantidad de luces muy bonito muy bien explicado y una gran excelente guía. Puntuales con la recogida y un precio muy correcto.
Todo genial. Un acierto la experiencia !! Una manera cómoda y rápida de conocer el centro de Madrid. Repetiría sin dudarlo
La guía Gloria, un auténtico encanto. La subida al asiento, por parte de mi madre 90 años, fue un poco caótica. Pero enseguida vinieron a ayudar los compañeros y todo genial. Gracias
Muy divertida la ruta y reiamos mucho todos mientras recibíamos comentarios de edificios emblemáticos y sobre las luces de navidad.
Le tour de Madrid en tuktuk le soir est une expérience très sympathique car ça permet de voir les bâtiments illuminés, de vivre la féerie de Noël emmitouflés dans un plaid. Nous avions en plus un guide enthousiaste qui nous a mis les chants de Noël. A faire absolument.
You see the main streets illuminated and without having to suffer the crowds of people. The behavior was wonderful, happy and fun. A good experience.
Todo Muy agradable, nos iba contando historias de la Navidad y de Madrid el guia. muy profesional Ya he comentado por wasap que con mucha seguridad repetire la experiencia con mis nietos, muy agradable
Juan, el guía, era muy agradable, pero sinceramente NO merece la pena. Pagar 85 euros para no ver prácticamente luces de navidad. El tour empezó media hora tarde, es verdad que había una manifestación y mucho tráfico, pero llamábamos y no nos decían la verdad sobre el tiempo que quedaba. Después, al empezar el tour, una decepción. Para esto, pagad 7 euros y coged el bus.
Really not recommended. We only started 20 min later than booked. Then we drove 4 streets and the same route back again. walking you see more lights. and the tour would be in English, the one who gave it did not say a word.
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