The most famous of Madrid's parks was conceived as a leisure place for the Royal family. The Real Sitio del Buen Retiro was constructed on the initiative of the count-duke of Olivares, king Philip IV's favourite. The park composed of a lake and gardens was inaugurated in 1631. The Royal Palace's construction took place between 1632 and 1640. Unfortunately, during the Independence war in 1812, the French troops made their headquarters in the gardens and the military confrontation destroyed the palace. Only the Reinos hall survived, currently the Army museum, and the Cason del Buen Retiro which houses some of the Prado's collections. Ferdinand VII realized refurbishment works in the park as soon as 1815. By the way, it was during his reign that the park has been opened to public, under some restrictions. Later, the park was restored under Isabel II's reign. If you walk across the park, you can see the Palacio de Cristal, which structure is made of iron and glass, that was made for the Philippines fair. Today, there take place temporary exhibitions like in Velasquez palace and the Casa de Vacas. In the park, you can also observe the oldest tree in Madrid, the ahuehuete or Mexican cypress, planted in 1632. The park also offers the possibility of attending to a T'ai chi ch'uan session, seeing a fortune teller and listening to street artists' music.
To see: Palacio de Cristal, the gardens, the Alfonso XII monument, the Angel Caido statue, the only monument dedicated to the Devil in the world; Close to: boat cruise on the lake, visit the Army museum; Close to: Jardin Botanico, Puerta de Alcada, Paseo del Prado, Paseo del Prado museum.
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Retiro park Address: Parque des Retiro, Madrid, Spain 
Retiro park Opening time: 1 october - 30 april: 6h - 22h 
Retiro park Price: Free
