The Royal Palace of Madrid also known as Palacio de Oriente, is one of the most spectacular royal palace in Europe and one of the tourist icons if you want to da a Madrid guided tour.
Felipe VI and the Royal Family do not reside in the palace is only used for state ceremonies, the last monarch who lived continuously in the palace was Alfonso XIII.
The current Palace was built by the order of Philip V its the largest royal palace in Europe by floor area. The interior of the palace is notable for its wealth of art including paintings by artists such as Caravaggio, Velázquez and Francisco de Goya.
Among the rooms that can be visited at the Royal Palace is a Grand staircase, designed by Sabatini, the Royal Pharmacy, The Royal Armoury, which contains one of the most important collections of weapons and armor in the world, the Royal Chapel designed in 1748 by Sacchetti and Ventura Rodríguez, the Crown Room, which contains Charles III’s throne, scepter and crown also there are the abdication speech of Juan Calos I and the proclamation speech of Felipe VI.
Sabatini Gardens and Campo del Moro are the great attractions of the visit to the Royal Palace.
Don’t miss the traditional ceremony of the changing of the guard, the most eye-catching tourist attraction. The change of guard is every 30 minutes, every Wednesday from 11 am to 2 pm (except on summer months ).
The ceremony is particularly dynamic and lively. These changes took place every day during the reigns of Alfonso XII and Alfonso XIII.
The Solemn Changing of the Guard, which is performed on the first Wednesday of each month and lasts for almost an hour, with 400 people and 100 horses performed the changing of the guard as in the times of King Alfonso XII and King Alfonso XIII, wearing the same uniforms.
