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Parque del Retiro vs Monasterio de las Descalzas Reales
Both Retiro Park and Convent of the Royal Barefoot Nuns are recommended by those who travel for a living. On balance, Retiro Park ranks slightly higher than Convent of the Royal Barefoot Nuns. Retiro Park ranks #6 in Madrid with positive reviews from 6 publications such as Frommer's, Fodor's and Travel + Leisure.
Parque del Retiro
Fodor's
Frommer's
Lonely Planet
Travel + Leisure
Michelin Guide
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Between C. Alfonso XII and Avenida de Menendez Pelayo, Madrid
From $0 /night
Fodor's
"Madrid's crowning park is a vast expanse of green encompassing formal gardens, fountains, lakes, exhibition halls, children's play areas, outdoor cafés, and a Puppet Theater."
Full review
Frommer's
"Originally a playground for the Spanish monarchs and their guests, this park extends over 140 hectares (350 acres)."
Full review
Lonely Planet
Top Choice
"One of the few vestiges of the 17th-century Palacio del Buen Retiro, this somewhat austere building overlooking the Parque del Buen Retiro is run as an academic library."
Full review
Travel + Leisure
"Madrid’s answer to New York’s Central Park is a warren of paths carved in green with a large, central man-made lake and plenty of space (330 acres) for lolling about."
Full review
Michelin Guide
2 Stars
"A green space where... you can row on the (artificial) lake under the indifferent gaze of King Alfonso XI, or join the locals running along the pathways."
Full review
Monasterio de las Descalzas Reales
Fodor's
Frommer's
Lonely Planet
Travel + Leisure
Michelin Guide
Plaza de las Descalzas Reales, s/n, 28013 Madrid
From $0 /night
Fodor's
"Its plain, brick-and-stone facade hides paintings by Francisco de Zurbarán, Titian, and Pieter Brueghel the Elder."
Full review
Frommer's
"In the mid-16th century, aristocratic women -- either disappointed in love or "wanting to be the bride of Christ" -- stole away to this convent to take the veil."
Full review
Lonely Planet
Top Choice
"The grim, prisonlike walls of this one-time palace keep modern Madrid at bay and offer no hint that behind the sober plateresque facade lies a sumptuous stronghold of the faith."
Full review
Travel + Leisure
"This collection of fantastic, if occasionally brutally themed, religious art, including pieces by Peter Paul Rubens, is in an appropriately creaky and forbidding 16th-century working convent."
Full review
Michelin Guide
2 Stars
"Home to a remarkable museum of religious art... also includes numerous canvases by Zurbarán, Bruegel the Elder."
Full review
