As I was approaching the Palacio Real on foot from Calle Toledo through the back streets through Plaza Oriente, I found the view to be particulary beautiful. You can see the main entrance to the Palacio Real in front of you standing by the statue of Philip IV on a horse. I happened to be looking across the the road at the famous Prince’s Gate. The thing that kept puzzling me was why do they have so many police escorts mulling about, and why is everything cordoned off? This was soon answered. Down the road came the entourage of King Juan Carlos. The King happened to be riding out to his next official engagement. I sat down at one of the benches and took a rest(my wife sitting next to me). We saw the pigeons chasing after the rice and corn. Looking around, I could see the other statues in the Plaza, and down a ways I could see the Catedral de Almudena. The other direction was the Botanical Garden. After a few minutes and the entourage passed, my wife and I made our way to the visitor’s entrance of the Palacio Real and went inside to see the Palace.
Ellen L.
Place rating: 4 Redwood City, CA
located just across the road from the palacio real, this outdoor plaza/garden/park is free to the public and simply gorgeous to look at. there are walkways, perfectly manicured gardens, tons of statues, and benches to sit on. this is a great place to take a stroll either before or after visiting the royal palace. heck, i even ran thru each of the rows of statues on one of my morning runs b/c i felt that it was the fastest way to see all of the spanish kings from the medieval age. in the hustle and bustle of spain’s capital city, this is definitely a peaceful and quiet place to soak up some sun and enjoy the ornate spanish architecture.
Christian D.
Place rating: 5 Erfurt, Germany
Nice Place, i’ve seen it by night. take time to look around and see the Details of architecture and sculptures and plants
Ginette P.
Place rating: 3 New York, NY
Another plaza, another opportunity to walk around take in the scenery & of course more pictures.
Andrew C.
Place rating: 4 North Shields, United Kingdom
A beautiful square in front of the Palacio Real combined with a bit of a park. Take a few minutes to yourself at sunrise(if you haven’t been enjoying too much of the nightlife) to get a nice view of the palace. Come along at sunset if you want the best view of the Teatro Real. It can be a bit of a haunt for«the youths» but to be perfectly honest they didn’t disturb the peace that much.
Stepha
Place rating: 5 Hamburg
Todo excepcional, el almuerzo, aunque con poca variedad, es muy bueno ya que el precio, la comida y el servicio son muy buenos.
Tracey W.
Place rating: 4 Geneva, Switzerland
Wow what a spectacle this plaza offers facing the royal palace and surrounded by exquisite statues, its the perfect place for a romantic evening walk or to sit and people watch, and is surrounded by shops and restaurants. A must see.
Monsieur R.
Place rating: 3 17ème arr., Paris
Esplanade longeant le palais du Roi d’un coté et le théâtre de l’autre.
Madridman M.
Place rating: 4 Madrid, Spain
The perfectly manicured gardens of the totally pedestrian Plaza de Oriente is situated between the Palacio Real(Royal Palace) and the Teatro Real(Royal Theater-Opera House) in Madrid, Spain. The plaza is very well illuminated at night as is the palace and opera house. Skate-punks crashing their boards day and night can easily disturb the peace, but it’s otherwise very relaxing with the central fountain surrounding the statue of King Philip IV. Saludos, MadridMan @ you-know-where!
Bibule
Place rating: 4 Ussy-sur-Marne, Seine-et-Marne
Avec son palais royal Le palais et les autres insignes de la royauté donnent sa grandeur à la place, les artistes des rues et le monde lui donnent sa personnalité. Agréable pour boire un verre et pour regarder se coucher le soleil.
Segism
Place rating: 4 Madrid, Spain
A quaint, romantic little round plaza overlooking the Royal Palace. It is surrounded by white stone figures representing the past Spanish royals from the time of the Visigoths, and centered by a stone fountain. A nice place to take a stroll, especially by moonlight. Very close to the Sabatini Gardens and the Opera district with the Opera house, the best music instrument shops in town and some quaint little cafes.
Filimb
Place rating: 4 London, United Kingdom
Beautifully laid out square in front of the Palacio Real, which is currently hosting a series of evening concerts for free. There was a long line of spaniards of a certain age queuing for a night time concert when I walked past, at about 7:30 in the evening. There is a huge statue of a man on horseback holding a veil or dress of lace, and a fountain underneath where you can dip your toes to cool down. Large hedges and trees provide plenty of shade, and the air is scented with herbs. But people treat teh place just like it was their home, like a park, so amid all the statuary and formal planting dogs are chasing balls, people are running around laughing and so on. Good place to bring someone you like. and if you need a chinese massage, this is the place for you. Down one of the little pathways is a whole line of masseurs giving people head massages, shoulder massages and so on. Beautiful.