Templo de Debod

A 2,200-year-old Egyptian temple stands on a hill above Plaza de España because Spain helped rescue the Nubian monuments from the Aswan dam, and Egypt said thank you with a building. The interior — small, carved, atmospheric — is free; the reason everyone comes is the reflecting pool at sunset, when the temple and half of Madrid’s west sky double themselves in the water.

Treat it as the free finale of a museum day: Cerralbo is three minutes away, the Royal Collections ten, and the Oeste park rose garden below.

The minimum you must see

Tips

Interior entry is capped to ~30 people; the short queue moves every 15 minutes.

The lawns are Madrid’s favourite picnic ground — bring the vermút, skip the restaurant.

Questions, answered