Living in a big city or visiting it for tourism is great!

Exhibitions, museums, streets full of history and monuments, as well as fabulous shops for shopping and clubs to experience the great nightlife!

A hectic and fulfilling life, however ... Sometimes it takes a bit of tranquility!

Fortunately, living in Madrid brings you also wonderful parks where you can breathe clean air, walk and relax away from traffic and surrounded by nature, among ancient trees, flower beds and often even small wild animals.

Today we want to tell you about some of these parks that you can visit here in Madrid!

PARQUE DEL RETIRO

The Retiro Park is the most famous park in Madrid. The reason is immediately clear: it is truly wonderful!

It is located in the center of Madrid and its origins date back to the reign of Philip IV, when the Buen Retiro palace was built on the initiative of the Count Duke of Olivares.

It covers 125 hectares and has about 15,000 trees (including the oldest tree in the whole city!), The park has been the favorite destination of Madrid for centuries throughout the summer and spring.

This green heart of Madrid is the ideal place to take a walk surrounded by nature and spend a relaxing weekend.

It must be remembered that the park also hosts numerous sculptures, fountains and architectural monuments such as the Monument to Alfonso XII, the statue El Ángel Caído (the only one in the world dedicated to the devil), the Fuente de los Galápagos, the beautiful Palacio de Cristal and the Palacio de Valázquez which hosts numerous temporary art exhibitions.

CASA DE CAMPO

Casa de Campo is the largest park in Madrid, it covers approximately 1722 hectares of land and is the ideal place for trekking, jogging and mountain biking, but also to admire the breathtaking sunsets of the lake from its shores.

On the first Saturday of each month, the park hosts the Día del Mercado, an event where you can buy fresh fruit and vegetables and typical cheeses, directly from the farmer!

The main tourist destination is the Lake where it is possible to rent boats and canoes or simply stop in one of the bars that are located along the banks to taste some tapas or get something to drink and relax.

Exploring the park it is also possible to reach various panoramic points from where you can admire the surrounding landscape and historical monuments such as the Quatro Torri, the oblique Kio Towers and the Royal Palace.

To reach Casa de Campo you can take metro line 10 or walk down from the Royal Palace / Jardines de Sabatini and cross the Puente del Rey.

PARQUE EL CAPRICHO

The Parque del Capricho is less known than others but it is one of the most beautiful in the city, full of enchanting corners and perfect for pleasant walks.

It includes three types of gardens: the refined French-style one, the Italian-style one, with statues, fountains and water features, and the English-style one, the largest in the park, with a less artificial and more natural aspect.

Among the most interesting points to visit are the ballroom, the Temple of Bacchus, an area bordered by Ionic columns that makes the place very romantic, the hedge labyrinth, the Park Palace, the Casa de la Vieja (a reconstruction of a farmer's house with a small orchard at the back) and a bunker built during the Civil War (a 2,000 square meter shelter, located 15 meters deep)

PARQUE DEL OESTE

This park is also full of unique and particular places.

The Teleférico is a cable car that crosses the Parque del Oeste and allows you to see the city from above. It includes 80 cabins each for 6 people and the journey takes 10 minutes. During the journey you reach a maximum height of 40 meters and cover a distance of almost 2500 meters, during which you can admire a beautiful landscape.

An international rose competition is held annually in the rose garden (Rosaleda).

Very particular is Templo de Debod, near the Plaza de España, an Egyptian temple from the 2nd century BC. and a gift from the Egyptian government. Dismantled in 1961 and rebuilt in Madrid, it was inaugurated in 1972.

PARQUE JUAN CARLOS I

This park is truly immense, in fact it has an area of 160 hectares which includes, among other things, an olive grove with over 2,000 olive trees, a lake, an auditorium, a collection of outdoor sculptures and an activity center. It was opened to the public in 1992 on the occasion of the celebration of 'Madrid European Capital of Culture'.

It is the perfect place to engage in many sports. In fact, it has a large skating rink, a golf course, a lake and a coast where you can practice water sports such as rowing, fishing areas, a cycle path and a bicycle rental service. It is possible to travel for free with a small train that crosses the park and leaves every half hour. On weekends, numerous workshops are organized for children.