Prado Museum Tickets: Prices, Timed Entry and Bag Rules

Prado ticket prices

The Prado publishes one price list, covering the Collection and the temporary exhibitions, on its opening times and prices page (checked 30 October 2026):

The museum says that "a time pass is needed to access the Museum" and that you pick the date and time when you buy. Book through the "Buy tickets" link on that price page so you land on the Prado's own shop rather than a reseller.

Reduced and free entry need proof on the day

The Prado says free and reduced admission require official, valid and up-to-date proof of status at the ticket office on the day of the visit. Besides under-18s and students aged 18–25, the free list covers arts students over 25, people with a disability of 33% or more, registered unemployed people, active teachers and qualifying large families.

Carry the document itself, such as a passport for a teenager or a student card. Without it you pay the full €15.

Timed ticket or the free last two hours?

The last two hours before closing give free access to the Collection. The museum issues those tickets only at the ticket office and only while capacity lasts, and it lists a 50% discount on temporary exhibitions alongside them, so the free slot does not include a full-price exhibition visit.

Combine that with the hours and the last-entry rule and the free window shrinks:

Entry stops 30 minutes before closing and visitors must leave the galleries 10 minutes before closing. The price page does not say whether the free hours apply on the three short days, so ask at the ticket office if you plan to rely on them then. Even if you are first in when the window opens, you get 1 hour 50 minutes at most; arrive in the last half hour and you will not get in.

When the Art Walk pass pays off

The Art Walk pass (Paseo del Arte) costs €32.80 and covers one visit each to the Prado, the Museo Reina Sofía and the Museo Thyssen-Bornemisza within one year of purchase, according to the Prado price page. The Thyssen's page for the card says it saves 20% on the standard rates, can be bought online on the Thyssen's ticket site or at the desk of any of the three museums, and allows the three visits on different days.

It only pays if you would otherwise buy three full-price tickets. If you qualify for a reduced or free ticket at the Prado, or plan to use any museum's free hours, buy single tickets instead. The Thyssen's page also excludes Mondays for the Thyssen visit, and says the card covers selected temporary exhibitions at the Reina Sofía and the Prado, not all of them.

Worked example: a family of three

Two adults and a 15-year-old on a Saturday morning:

• 2 general tickets at €15 = €30
• the teenager enters free with a passport shown at the ticket office
• adding the audio guide for both adults: 2 × €5 = €10

Total: €30 without audio guides, €40 with them. The same family arriving at 18:00 on a weekday would pay nothing for the Collection but would have to queue at the ticket office and would have until 19:30 to get in.

Opening hours and closed days

The Prado opens Monday to Saturday from 10:00 to 20:00, and on Sundays and public holidays from 10:00 to 19:00. It closes on 1 January, 1 May and 25 December, and opens only from 10:00 to 14:00 on 6 January, 24 December and 31 December.

If you are in Madrid over the holidays, check our Madrid at Christmas guide for what else closes on those dates.

Bags, lockers and gallery rules

The Prado's visitor regulations (checked 30 October 2026) ban these items:

• suitcases or bulky items larger than 40×40 cm
• scooters and bicycles
• animals, except authorised ones

The same page warns that locker capacity is limited. It does not publish a size limit for ordinary backpacks or say whether lockers are free.

Entrances and getting there

The Prado is on Calle Felipe IV. The museum's getting here page lists two public entrances:

• Goya entrance: ticket offices and visits to the Collection. Go here for free-hours tickets and for reduced or free tickets that need proof.
• Jerónimos entrance: visits to the temporary exhibitions and the Collection, with priority access for people with reduced mobility and for baby strollers.

The nearest Metro stations, on lines 1 and 2, are Banco de España (about 650 m) and Estación del Arte (about 800 m). Atocha Cercanías station is about 1 km away. The museum lists bus lines 001, 10, 14, 27, 34, 37, 45 and C03; the nearest stop, Museo del Prado–Jardín Botánico, is about 64 m away. A single Metro ride works with the Multi card explained in our Madrid metro tickets guide.

Retiro Park is right behind the museum, so it fits well after a morning visit; see our Retiro Park guide.