# From the Palacio de Cristal to La Morería: Retiro photos, tapestry looms, free Prado and flamenco A photographer session by the Palacio de Cristal, a rowing boat on the pond, the looms of the Real Fábrica de Tapices, Casa Alberto, the Prado's two free hours and flamenco with dinner. Fuente: https://www.geocalia.com/en/spain/community-of-madrid/madrid/itineraries/crystal-palace-looms-and-flamenco-madrid · Revisado: 2026-11-14 ## El día - 09:00 · Photoshoot with a photographer in El Retiro, beside the Crystal Palace and its pond (Smiler · from €89 per group · meet at Paseo de Cuba, 4) · Smiler, From €89 group - 8 min on foot - 10:00 · El Retiro and a rowing boat on the Great Pond (boat on the big pond · €6 on weekdays) - 15 min on foot - 12:00 · Guided visit to the workshops of the Royal Tapestry Factory (12:00 slot · €6 · place requested by email) · Real Fábrica de Tapices, From €6 person - 30 min on foot - 13:45 · Casa Alberto (dining room 13:30 to 16:00 · tripe, oxtail · booking) · Casa Alberto, €€€ - 8 min on foot - 18:00 · Prado Museum, with a ticket or in the free last two hours (free 18:00 to 20:00 · arrive with time to spare) - 30 min by metro - 21:10 · Dinner and flamenco show at Corral de la Morería (second show: dinner at 21:10, flamenco at 21:30 · menu from €49.95 plus the ticket) · Corral de la Morería A day in Madrid done on foot from the Retiro to the Barrio de las Letras, with a hop on the metro to La Latina for the evening. It begins with someone taking the photos of your trip and goes on with things done at an easy pace: rowing, watching a tapestry being woven, choosing four paintings at the Prado. ## Morning in the Retiro: glass, water and oars 9:00 · Photo session by the Palacio de Cristal. A Smiler photographer waits for you at Paseo de Cuba 4, a few steps from the palace. Fifteen minutes and 10 photos for €89 for two, or half an hour and 25 photos for €149, up to six people. The edited gallery arrives within 48 hours. At this hour the park is quiet. 10:00 · Rowing boat on the big pond. A few minutes on foot to the north. The boats open at 10:00, cost €6 on weekdays for up to four people and give you 45 minutes in front of the Alfonso XII monument. Then you leave the park on the Atocha side. ## Looms at work and a tavern stew 12:00 · Real Fábrica de Tapices. About twenty minutes on foot, downhill towards Atocha. The 45-minute guided visit goes into the workshops where tapestries and rugs are woven by hand, with the looms working. There is no online sales: request a place by email a few days ahead, with each person's name, ID number and phone number. It costs €6. 13:45 · Casa Alberto. Twenty-five minutes on foot to Calle de las Huertas, or the metro from Atocha to Antón Martín. A tavern from 1827 with its own vermouth; in the dining room, tripe, oxtail or Madrid-style salt cod. Book. Between lunch and the Prado you have the afternoon free in the Barrio de las Letras: a siesta at the hotel or an unhurried stroll. ## Afternoon at the Prado and night at La Morería 18:00 · Prado Museum, free. Eight minutes on foot down Huertas. From Monday to Saturday admission is free from 18:00 to 20:00. A queue forms before the hour: arrive with time in hand and go straight to two or three rooms, Velázquez and Goya, for example. 21:10 · Corral de la Morería. Metro or taxi to Calle de la Morería, beside the Vistillas. On the second sitting you have dinner at 21:10 and the flamenco starts at 21:30, in the same room. The simplest menu costs €49.95 and the show ticket is added on top, according to the calendar on their website. ## Cómo llegar ### Without a car Metro line 2 to Retiro to start; the rest of the day on foot as far as the Prado, then metro or taxi to La Latina for the evening. ### By car Not needed: the whole day goes on foot and by metro, and parking in the centre is expensive. ## Consejos ### Ask for the tapestry place first It is the only stop with no online sales and fixed tour times. ### If it falls on a silver date The silver-clay jewellery workshop in Las Letras has three afternoons between November and December: swap the Prado for it and do the museum another day. ### Wear comfortable clothes underneath For the session, something you like in a photo; for the rest of the day, shoes for walking about five kilometres. ## Preguntas frecuentes ### How much does the day cost? From about €150 per person: the photo session split between two, the boat, the tapestries, lunch, the free Prado and the tablao menu, plus the show ticket. ### Can it be done at the weekend? Not as it stands: the Real Fábrica de Tapices doesn't open on Saturdays or Sundays. Swap it for the session at the Royal Palace or for the inside of the Palace. ### Do I need to bring anything for the photos? Nothing: the photographer brings the equipment. Just the clothes you want to be seen in.