The Royal Palace of Madrid is often approached as a monumental façade at the western end of the city centre. Its role is more layered: it is the official residence of Spain’s head of state, but the royal family lives at the Palace of Zarzuela, and the larger palace is used chiefly for ceremonies, receptions and other formal occasions. Patrimonio Nacional, the public institution responsible for royal sites, administers it and opens much of its interior to visitors when state business allows.
The scale can be hard to picture from the plaza. Patrimonio Nacional describes a building of roughly 135,000 square metres and 3,148 rooms. A public visit follows a selected route rather than giving access to the entire complex. The palace remains part of the country’s representational life, and a ceremony can change access even when the published calendar shows ordinary opening hours.
