El Prado

Tickets - depends on when you are going. I thought the audio guide was sufficient. The Prado is huge so it's best to decide in advance what you want to focus on. And if you don't use a guide, plot out a route through the galleries that takes you to what you most want to see.

Just been to Prado last week, the online purchase tickets don't skip the line, go around 1:30, Ricks tour is good.

Thanks!

We will be there in July so I imagine there will be long lines.

We visited the Prado in September, and we arrived about 15 minutes before it opened. The line was very short; it probably took us 15 minutes to buy our ticket, go through security, and purchase our audioguides. I don't think a tour guide is necessary. The museum's brochure lists the highlights, so you could use that to plan your route.

Was there 2-weeks ago, and purchased my tickets 2-days before. Granted it was just the start of tourism season so, I count myself as being fortunate. This was a last minute trip otherwise, I would normally purchase tickets well in-advance, for certain destinations, I don't want to leave things to chance.

Used the RS Audio Tour, it was just right. You can call it a speed tour of the highlights, add in a few spots of wandering in-between following the tour and it came out to just under 2-hours. That's about my limit for art museums. The cafe/restaurant inside is solid if you're needing a meal.