Walking 10 minutes to the west from Puerta del Sol, you'll get to Plaza de Oriente, where the Royal Palace is located.

The Royal Palace, also known as Palacio de Oriente (Palace of the West), is the official residence of the King & Queen of Spain, although they often reside in the Zarzuela Palace. The Royal Palace also hosts many official acts of the state.

In terms of extention (135 m2) it is considered the largest royal palace in western Europe. The Palace holds an important artistic and cultural pieces: richly decorated including collections by Caravaggio, Velázquez, Rubens, Goya, Tiépolo,  Stradivarius Palatinos, the most important collection of these instruments.

The Palace is located to the extreme west of Villa de Madrid on land which previously housed an Arab Fort. After this, the Alcazar de los Austria was built and was destroyed in a fire on Christmas Eve of 1734. The current Palace was built, under the direction of Felipe V, in 1738 according to building plans designed by the architect Filippo Juvara, later adapted by Giovanni Battista Sacchetti. In conclusion, after years of building and reforming, decoration was commissioned to Francesco Sabatini. It was Carlos III who was to be the first monarch to live in the Barroque style Palace until 1931.

Surrounding the Palace there are various gardens: Moro gardens (Campo del Moro) and the Gardens of Sabatini. The first are located to the west, in the lands between the Palace and the Manzanares River. In this park, covering 20 hectars, there are 70 types of trees, some of which are over 170 years old. Declared a historical-artistic interest in 1931 due to its actual design, follows the style of an English garden with a series of art works commissioned by María Cristina (first decade of the 1800s). Inside the Campo del Moro you'll find two fountains; fuente de los Tritones and fuente de las Conchas. You can also visit the Carriage Museum.

The gardens of Sabatini are located to the north between the Royal Palace, Bailen St and the 'cuesta de San Vicente'. French in design the gardens were constructed by the Italian architect Sabatini, hence their name, under Carlos III around the third decade of the 1900s.

In Plaza de Oriente you'll find one of the most internationally well known Opera houses: Royal Theatre of Madrid, completely renovated in 1997, holds a stage of 1430m2 and an arch of 18x24m and sofisticated in its tecnical design. Some summer nights the opera is projected on a large screen outside in Plaza de Oriente.

Opposite the square Plaza de la Armería, in front of the Royal Palace, you'll see the principal façade of the Spanish cathedral Santa María La Real de La Almudena, also known as the Almudena Cathedral. This cathedral extends a length of 102 m and 73m in height and is different to other cathedrals, which have east-west orientation, Almudena Cathedral has a north-south orientation. This is a neoclassic style temple on the exterior and neogothic on the interior. The whole structure stands on a neo-romanic crypt