Ben S.
Yelp
Holy history, Batman!
In-depth visibility
Impressive interactivity
I'm no Real Madrid fan, but thanks to my wife, we got our family tickets for this experience when we booked our trip to Spain, because she figured that I'd get a kick out of it, sports fan that I am.
I'm glad she did. While I feel like I'd harbor nothing but resentment if I toured Yankee Stadium in the same way, somehow, being removed from this football team's exploits and then being awash in the rich and storied history like a dousing cold shower was a genuinely impressive experience.
The "tour" is meaty - packed with facts, incredibly gripping videos, interactive pieces, trophies and honors - and yet it isn't a tour at all so much as a consistently intriguing pathway through this living, breathing museum to a team and its passionate fans. You trek your way to the top for a majestic view out and down onto the pitch, and then gradually make your way down through galleries, observation walkways, luxury box seating, the pitch itself, the team locker facilities, and eventually, as all these things go, you exit through the gift shop. Given that it's self-paced and so varied in its virtues, it's tough to nail down how much time you'll want, but I'd hazard that 2 hours feels about right if you plan to soak most of it up without necessarily reading every single placard.
Situated in north-central Madrid, it isn't at the epicenter of where you might be staying as a visitor, but an easy metro ride gets you here, and I'd recommend anyone with even a faint passing interest in sports make the trip. After all, some things are simply impressive whether you want to admit it or not...and this is almost incontrovertibly that.
Highly recommended.