4 Best Sights in Salamanca, Madrid

Salamanca's gleaming main market is a hangarlike food emporium selling everything from wild game to softball-size Calanda peaches to sashimi-grade tuna to the country's finest jamón and canned seafood. Standout restaurants here include Casa Dani (arguably the city's best Spanish omelet; see separate entry) and Matteo Cucina Italiana (osteria-style pastas and risotto).

This museum boasts three large floors filled with Spanish relics, artifacts, and treasures ranging from ancient history to the 19th century. Among the highlights are La Dama de Elche, the bust of a wealthy 5th-century-BC Iberian woman (notice that her headgear vaguely resembles the mantillas and hair combs still associated with traditional Spanish dress); the ancient Visigothic votive crowns discovered in 1859 near Toledo, believed to date back to the 7th century; and the medieval ivory crucifix of Ferdinand and Sancha. There is also a replica of the early cave paintings in Altamira (access to the real thing, in Cantabria Province, is highly restricted).

Consider getting the multimedia guide offering select itineraries to make your visit more manageable.

This stately mansion of writer and editor José Lázaro Galdiano (1862–1947) is a 10-minute walk across the Castellana from Museo Sorolla. Its remarkable collection spans five centuries of Spanish, Flemish, English, and Italian art. Bosch's St. John the Baptist and a number of Goyas are highlights, with El Greco's San Francisco de Assisi and Zurbarán's San Diego de Alcalá close behind. This museum can be seen as part of the Abono Cinco Palacios, a €12 pass that grants access to five local mansion-museums.

Named for Christopher Columbus, this plaza surrounds a statue of the explorer (identical to the one in Barcelona's port) looking west from a high tower. Beyond Plaza de Colón is Calle de Serrano, the city's premier shopping street (think Gucci, Prada, and Loewe). Stroll in either direction on Serrano for some window-shopping.