Prado Museum Tour & VIP Botin Lunch

This was my third Devour Tour experience and it was as excellent and worthwhile as the first two (tapas tour with Samantha, and early access Prado tour with Florin -- early access to the Prado is the stuff dreams are made of). Cassy was a brilliant guide! We started in the Prado museum, where Cassy's knowledge of art (she has a degree in art history) and enthusiam for the pieces she took us to see brought new insight and light to some of the museum's best known works. It's truly a gift to have an expert show you their favourite works of art and worth every penny. Truly, it improves the experience immeasurably. I also visit museums a lot on my own, but a high quality professional tour helps orient me and improves my subsequent visits a great deal. I should add that this kind of tour seems to attract some other very lovely people. So I enjoyed the group very much as well. We came from all over, and all shared a curiosity for Madrid, for art, for good food, and for spending time with new people. After the Prado we walked through the city while Cassy introduced us to points of interest along the way. Interestingly, I never felt any of the guides in the 3 tours overlapped too much, so that every experience was worthwhile and new (this was especially interesting at the Prado - both Cassy and the guide I'd had on the early access tour (Florin) had different insightful things to say. After a very pleasant walk, we ended up at the famous Botín restaurant, which you can't actually book on your own, unless you do so months in advance. It was such a special, memorable experience! Early access before the restaurant opened made us feel very special. Cassy is gifted at making everyone feel comfortable, facilitating our lovely time together, while expertly guiding us through the city, and ordering for us (such a treat to have somone else oder for you in a new place!). We got to have a look in the kitchen and in the wine cellar before the restaurant opened to the public. I had the cocinillo asado, which el Botín is famous for. It was delicious, deserving of its reputation, and I think the folks who did not order it may have regretted their decision... For dessert we had the best cheesecake I have ever tasted (and I come from a big German family that prides itself on its taste in cheesecake). Obviously not everyone can afford a tour like this, but it is actually very good value for your money if you can. I would recommend this to all my friends. If you get Cassy, or Fortin, or Sam, all the better. But I suspect the folks at Devour Tours know what they are doing with their hiring, because all the guides I had were wonderfull. All were also, by the way, from somewhere else, but had adopted Madrid as their homes (not newcomers by any means, all have lived here for around twenty years!). To me, this showed how much they love the city and it shows that Madrid is a city that captures hearts and imaginations and makes friends for life. I really can't say enough good things about the Devour Tours and the guides we had.

I was able to book a last minute Prado + Botin tour and our guide Montse made it such a memorable day. I had been to the Prado before, but she gave us so much insight and background that was missed on my first visit. <br />Then we walked to Botin, pushed past the large crowd waiting outside and were the first people inside, where we got a private tour of the kitchen, wine cellar and all of the many dining rooms. Lunch was incredible and our group had so much fun.

Excellent tour but too fast! So much to see in the Museum! Farin was a great guide and very knowledgeable about key pieces. The restaurant was also amazing!

Our tour with Alfonso at the Prado Museum and lunch at Botín was the highlight of our trip! He helped us appreciate the artworks by showing how to interpret and view them properly — truly food for the soul. On our way to Botín, he pointed out historic buildings we would’ve missed on our own. Lunch at the world’s oldest restaurant was unforgettable, with a private tour before it opened and a peek at its 300-year-old wine cellar. Alfonso made every detail special — truly a tour to remember!