Real Casino de Murcia, Murcia, Guide du visiteur et quoi faire à proximité

The Real Casino de Murcia is a nineteenth-century social club on Calle Trapería, the old main street of the city centre of Murcia. It is best known for a lavish interior that includes a Moorish-style courtyard, a grand ballroom and a richly decorated library, all hidden behind a street front that gives little away. It is one of the most rewarding interiors to visit in Murcia.

The story behind it

The Casino began in the middle of the nineteenth century as a private society where the town's well-off families met to talk, read, play cards and dance. Clubs of this kind spread across Spain at the time, and the one in Murcia grew into one of the most ambitious, with rooms decorated to show off the taste and wealth of its members. The building on Trapería was extended and redecorated over the following decades, which is why the interior mixes several styles instead of following a single plan.

Its best-known space is the Patio Árabe, a courtyard inspired by the Nasrid architecture of the Alhambra in Granada. Around it are rooms in more European tastes, so a short visit takes you from an imitation of Islamic Granada to a salon that feels closer to a Parisian ballroom. The building is protected as part of Spain's cultural heritage.

What to look for

• The Patio Árabe, with its slender columns, arches and intricate plasterwork, is the room most visitors remember and the best place to look up and take in the detail.
• The ballroom is a large, ornate hall where the painted ceiling and decoration show how seriously the members took their evenings out.
• The library has the quiet, wood-lined look of a gentlemen's reading room, a reminder that the Casino was as much about conversation and newspapers as parties.
• The street front on Calle Trapería is worth a pause, because the contrast between the facade and the interior is part of the surprise.

Tips for your visit

• Allow about 30 to 45 minutes to see the main rooms without rushing, a little longer if you like to photograph interiors.
• The Casino is a working club, so access for visitors can depend on the day and on events. Check current opening hours and visiting conditions before you go.
• Natural light helps in the courtyard, so a daytime visit usually suits photography better than the evening.
• It is a short walk from the cathedral and the lively streets of the old centre, so it fits easily into a morning or afternoon of walking, with plenty of cafes close by for a break.

See it on a quest

If you would rather see the Casino as part of the city than as a single stop, try Murder Mystery: Death in the Shadows in Murcia. You reach the Casino on foot as one stop of a longer route through the centre, the app tells you about each place as you arrive, and you solve a puzzle based on what is in front of you. It suits the mystery theme of the route well, and one ticket covers the whole group, so friends or family can play together at their own pace, starting whenever they like.