September 12 - 14

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🚂 Mercado de los Motores

Fashion, décor, music, gastronomy… On the second weekend of every month (except August), the former railway station transforms into a vibrant flea market.

🛍️ Discover second-hand clothes, retro and designer furniture, vinyl records, refurbished bikes, and more. It’s also a great family outing, with children’s activities, plus plenty of food and drink to recharge after shopping.

📍 Paseo de las Delicias, 61
📅 Second weekend of every month (except August)

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🎭 Ibiza Paradise – Dinner Show at Cines Callao

Starting this Friday, the Callao Cinemas swap films for a dazzling musical dinner show. Ibiza Paradise follows two Americans who travel to Ibiza in the 70s, mixing theater, dance, music, and gastronomy. The performance is in English with Spanish subtitles and celebrates the great musical milestones of the era.

📍 Cines Callao (Callao)
💸 Tickets from 25€

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🌊 River Procession of the Virgin of Alarilla – Fuentidueña del Tajo

This Saturday, September 13, Fuentidueña del Tajo celebrates its traditional river procession, one of the most unique in Spain. The Virgin descends 800 meters down the Tagus River, accompanied by swimmers, songs, and water choreographies, in a spectacle illuminated by torches and nearly 2,000 light bulbs. The night ends with fireworks and a lively community celebration.

📍 Fuentidueña del Tajo
📅 Saturday, September 13, 2025

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🍺 Ruta de la Tapa “Ven a Vivirlo” – Carabanchel

Until September 14, Carabanchel hosts the Ruta de la Tapa, offering a tapa and beer for just 4€ at over a dozen local bars. Dishes include shrimp in black tempura, “ear pizza,” and rice with Iberian secret.

📍 Carabanchel, Madrid
📅 Until September 14, 2025

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🌿 Círculo de Bellas Artes’ Climate Shelter

This weekend, the Círculo de Bellas Artes transforms its Ballroom into a cool, shaded indoor plaza with plants, ergonomic seating, drinking water, and quiet areas to rest, read, or work. The free space promotes well-being, sustainability, and community encounters, alongside workshops, cultural activities, and even a summer nursery for plants.

📍 Calle Alcalá, 42 (Downtown)

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First weekend in Madrid

 

🌟 Things to Do in Madrid 

🌆 Explore the City

• Retiro Park – Rent rowboats on the lake, visit the Crystal Palace, and just stroll the gardens.

• Templo de Debod at Sunset – Egyptian temple with amazing views of the city.

• Gran Vía & Sol – Walk Madrid’s bustling center, check out shops, street performers, and the vibe.

• Chueca & Malasaña – Fun neighborhoods for wandering: street art, quirky cafés, vintage shops.

🎨 Arts & Culture (student budget-friendly!)

• Free/cheap museum times:

  • Prado 

  • Reina Sofía 

  • Thyssen 

  • Foundacion MAFRE 

• Matadero Madrid – Old slaughterhouse turned arts center: exhibitions, design shops, and cafés.

• Lavapiés street art walk – Explore murals and multicultural food spots.

• Photo España - Until September 24, 100+ galleries around Madrid 

🍴 Foodie Adventures

• Mercado de San Miguel – A little touristy, but fun for tapas hopping.

• Mercado de San Ildefonso (Malasaña) – Trendy food hall for casual eats.

• Churros & chocolate at San Ginés – A Madrid classic.

• Picnic at Retiro or Casa de Campo – Grab empanadas, jamón, or bocadillos from a local bakery.

🎶 Fun & Social Activities 

• Picinas Publicas - Municipal pools all around the city LINK

• Rastro Market (Sunday morning) – Huge flea market, great for vintage finds. (Metro La Latina or Tirso de Molina) 

• Flamenco show (student-friendly venues like Casa Patas or Cardamomo offer discounts).

• Cine Doré – Retro cinema showing classic films (great local vibe).

• Board games café (e.g. Café Manuela in Malasaña).

🏞️ Day Trip Options (if you want to get outside the city)

• Manzanares el Real – 45 min by train, castle, good hiking options.

• El Escorial – 40 min by bus, Monastery + mountain views.

• Cuenca – Famous for cliffside homes (perfect for a day trip with friends).

Music and Film at "El Matadero" This Weekend and a Warm Farewell to Our Scholars

"Matadero" is the city’s old slaughterhouse, located at Madrid Río Park. It was transformed into a vibrant cultural megacomplex some years ago. If you stay in Madrid this weekend, you can enjoy some events in this amazing location. 

Getting musicians out into the street to share their art is the aim of this event held every year on 21 June. The DEMM (European Music Day at Matadero) is one of the events that has become a classic of this contemporary creation center. More than 15 years have passed since its first edition back in 2009, and over time, the plazas of Matadero Madrid have borne witness to the ups and downs of the indie scene, the birth and rise of national and international bands, and have served as a beacon illuminating the emergence of new genres and musical trends.

Adding to the experience, Cineteca Madrid will host a series of music documentaries, offering a deeper understanding of the creative processes behind some of the most influential musicians and creators in our environment.

MUSIC

Program:

• Friday 20 June, 8pm - Hot Chip (DJ set) / Moxie / Sofía Kourtesis / Emilia Grima
• Saturday 21 June, 12pm - Remate & Wild Honey
• Saturday 21 June, 8pm - Baiuca / Hinds / Error 97
• Sunday 22 June, 12pm - Creativa Junior Big Band

Sources and tickets:

https://www.esmadrid.com/en/european-music-day

FILMS

Program:

https://www.cinetecamadrid.com/sites/default/files/inline-files/CINETECA_JUN_25_PROGRAMA.pdf

Sources and tickets:

https://www.esmadrid.com/en/tourist-information/cineteca-matadero

And we'd like to take this opportunity to bid a fond farewell to our group of Scholars. May you be very happy, and you already know where your home in Madrid is!

A Last Minute Idea for Tonight

 We assume you have big plans for tonight, but if not, here's a cultural idea:

The Museo Nacional del Prado, in collaboration with Samsung and Radio 3, is offering free evening openings of "El Prado de Noche" (The Prado by Night) on the first Saturday of every month from 8:30 p.m. to 11:30 p.m.

On this occasion, visitors on the evening of June 7th (TODAY!) will be able to enjoy the recently opened exhibition "Paolo Veronese (1528-1588)," the first major monographic exhibition in Spain dedicated to one of the most brilliant and admired masters of the Venetian Renaissance. The exhibition, sponsored by the AXA Foundation, brings together more than 100 works from the world's best museums.

You can also visit the ground floor of the Villanueva building and take a tour from Romanesque and Gothic painting, through the Renaissance, and ending with the 19th century. You can also take advantage of the final days of the exhibition "Shape Change: Myth and Metamorphosis in the Roman Drawings of José de Madrazo."

Welcome to Madrid and Ideas for This Week

We're kicking off the summer with a fantastic new group of students! And soon the Scholars group will join us to fill the AU Madrid classrooms with even more excitement and adventure. Welcome to our blog!

We invite you to browse the fixed sections of our blog, but also these short suggestions for this week (you can find information on dates, locations, and how to purchase tickets at the links below):

MUSIC:

The Tomavistas Festival: A music festival held in Madrid, known for its diverse programming and commitment to independent and emerging music. It is characterized by its openness to different musical styles and proposals, both from national and international artists, and by its commitment to sustainability and social responsibility. https://www.esmadrid.com/en/whats-on/festival-tomavistas

Ed Sheeran's Concert: https://www.esmadrid.com/en/whats-on/ed-sheeran-metropolitano-stadium

DANCE

Contemporary Dance: Martha Graham's Company: https://www.esmadrid.com/en/whats-on/martha-graham-dance-company-centro-danza-matadero-nave-11

Flamenco: The Flamenco Biennial 2025: https://www.esmadrid.com/en/whats-on/bienal-flamenco-madrid

BOOKS

The Madrid Book Fair is a large annual literary event held in El Retiro Park, showcasing books from Spanish-speaking countries and promoting the literature of a guest country. It's a major cultural event for literature lovers, featuring over 300 booths, book signings, and opportunities to meet authors: https://www.esmadrid.com/en/whats-on/ferialibromadrid-parque-de-el-retiro

Easter in Madrid… Not only “procesiones” :-)

I am guessing most of you will be traveling around a lot, but you might be spending the last few days of your holidays in Madrid. If that's the case and you're curious about how they celebrate Holy Week in Madrid (those who celebrate it, of course), you can see all this year's information here (the locations and times of the processions and music, the food (this is what Catholics and non-Catholics eat), etcetera.

https://www.esmadrid.com/en/easter

You might also be interested in these previous short posts from our blog, where we explain some key points for understanding this peculiar cultural phenomenon (I suggest you do... these Spaniards are crazy 🙂)

https://exploringwithauspain.blogspot.com/2023/02/already-planning-what-to-do-in-easter.html?m=1

https://exploringwithauspain.blogspot.com/2024/03/what-about-easter.html?m=1

https://exploringwithauspain.blogspot.com/2023/03/for-students-with-sweet-tooth.html?m=1

Quiet Days in a Rainy Madrid

The semester is coming to an end! Oh, oh, oh! Some ideas for a few quiet days before the big Easter break.

First things first: The Museo Nacional del Prado, in collaboration with Samsung and Radio 3, continues its free evening opening of "El Prado de noche" (The Prado by Night) on the first Saturday of every month from 8:30 pm to 11:30 pm (last admission at 11:00 pm), entering through the Jerónimos door. You can enjoy the full opening of the ground floor of the Villanueva building and also visit the recently opened exhibition "Shapeshift: Myth and Metamorphosis in the Roman Drawings of José de Madrazo."

Also, if you haven't already, this is your last chance to chat with Spanish people and practice your language exchange skills: https://www.esmadrid.com/en/language-exchange-venues (this one is from the tourism website, but there are many in Madrid and it's a very common activity for Spaniards).

Looking for some dance shows? Dancers Andrés Marín and Ana Morales are bringing a show to the Centro Danza Matadero (https://www.centrodanzamatadero.es/) that blends traditional and modern flamenco to explore human desires.

It's been 160 years since Lewis Carroll's 'Alice in Wonderland' was published. Since then, it has been translated into more than 170 languages, films inspired by the novel have been made, and works of art, fashion collections, and plays have been produced that primarily reference the striking world of Wonderland. The Caixaforum exhibition (https://caixaforum.org/es/madrid) explores how this 19th-century publication has become part of our collective imagination and how it has permeated various artistic and even scientific fields, leaving room for play and reflection.