🧭 Explore
Everything on the board — events, plans, places, tour maps, intercambios and guides.
The Madrid intercambio week: a free language exchange every night
We mapped Madrid’s free bar-based language exchanges across the week — when, where, who runs them, and how pop…
Prado — free evening entry
Mon–Sat 18:00–20:00, Sun 17:00–19:00. The Prado is free every evening: Mon–Sat 18:00–20:00 and Sun/holidays 17…
Reina Sofía — free entry hours
Mon & Wed–Sat 19:00–21:00, Sun 12:30–14:30. Free entry to the Reina Sofía on Mon and Wed–Sat 19:00–21:00, and …
Thyssen — free Mondays
Mondays 12:00–16:00. The permanent collection at the Thyssen is free every Monday, 12:00–16:00.
National Archaeological Museum — free hours
Sat from 14:00, Sun morning. Free entry to the MAN on Saturday afternoons (from 14:00) and Sunday mornings.
Retiro Park & the Crystal Palace
Daily. 125 hectares of gardens, a boating lake and the Palacio de Cristal showing contemporary art — all free …
Your first 48 hours in Madrid
A short list, in order, of what to actually do first.
Your first week in Madrid: a checklist
SIM card, bank, empadronamiento, and the things that will bite you.
Habsburg Madrid: the two-hour old-town walk
Sol to the Royal Palace through the oldest streets, with the tourist traps marked.
Working from Madrid: wifi, cafés and the unwritten rules
Where to open a laptop without being that person.
Eating well in Madrid for under €15
Menú del día, the market rule, and where not to eat.
Tapas crawl: five bars, Lavapiés
One caña and one tapa in each. Bring €20.
Beer Station Sunday intercambio
Sundays 19:30 · Beer Station, Centro. Organiser: Beer Station. Free entry.
Beer Station Thursday intercambio
Thursdays 20:00 · Beer Station, Callao / Santo Domingo. Organiser: Beer Station. Free entry.
Guided visit: Reina Sofía free hours
Someone who knows the collection, in the free slot.
Barrio by barrio: where to stay, drink and live
An honest guide to Madrid neighbourhoods.
Senderismo en Madrid y alrededores
Senderismo en Madrid. Guide-led one-day and multi-day routes in the Sierra de Guadarrama and beyond, from a qu…
MADRID MOUNTAIN — mountain activities
Madrid Mountain. Mountain outings led by an accredited medium-mountain guide and Guadarrama National Park inte…
Day trip: Toledo
City guides. A plan worth a full day: Toledo’s Christian, Muslim and Jewish heritage, 30–60 minutes from Madri…
Day trip: Segovia
City guides. Roman aqueduct, a fairy-tale alcázar and cochinillo — an easy, spectacular day out from Madrid.
Day trip: El Escorial
City guides. The vast royal monastery in the hills northwest of Madrid — history, gardens and mountain air.
Carmen Laffón
Museo Thyssen-Bornemisza. Retrospective of Sevillian painter Carmen Laffón at the Thyssen this autumn.
Menú del día — the everyday deal
Weekdays ~13:00–16:00. The set lunch: starter, main, drink and often dessert for roughly €12–15 at ordinary re…