All events in Madrid
Music festivals in Madrid
Madrid's festival year starts at the end of May, peaks in the heat of July and picks up again in autumn: indie at Caja Mágica, garden concerts at the Botánico, Mad Cool's four days in Villaverde, the city's own summer programme and two months of jazz in October and November.
Find eventsAsk Mood
Festivals · Madrid
Music festivals in Madrid
Tomavistas opens the season in late May at Caja Mágica, the tennis stadium complex in San Fermín, south of Madrid Río. It is a mid-sized festival with indie, pop, electronic and Spanish alternative acts, a balanced line-up and room to move, and it suits people who like to see the whole bill rather than fight for a spot at the front. From early June to the end of July, Noches del Botánico runs as a series rather than a single festival: several dozen concerts, one or two acts a night, in the Real Jardín Botánico Alfonso XIII of the Universidad Complutense in Ciudad Universitaria. Capacity is small, the stage sits among trees, and the programme moves between rock, pop, jazz, flamenco, singer-songwriters and electronic names.
Early July is the busy stretch. Mad Cool, the city's largest festival, takes the Iberdrola Music site in Villaverde, in the south of the city, for four days of rock, indie and pop headliners with electronic stages running late. Around the same time Río Babel sets up at the Auditorio Miguel Ríos in Rivas-Vaciamadrid, just outside the city to the southeast, with a mix of Latin, Spanish pop, rock, hip-hop and comedy. From July through August the city council's Veranos de la Villa spreads concerts, dance, theatre and open-air cinema across the districts, with the central courtyard of Conde Duque as its main music stage. Once the heat breaks, JAZZMADRID, the international jazz festival, fills October and November with concerts in theatres and clubs such as Teatro Fernán Gómez, Conde Duque, Café Berlín and Sala Villanos.
First-timers should plan for heat and late hours. July afternoons in Madrid are very hot and the open-air sites have little shade, so arrive for the evening sets, drink plenty of water and wear a hat. Things start late here and end later: at Mad Cool the last sets run well past 2am, and Metro line 3 from Villaverde Alto plus extra EMT and Cercanías shuttles take people back to the centre in the small hours on festival nights. Caja Mágica is on line 3 as well (San Fermín-Orcasur), and the Botánico is a walk from Metropolitano and Ciudad Universitaria on line 6.
Common questions
When is festival season in Madrid?+
From late May to the end of summer, with a second wave in autumn. Tomavistas opens it in late May, Noches del Botánico runs June and July, Mad Cool and Río Babel come in early July, Veranos de la Villa covers July and August, and JAZZMADRID fills October and November. Mood lists what is on sale now.
Where is Mad Cool held?+
At Iberdrola Music in Villaverde, in the south of Madrid. The closest metro is Villaverde Alto on line 3, and on festival nights Metro, EMT and Cercanías run late shuttles back to the centre. Check Mood for current dates and tickets.
Is Río Babel in Madrid city?+
Not quite. Río Babel takes place at the Auditorio Miguel Ríos in Rivas-Vaciamadrid, a town just southeast of Madrid, reachable by metro line 9. Its line-up leans towards Latin, Spanish pop and rock. Current tickets are on Mood.
Are there free festival concerts in Madrid in summer?+
Some. Veranos de la Villa, the city's July and August programme, mixes ticketed shows at Conde Duque with free events in the districts. Paid festivals like Mad Cool, Tomavistas and Noches del Botánico need tickets, which you can find on Mood.