Free entry 23
Museums and sights that are free, always or on certain days. From each place’s official page.
Always free
- Almudena Cathedral
- Plaza Mayor
- Puerta del Sol
- Temple of Debod
- Retiro Park
- Crystal Palace (Retiro)
- Puerta de Alcalá
- Plaza de Cibeles and Palacio de Cibeles
- Museum of the History of Madrid
- Lope de Vega House Museum
- Naval Museum
- Plaza de la Villa
- Museo ABC
- MuseumPrado Museum
Mon-Sat 18:00-20:00; Sundays and public holidays 17:00-19:00
Source: esmadrid.com - MuseumReina Sofía Museum
Mon, Wed-Sat 19:00-21:00; Sun 12:30-14:30; free all day 18 Apr, 18 and 22 May, 12 Oct, 6 Dec
Source: museoreinasofia.es - MuseumThyssen-Bornemisza Museum
Mondays 12:00-16:00 (collection); Saturdays 21:00-23:00 (temporary exhibitions only)
Source: museothyssen.org - PalaceRoyal Palace of Madrid
Free for everyone on 18 May and 12 October
Source: patrimonionacional.es - MuseumNational Archaeological Museum
Saturdays from 14:00 (non-holiday), Sunday mornings (open until 15:00); 18 Apr, 18 May, 12 Oct, 6 Dec
Source: man.es - Place of worshipRoyal Basilica of San Francisco el Grande
Thursdays
Source: esmadrid.com - Place of worshipMonastery of the Descalzas Reales
Free for everyone on 18 May and 12 October
Source: patrimonionacional.es - MuseumRoyal Academy of Fine Arts of San Fernando
Tue-Fri 13:30-15:00 (permanent collection); 18 May, 12 Oct, 6 Dec
Source: esmadrid.com - MuseumCaixaForum Madrid
15 May, 18 May, 9 November
Source: esmadrid.com - MuseumMuseum of the Americas
Sundays; Thursdays from 14:00; 18 Apr, 18 May, 12 Oct, 6 Dec
Source: esmadrid.com
Tax-free shopping
Visitors can get the VAT back here.
Only for people who live outside the EU; nationality does not matter. If you live in Türkiye you qualify. A Turkish citizen living in the EU does not.
- VAT rate
- 21%
- Minimum purchase
- No minimum amount.
- Time limit
- Leave with the goods within 3 months of purchase.
- Where to get it approved
- DIVA kiosk at the Spanish airport, port or border where you leave the EU.
Step by step
- Ask for tax-free when you pay. The shop checks your passport and gives you an electronic refund form (DER).
- Scan the form at a DIVA kiosk with your passport, boarding pass and the goods. A green tick means approved; a red cross means go to customs.
- Get paid by a refund company (minus commission) or by the shop. If you leave the EU from another country, do not use the Spanish kiosk: validate there instead.
Official sources: sede.agenciatributaria.gob.es
Lost passport
If your passport is lost or stolen, here is what to do.
If you are a citizen of another country
Contact your own country’s embassy or consulate in this city. Your foreign ministry’s website lists its address.
If you are a Turkish citizen
- Book an appointment with the Turkish mission in this city at konsolosluk.gov.tr and go in person.
- If you need to get home, ask for a temporary passport. It is free, valid for one trip to Türkiye or to the country you live in, and usually valid for one month.
- Bring your Turkish ID card (if it is lost too, a photo document such as a driving licence), a biometric photo 50 x 60 mm taken in the last six months, and your ticket home.
- For a lost passport you do not need a police report.
- The temporary passport ends with that trip. Apply for a new passport in Türkiye or at the mission in the country you live in.
Turkish mission here
Embassy of the Republic of Türkiye in Madrid
Rafael Calvo 18, 2ºA-B, 28010 Madrid, Spain
Call: +34 913 103 904
Out of hours: +34 629 476 693
Source: Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Türkiye, konsolosluk.gov.tr (Passport: lost passport, temporary passport).
Show the waiter
Sentences in Spanish to show the waiter or the driver.
La cuenta, por favor.
Una mesa para dos, por favor.
¿Tienen platos vegetarianos?
Soy alérgico (alérgica) a los frutos secos y a los cacahuetes.
¿Tienen platos sin gluten?
¿Me puede traer agua del grifo, por favor?
Perdone, ¿dónde están los servicios, por favor?
Lléveme a esta dirección, por favor.
Checked against phrasebooks. Tell us if a sentence sounds wrong.