Plans to enjoy San Isidro in Madrid

This year the San Isidro festivities (from the 12th to the 16th of May) bring along with them over 200 live performances, events and free activities. Amongst them you can find fireworks, poetry, dance, live music… today we want to show you some of the typical things to do during these celebrations, give you some ideas for you to move between the different events, and make you feel like a madrileño.

What to eat in San Isidro

Every valued celebration has its typical dishes and pastries. The San Isidro festivities could not be less. One of the most important traditions is the afternoon snack that takes place in the San Isidro meadow, where local people taste seasonal delicacies like the lemonade but with wine, lemon, sugar and apple cut into pieces (similar to sangría), doughnuts (sugar, egg, almonds or meringue) and wafers.

Other typical dishes to taste in Madrid during San Isidro are scrambled eggs with hash, torrija, fried milk, or stew, that it might not be 100% for this time of year, but it is one of the most typical dishes of the city.

An afternoon in the meadow

If you’re going to be in Madrid in those days, we suggest you spend at least one afternoon in the Pradera de San Isidro to enjoy an open-air snack while you listen to the popular ‘chotis’ (local traditional music) and you see the chulapos and chulapas costumes that madrileños wear on this special occasion.

Verbenas
and festivities

There are a great number of open-air events that take place during these festivities. You have a wide variety to choose from, but surely the most important one is the one that takes place near Puente de Segovia; La verbena de las Vistillas.

If you are a bullfighting enthusiast, you can go to the Ventas bull ring where the renowned San Isidro Fair takes place, one of the most awaited events for aficionados.

Following this link you can download the official programme and you can see some of the events that you can enjoy this year.