The Best Budget Friendly Cultural Activities In Madrid

Travelling can sometimes be an expensive business, with accommodation, food and entertainment all adding up. Happily, Madrid is a great destination for culture on a budget, whether it’s free museums or bargain cinema trips. Follow our list for the best budget-friendly cultural activities in Madrid.

Street art

Madrid is a great place to hit the streets and see some incredible graffiti. The neighbourhoods of Lavapiés and Malasaña are particularly good areas for street art – Malasaña even holds an annual street art festival, Pinta Malasaña every April, during which local artists decorate the barrio’s walls, shop fronts and even bollards with fantastic creations.

Free museum hours

Architecture

One of the best ways to discover a city is to wander its streets and take in its architecture. Madrid de los Austrias, is Madrid’s oldest area and is set in the small streets around the Plaza Mayor. Follow this walking tour to explore the area. Other areas of architectural interest include Madrid’s business district, home to the world’s first inclined skyscrapers, the KIO Towers and Gran Vía, the city’s main shopping street with a range of different architectural styles, including the first skyscraper in Europe.

Free tours

Another good way to explore the city is by taking a free tour. Many tours begin on the Plaza Mayor or Puerta del Sol and take visitors around the city’s main sights, while guides recount the history of the city and some of its traditions.

Temple of Debod

There aren’t many places outside Egypt where you can see a real-life Egyptian temple, but you can in Madrid. The Temple of Debod, which dates to the 2nd century BC, was given as a gift to Spain as a thank you for helping to save important sites from flooding caused by the construction of the Aswan High Dam. It was taken down brick-by-brick, transported to Madrid and re-built, opening to the public in 1972.

Free museums and galleries

Madrid has a number of galleries and museums that are free to enter every day of the week. The San Isidro Museum, in La Latina gives a fascinating history of the city, while the Espacio Fundación Telefónica, off Gran Vía, always has an interesting exhibition on, from photography to technology. Brush up on your Spanish literary history at the Casa Museo Lope de Vega, the former home of Spanish Golden Age poet, Lope de Vega, which is also free.

Cine Doré

Madrileños love going to the cinema, and the city is home to surely one of the most atmospheric, historic cinemas in Spain – the Cine Doré. Home to Spain’s Filmoteca, founded in 1912 and with a facade dating from 1923, the cinema shows regular themed seasons on everything from the films of Pedro Almodóvar to film noir. Films are shown in their original version with Spanish subtitles and best of all tickets are a bargain at just €2.50.

Since you are here, we would like to share our vision for the future of travel - and the direction Culture Trip is moving in.

Culture Trip launched in 2011 with a simple yet passionate mission: to inspire people to go beyond their boundaries and experience what makes a place, its people and its culture special and meaningful — and this is still in our DNA today. We are proud that, for more than a decade, millions like you have trusted our award-winning recommendations by people who deeply understand what makes certain places and communities so special.

Increasingly we believe the world needs more meaningful, real-life connections between curious travellers keen to explore the world in a more responsible way. That is why we have intensively curated a collection of premium small-group trips as an invitation to meet and connect with new, like-minded people for once-in-a-lifetime experiences in three categories: Culture Trips, Rail Trips and Private Trips. Our Trips are suitable for both solo travelers, couples and friends who want to explore the world together.

Culture Trips are deeply immersive 5 to 16 days itineraries, that combine authentic local experiences, exciting activities and 4-5* accommodation to look forward to at the end of each day. Our Rail Trips are our most planet-friendly itineraries that invite you to take the scenic route, relax whilst getting under the skin of a destination. Our Private Trips are fully tailored itineraries, curated by our Travel Experts specifically for you, your friends or your family.

We know that many of you worry about the environmental impact of travel and are looking for ways of expanding horizons in ways that do minimal harm - and may even bring benefits. We are committed to go as far as possible in curating our trips with care for the planet. That is why all of our trips are flightless in destination, fully carbon offset - and we have ambitious plans to be net zero in the very near future.