Multicultural Madrid Walking Tour: from Plaza Mayor to Lavapiés

(167 reviews)

Madrid, Spain audio tour: Multicultural Madrid Walking Tour: from Plaza Mayor to Lavapiés

This is a 1.8mi walking tour

It takes an average of 90 mins to complete.

Madrid, Spain

Spain

$9.99

Access all 51 locations offline with the VoiceMap app

Buy for a Group

Reviews

About the Tour

Madrid's multicultural character has deep roots stretching back to when Jewish, Muslim, and Christian communities coexisted here. On this walking tour, you'll discover how this history shaped Lavapiés, the city's most diverse neighborhood, where residents from 82 nationalities now call home. You'll explore narrow streets lined with street art, cave bars built into medieval foundations, and historic housing that sheltered settlers from the 1600s onward.

The tour starts at Plaza Mayor, where King Philip III's statue overlooks the grand square that once hosted Inquisition trials. You'll wind through La Latina's atmospheric streets, passing the world's oldest restaurant and cave taverns once frequented by Madrid's most famous bandit, before climbing toward Lavapiés with its Roman-inspired corrales and sites where synagogues became churches.

You'll explore vibrant San Fernando Market with international food stalls, pass the Tabacalera art space covered in murals, and walk streets where August festivals transform neighborhoods into massive parties. You'll discover Spain's only remaining fountain inscribed with Republica Espanola and hear how five lawyers' 1977 assassination paradoxically united the nation. The tour ends at Plaza Anton Martin, where a rust-colored monument commemorates that pivotal moment in Spain's democratic transition.

On this 90-minute tour, you'll have a chance to:

Visit the Church of San Cayetano, where notorious bandit Luis Candelas married his wife during their brief honeymoon
Browse the Rastro market area around Eloy Gonzalo's statue, a Cuban War hero who volunteered for a suicide mission
Admire Teatro Pavón's Art Deco facade, inaugurated by King Alfonso XIII and Queen Victoria Eugenie in 1925
Discover Calle del Oso, decorated each August with shawls and flowers for festivals lasting until dawn
Stand on the site of a Jewish cemetery in what was medieval Madrid's Juderia
See Amor de Dios Dance School, where flamenco legends have trained for over 75 years

This tour reveals a Madrid where history, art, and community converge in unexpected ways.

Tour Producer

Melissa Dura

2 tours

Once a teacher in the UK, I moved to Madrid in 2012, where I now divide my time between teaching Business English and writing for local English news outlets - as well as translations, proof-reading and writing my personal blog.

Preview Location

Location 25

Fuente de los Cabestreros and Plaza Nelson Mandela

Just ahead on your right is a fountain.

Make your way over to it and stop there.

The fountain is interesting. It's been here since at least 1656 and used to be much larger. In the days before fresh water supplies, it was a main collection point for Madrid's water worker... Just ahead on your right is a fountain.

Make your way over to it and stop there.

The fountain is interesting. It's been here since at least 1656 and used to be much larger. In the days before fresh water supplies, it was a main collection point for Madrid's water workers and crucial to the health and sanitation of the city. Hard to believe, I know. Also, its water was believed to contain powers of virility for the men who drank from it.

Most interesting, however, is this ‘downsized’ version from 1934. The words ‘Republica Espanola’, or Republic of Spain, represent a brief period when the left-wing forces held power. This was immediately before the outbreak of civil war. It’s the only fountain in Madrid that still bears this inscription, and it somehow survived the Franco Era.

Now have a look at the plaza opposite the fountain.

This is Plaza Nelson Mandela, named in 2013 after the famous South African leader's death. The mural you see represents one of the shirts he famously wore. It's by South African artist, Buntu Fihla, and went up in July of 2017.

Until 2006, the ruins of a building from the 1700s sat where Plaza Nelson Mandela is now. It was called the Palace of Count Torres and was used by monks until the 1950s. Some of its original stones still form seating in the square. Nowadays, the square is popular with the Senegalese community in particular, and they often have events and gatherings here. But on an average day, you’ll usually see dog walkers and kids of all nationalities playing football.

Now, Lets continue walking down Meson de Paredes in the same direction we've been going.

Next, I’m taking you to another square. It was recently renamed after the author, Arturo Barea, who was exiled during the Civil War. He was a former soldier, turned writer, who helped found the Clerical Workers Union. When the war started, he also set up a militia unit of office workers, called La Pluma, meaning 'the feather'. He settled in the UK, and worked for the BBC World Service, but he's best known for the three books he wrote about his life in Spain.

Carry on walking. Read More

View locations and route

How VoiceMap Works

Focus on your surroundings, not the screen

The VoiceMap app uses GPS to play audio automatically, at the right time and place, so you can focus on your surroundings, not the screen.

Follow a route with turn-by-turn-directions

VoiceMap tours follow a route from a fixed starting point. That lets us give turn-by-turn directions and use context to tell a better story.

Resume playback to go at your own pace

If you'd like to stop for a drink or go into a museum, end your tour then use the Resume feature to pick up exactly where you left off.

Listen as many times as you like

You can listen to your tours as often as you like using both the VoiceMap app and website.

Take virtual tours anywhere, like a podcast

Select Virtual mode in the VoiceMap app to listen to tours like a podcast - at home or in transit.

Buy for less on voicemap.me and sync

Once you've purchased a tour, it's added to your VoiceMap library. To access it in the app, just sign in using the same account.

Do tours without paying for data

Tours work offline, so you don't have to pay roaming fees. Just download them over WiFi before you get started.

Major Landmarks

Plaza de Puerta Cerrada
Royal Congregation of San Isidro of Madrid
El Rastro (Outdoor market)
Mercado de San Fernando
Tabacalera Art Promotion
Cine Doré

View all

Getting There

Route Overview

VoiceMap tours follow a route from a set starting point. It’s how we give turn-by-turn directions and tell a story greater than the sum of its parts.

Start location
Pl. Mayor, Centro, 28012 Madrid, Spain
Total distance

3km
Final location
Plazuela de Antón Martín, Centro, 28012 Madrid, Spain
Distance back to start location

736.53m

Directions to Starting Point

Start: in the centre of Plaza Mayor.

Leave Puerta del Sol, walking up Calle Mayor (to the left of the bakery La Mallorquina) and take the first entrance on the left, just opposite Calle Coloreros. Closest metro, Sol. From the metro, take the exit for Calle Mayor.

Show Directions

Gift vouchers

Buy tours for friends and family who delight in discovery

Buy Now

Buy for a group

Get 15% to 50% off when you buy for a group

Buy Now

License this tour

Adapt this tour to use your brand and suit your guests

Find out more

Tips

Places to stop along the way

Church of San Isidro, The Rastro Market, El Pavón Cafe, Church of San Cayetano and San Millán, Mercado de San Fernando, La Tabacalera Art Gallery, La Falda Bar/ Restaurant, Juan Raro Bar/ Restaurant, Más Corazon Terrace Bar

Best time of day

This tour is best taken earlier in the day, around 11am, especially if you want to avoid the crowds from the Sunday Rastro market. It is also a good time to gain access to churches, shops and bars, whilst avoiding the heat in the afternoon.

The Mercado de San Fernando is open between 9am and 9pm on most days, apart from Sunday, when it closes at 5pm. It also closes between 2 - 5pm on Mondays, and at 5pm on Saturdays during August.

Please be aware that during the month of August, smaller shops and bars may be closed whilst their owners take holidays. This shouldn't affect any of the places mentioned, however.

Below are opening hours for all the spots:

Las Cuevas de Luis Candelas
Monday- Sunday: 12am-12pm, 1pm-12am

Sobrino de Botín
Monday-Sunday: 1-4pm, 8pm-12am

San Fernando Market
Monday: 9am-2pm, 5-9pm
Tuesday-Thursday: 9am-9pm
Friday, Saturday: 9am-11pm
Sunday: 11am-5pm

Tabacalera
Monday: Closed
Tuesday-Friday: 12-8pm
Saturday-Sunday: 11am-8pm

Juan Raro
Monday-Thursday: 10am-12am
Friday: 10am-2am
Saturday: 11am-2am
Sunday: 11am-6pm

Precautions

During the day, especially, this is a safe and well-monitored neighbourhood. It is also home to a number of people. But please take all normal precautions to ensure personal belongings are kept out of easy reach of pickpockets.

Get The App

Download tours to use them offline

Listen hands-free with GPS playback

Get turn-by-turn directions

Scan the QR Code

“This app has become my go-to app for audio tours. I pretty much use it for every trip and it works wonderfully. I highly recommend VoiceMap for travelers to truly experience cities.”

App Store Review

“Great app. walk around at your own pace, stop where you want, move on or speed up when you want. Read the script before you go or during the commentary, speed it up or replay it. Repeat the tour whenever you like.”