Come Alone · English
You just moved to Madrid. This page walks you through the first month: paperwork in order with official links, and this week's events you can go to on your own and meet people.
Register at your district's municipal register: it unlocks the health card and other paperwork, and it is open to all foreign residents. Bring your passport or foreigner card, proof of your home and the padrón form.
An anonymous rechargeable card for single and 10-trip tickets. Once you are registered, move to the personal transport card and the 30-day pass.
Multi card (CRTM) · Personal card (CRTM) · Tickets and fares
Use the official immigration appointment portal and pick the exact procedure (NIE assignment, TIE fingerprints or TIE collection).
You need it before you start work. Apply with form TA.1 online or at the Treasury office; if you have a contract, your employer can do it with you.
You need to be registered in the Community of Madrid and entitled to public healthcare. Ask for an appointment at your health centre.
Join a workshop at your district cultural centre, or go to one of the events below: they are picked because it is easy to go alone and talk to people.
Rules change: always confirm on the official page before you go.
Free or low-cost places, open to everyone, where you can chat, practise a language and make friends. Check each page for upcoming dates.
Free conversation groups in Madrid's municipal libraries where you chat in Spanish about all sorts of topics and meet a mix of people. Ages 16+; check the page for dates and branches.
A free weekly club from Madrid's municipal libraries where you read and discuss short stories in English, aimed at B2 level and up. Check the page for dates and sign-up.
Madrid's municipal libraries run free workshops, including language workshops to learn or brush up a language. See the current list and sign up on the page.
Madrid City Council's volunteering programme: pick a community project, practise Spanish in real situations and meet people in your neighbourhood.
A big public group running language exchanges in Madrid bars, with games to break the ice. Many events have free entry; check the page for upcoming dates.
A free circular hike of about 8 km with moderate climbs through the strictly protected holm-oak woodland of Casa de Campo, learning about the living things of its ecosystems. About 4 hours, from age 12.
On Sunday 15 November 2026 at 11:30 the Museo de San Isidro, Los Orígenes de Madrid, offers an exhibition session titled Edad Media, El Madrid islámico, as part of the Semana de la Ciencia 2026 archaeological displays in the museum rooms. The listing says that glazed, painted or sgraffito ceramics of the Andalusi world take centre stage together with Arabic oil lamps and Arabic writing, showing how light, calligraphy and decoration formed part of one art. Processes such as slip coating and sgraffito will be shown, with a collection of replicas that visitors can explore up close. Admission is free, and the listing names no booking arrangement. No running time is given, so the end is estimated at about 12:30. A museum session like this is easy to attend alone, since you can look at the pieces at your own pace. «Se mostrarán procesos como el engobado y el esgrafiado, con una colección de réplicas que el público podrá explorar de cerca.» Starts 11:30, ends about 12:30. Source: Madrid city open data — Agenda de actividades y eventos (Ayuntamiento de Madrid, datos.madrid.es, CC BY 4.0). The listing gives no end time, so the end shown is estimated. The listing gives the exhibition session as free and part of the Semana de la Ciencia 2026.
On Sunday 15 November 2026 at 12:00 the Auditorio Municipal Las Trece Rosas in Madrid hosts a flamenco show by the company of David Sila to mark International Flamenco Day. The listing describes an entry into the universe of cante jondo in which singing, guitar and dance come together to convey the strength and feeling of flamenco. The show is a journey through its different palos, from the deepest to the most festive, in a proposal full of tradition, passion and duende. It lasts 90 minutes and the listing gives the recommended age as all audiences. Admission is free, and the listing names no booking arrangement. With a start at noon, the show should end at about 13:30. A sit-down performance like this is easy to attend alone, since the audience simply watches the stage together. «Un recorrido por sus distintos palos, desde los más profundos hasta los más festivos, en una propuesta llena de tradición, pasión y duende.» Starts 12:00, ends about 13:30. Source: Madrid city open data — Agenda de actividades y eventos (Ayuntamiento de Madrid, datos.madrid.es, CC BY 4.0). The listing gives the show as free, 90 minutes long and suitable for all audiences.
On Sunday 15 November 2026 at 12:00 the Centro Sociocultural Maestro Alonso in Madrid's Salamanca district hosts Tenor songs, a concert for tenor and piano by Nachos Bas and Javier Blanco. The listing describes a lyrical programme that travels through the best-known opera arias and zarzuela romanzas and then moves on to recent works from film and from major artists of the moment. It is listed for all audiences and lasts 60 minutes. The activity is listed as free, and the listing does not mention a booking requirement. The centre is at Calle Maestro Alonso 6, and the concert starts around midday, which makes it an easy Sunday outing. Because a lyrical concert asks for attention rather than conversation, it is easy to enjoy alone, with the audience sharing the same music. «Concierto lírico con un recorrido por todas las grandes y conocidas Arias de Ópera y Romanzas de la Zarzuela» Starts 12:00, ends about 13:00. Source: Madrid city open data — Agenda de actividades y eventos (Ayuntamiento de Madrid, datos.madrid.es, CC BY 4.0). The listing gives no end time, so the end shown is estimated. The listing gives the concert as free and 60 minutes long.
On Sunday 15 November 2026 at 12:00 the Castillo de la Alameda in Madrid hosts a historical dramatisation as part of Madrid's Science Week 2026. The listing says two characters, Doña Medina Sidonia, a lady of the retinue of Margarita de Austria, and don Gonzalo Zuñiga, a servant of Diego Zapata, will entertain visitors with some of the events that took place in the castle. It describes the piece as a playful way of bringing knowledge of local heritage and its history closer to the public. The castle stands at Calle Antonio Sancha 1, in the Alameda de Osuna area of the Barajas district, and the venue lists its own telephone number and a web page on the city site. Entry is free, with open access until the capacity is reached and no registration needed. A short heritage performance like this is easy to enjoy alone, since everyone gathers to watch the same scenes. «Una manera lúdica de acercar el conocimiento de nuestro patrimonio y su historia.» Starts 12:00, ends about 13:00. Source: Madrid city open data — Agenda de actividades y eventos (Ayuntamiento de Madrid, datos.madrid.es, CC BY 4.0). The listing gives no end time, so the end shown is estimated. The listing says the event is free with open access until the venue is full.
On Sunday 15 November 2026 at 12:00 the Biblioteca Pública Municipal Eugenio Trías, in the Casa de Fieras of El Retiro park in Madrid, hosts the presentation of Caminar sobre las huellas de los sabios by María Ángeles Díaz Sánchez, in the room called Taller de ideas. The listing describes a novelised account that interweaves historical, philosophical and social facts, where reality and fiction meet. It says the author invites readers to value the experience and knowledge handed down by earlier generations, just as today's technological progress rests on past discoveries. The book raises universal questions about the meaning of life, freedom, personal development and the spiritual dimension of people, and uses the example of great thinkers to suggest a way of facing difficulties and finding purpose. Entry is free until the room is full. A book presentation like this is easy to attend alone, since the audience is there to listen to one author. «propone una mirada que ayude a afrontar las dificultades, encontrar propósito y aspirar a una vida más plena» Starts 12:00, ends about 13:00. Source: Madrid city open data — Agenda de actividades y eventos (Ayuntamiento de Madrid, datos.madrid.es, CC BY 4.0). The listing gives no end time, so the end shown is estimated. The listing says entry is free until the room is full.
On Sunday 15 November 2026 at 16:30 the Centro Cultural Casa de Vacas in the Retiro district of Madrid presents Toc-Toc, a theatre production by the company Wuachin y Medicina. The listing gives the synopsis in a single line, a comedy for losing your head, and states that the audience is adult. The sessions are listed at 16:30 and 19:00. Admission is free, and tickets are given out from one hour before the show at the cultural centre, with a maximum of two tickets per person until the capacity is full. The listing gives no running time, so the end of the first session is estimated at about 18:00. Because seats are handed out on the spot, a single person can simply arrive early and ask for one. A comedy is easy to enjoy alone, since laughing together with strangers is part of the experience. «Reparto de entradas desde una hora antes en el centro cultural. Máximo dos entradas por persona hasta completar aforo.» Starts 16:30, ends about 18:00. Source: Madrid city open data — Agenda de actividades y eventos (Ayuntamiento de Madrid, datos.madrid.es, CC BY 4.0). The listing gives no end time, so the end shown is estimated. The listing gives the theatre show as free for an adult audience, with tickets handed out one hour before.
On Sunday 15 November 2026 at 18:00 the Centro Cultural Zazuar in the Villa de Vallecas district of Madrid hosts a flamenco singing recital by the Dúo Ballesteros-Portillo, held to mark International Flamenco Day. The listing says Beatriz Ballesteros and Abel Portillo will offer a recital of traditional flamenco singing, travelling from the purest palos, such as the granaínas and the soleás, to the most festive ones, such as the tangos, the alegrías and the bulerías. The recital lasts 60 minutes and the recommended age is given as all audiences. Admission is free, and the listing names no booking arrangement. With a stated length of one hour, the recital should end at about 19:00. A recital like this is easy to enjoy alone, because listeners sit together and the attention stays on the two voices. «Beatriz Ballesteros y Abel Portillo ofrecerán un recital de cante flamenco tradicional» Starts 18:00, ends about 19:00. Source: Madrid city open data — Agenda de actividades y eventos (Ayuntamiento de Madrid, datos.madrid.es, CC BY 4.0). The listing gives no end time, so the end shown is estimated. The listing gives the recital as free, 60 minutes long and suitable for all audiences.
On Sunday 15 November 2026 at 18:30 the Centro Cultural Eduardo Úrculo in the Tetuán district of Madrid screens Hollywood, Hollywood, the 1976 film also known as That's Entertainment, Part II. It belongs to the cycle Antología del cine musical americano. The listing describes it as the second part of Érase una vez en Hollywood and says that, unlike the first documentary, it has only two narrators, Gene Kelly and Fred Astaire. It includes scenes from comedies and dramas featuring the Marx Brothers, Laurel and Hardy and Katharine Hepburn. The film lasts 2 hours 13 minutes and is followed by a discussion with the film critic Guillermo Balmori. Admission is free and the recommended age is all audiences. A film screening with a talk afterwards is easy to attend alone, since everyone shares the same interest and the conversation starts in the room. «Coloquio posterior con Guillermo Balmori (crítico de cine)» Starts 18:30, ends about 21:00. Source: Madrid city open data — Agenda de actividades y eventos (Ayuntamiento de Madrid, datos.madrid.es, CC BY 4.0). The listing gives no end time, so the end shown is estimated. The listing says admission is free and the film runs 2 hours 13 minutes, followed by a talk.
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Come Alone → Meet & Mint
Choose something this week from the list on this page — easy to join on your own.
See who's going. If the event isn't in the app yet, tap “+” to add it and gather a group.
Write in the event chat and agree where to meet before you arrive.
Walk in already knowing a name or two — a good start in a new city.
The app · Meet & Mint
Meet & Mint is our app: come-alone events and people to go with. It is not a government service. Many of the events on this page are also in the app.
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