Las Ventas Arena & Museum

What you'll see. The audio-guided route covers 11 stops around the building, from the main gate and the stands to the arena floor, the chapel and the infirmary. It ends in the Bullfighting Museum, with suits of lights worn by Manolete and Juan Belmonte, capes, paintings, engravings and the poster for the ring's 1931 opening.

The building. Las Ventas was completed in 1929 and opened on 17 June 1931. Architect José Espeliú gave it a neo-Mudéjar look of red brick and glazed tiles, and its 23,798 seats make it the largest bullring in Spain. It has also hosted concerts, the Beatles in 1965 among them, and Davis Cup tennis in 2008.

About this visit. This is a daytime visit to the building and its museum: no bullfight and no live animals are part of it. Bullfighting divides opinion in Spain; the audio guide focuses on the ring's architecture and history. Fights take place on separate tickets, mainly during the San Isidro fair in May and June and the autumn fair in October.

Plan your time. Visit any time during opening hours on your date: 10:00–18:00, or to 19:00 from April to October, with last entry an hour before closing. On fair and bullfight days the visit closes at 15:00 or 16:00, and the ring closes entirely on some event days. Ventas metro (L2, L5) comes up right beside the bullring.