To celebrate the San Isidro Festival, the Madrid City Council is once again implementing a wide range of measures and initiatives aimed at ensuring that all spaces and activities planned are accessible, inclusive, and safe for all citizens. This commitment reaffirms the Council’s desire to promote open festivities where everyone can participate and enjoy on equal terms.
The main festive spaces – Plaza Mayor, Jardines de Las Vistillas, Matadero Madrid, and the emblematic Pradera de San Isidro – will have specific accessibility resources for people with disabilities.
One of the highlights of the program will be the accessible concert on Friday, May 9th, in Plaza Mayor, featuring Ángeles Toledano and Amistades Peligrosas. This concert will have Spanish Sign Language interpretation, live subtitles, loop systems, amplified sound, and vibrating backpacks. Additionally, on Thursday, May 15th, the Jardines de Las Vistillas will host the show Re-Inventing Chulapos by La Juan Gallery, also with sign language interpretation, loop systems, and amplified sound.
Vibrating backpacks to experience music through other senses will also be available at the verbenas in Matadero Madrid, reinforcing accessibility in high participation environments.
Various shows and performances will also have loop systems and amplified sound, including traditional ones with chotis and cuplé rhythms by Olga María Ramos or Mari Pepa de Chamberí.
To ensure that everyone can enjoy the San Isidro Festival on equal terms and with the highest quality guarantees, the Madrid City Council has once again planned specific reservations for people with disabilities in various program spaces. Matadero Madrid and Plaza Mayor will have an elevated platform for wheelchair users or those with reduced mobility, providing full and safe visibility throughout the programming days.
Additionally, in Jardines de Las Vistillas, a reserved area with direct visibility of the stage will be set up, as in previous editions. All information is available on the festival’s official website, sanisidromadrid.com, which has a specific section dedicated to accessibility, allowing clear and detailed consultation of all measures applied in each activity. Each event includes identifying icons of available resources, and the programs are available in both physical and downloadable PDF formats.
In line with its commitment to continuous improvement of accessible communication, the City Council has introduced NaviLens Accessible QR Codes as a measure of cognitive and sensory accessibility. This innovative system, based on color codes, can be detected by mobile devices without the need to focus or frame the image. It can be read from considerably greater distances, with angles of up to 160 degrees and in motion, making it especially useful for people with visual impairments or low vision. These codes will be available in printed programs and at various strategic points in the festive spaces to offer a more autonomous, accessible, and safe experience for all attendees.
Purple Points for Safe and Violence-Free Festivities
In collaboration with the Department of Social Policies, Family, and Equality, Purple Points will once again be present at the city’s main festive spaces. These information, awareness, and assistance points, aimed at preventing sexual violence, will provide direct and specialized attention during the San Isidro celebration.
Purple Points will be coordinated with the Security and Municipal Police devices at each venue, with the presence of social intervention professionals providing immediate attention and information about available municipal resources, especially the 24-hour Pilar Estébanez Crisis Center, specializing in assisting women victims of sexual violence. In line with the City Council’s accessibility policies, Purple Points will also offer assistance in Spanish Sign Language (LSE).
A Strong Commitment to Environmental Sustainability
San Isidro 2025 is also presented as a cultural proposal aligned with sustainability goals and respect for the environment, with particular attention to reducing the environmental impact of its activities. For this purpose, specific environmental reports have been prepared for activities with the highest attendance, calculating the carbon footprint and greenhouse gas emissions in accordance with current municipal regulations.
Following the previous edition, the City Council will voluntarily offset emissions through the Madrid Compensa program. This action will involve the planting of native species such as stone pine, holm oak, and ash trees in the Madrid Metropolitan Forest.
These reports also allow for preventive measures during the planning phase to minimize the use of vehicles and industrial machinery, optimize waste management, and promote recycling. In this way, the environmental impact of the event is mitigated, and a culture of sustainability is promoted among citizens, participants, and organizations involved.
