El Rastro de Madrid

El Rastro de Madrid is the largest outdoor market in the city, and is held every Sunday and during public holidays in the popular neighborhood of Lavapiés, between 9 am and 3 pm. Visitors will find there a wide variety of products available in its 3,500 stalls, such as food, handicrafts, clothes, works of art and many others.

The current Rastro has more than 25 years of existence, although its origins go back to the XVIII century. It began with activities related to the production of leather, due to its proximity to the slaughterhouse of the Villa, and little by little was grouping other craftsmen, such as producers of shoes, clothes, sellers of saltpeter or tobacco.

Nowadays El Rastro is a well-known tourist attraction in Madrid, frequented both by inhabitants of and tourists from around the world, as it has international fame and appears in innumerable travel guides. A very interesting option for those who want to spend a morning in a multicultural environment, enjoying the flavors and colors of Madrid, and at the same time learning a little more about the history and culture of Spain.