The centrepiece of the Fiestas de San Isidro is a Romeria (a kind of pilgrimage) to the shrine of Madrid's patron Saint, Isidore. From the early hours of 15 May, the pilgrims trickle towards the shrine on the banks of the Manzanares river in a procession that grows through the day - the participants wearing rustic dress and enjoying traditional delicacies. Around this simple ceremony a whole season of events and fiestas has grown, many of them held at the Las Ventas bullring. The highest profile of these are the bullfights themselves, in the biggest event of its kind in the world. A week or so either side of 15 May, concerts are held in the Plaza Mayor, while the Vistillas Park near the palace becomes a verbena - an open-air dance-hall.

Times
Various day and evening.