Most tickets in Madrid are non-refundable. The viewing deck in the tower of the Cibeles Palace is the rare one that says, in writing, what happens if the weather shuts it: the money comes back.
Mirador Madrid is the city-run viewing deck in the great tower of the Palacio de Cibeles, reached on foot from the sixth floor and sold in half-hourly slots. General admission is €4.00, with €0.50 added when the ticket is bought online, and the deck sits at the top of 88 steps from floor 6E. The Faro de Moncloa, the other municipal viewpoint, charges the same €4.00 but caps the stay at 30 minutes.
How much does the Cibeles Palace viewpoint cost in Madrid? Mirador Madrid charges €4 general admission, plus €0.50 in handling if bought online. It opens Tuesday to Sunday, 10.30am to 2pm and 4pm to 7.30pm, in slots of about 30 minutes. The deck is reached from floor 6E by a staircase of 88 steps.
How much it costs, and who pays less
There are three fares, and the lowest is a single euro.
Nearby, the Círculo de Bellas Artes rooftop costs €6, set out in the Circulo de Bellas Artes rooftop.
| Ticket | Price |
|---|---|
| Super-reduced: under 7, licensed Madrid guides, teachers or leaders with school or social-services groups | €1.00 |
| Reduced: ages 7 to 14, over-65s, unemployed visitors, visitors with a disability and one companion | €2.00 |
| General | €4.00 |
Every reduction needs official supporting documentation, and the discounts cannot be combined. Online purchase adds €0.50 in handling, so a general ticket bought in advance comes to €4.50 and a €1 ticket rises by half its own value.
The box office, according to CentroCentro, sits on floor 2 and opens Tuesday to Sunday, 10am to 1.40pm and 3pm to 7.10pm. Over Christmas the deck closes on 24, 25 and 31 December and on 1, 5 and 6 January, so check the date before you plan a festive visit.
The clause that turns a bad forecast into a refund
On the conditions that CentroCentro publishes, the operator reserves the right to close or change the visiting hours without notice for reasons of safety or bad weather. What follows is the part worth reading: if the deck closes temporarily, the slots already issued for those hours cease to be valid and the ticket price is refunded.
That is unusual. A closed viewpoint is normally the visitor’s problem, and here it is written down as the operator’s.
| City-run viewpoint | Ticket | Its own condition |
|---|---|---|
| Mirador Madrid, Cibeles Palace | €4.00 | Refund if it closes for safety or weather |
| Faro de Moncloa | €4.00 | A 30-minute limit on how long you stay |
The Faro de Moncloa carries the same weather risk and the same €4 ticket, along with a cap on how long anyone may remain at the top, set out in the Faro de Moncloa viewing platform.
It is the same logic as the parks, where a forecast rather than a calendar decides whether the gate opens, described in why the Retiro shuts in high winds.
Eighty-eight steps, and who gets the lift
Access to the deck runs from floor 6E up a staircase of 88 steps, and that number decides whether the visit works at all.
The centre recommends using the stairs as a general rule, because of the architectural character of the historic building and to keep visitors moving. Priority use of the lifts is reserved for people with impaired mobility, people with reduced mobility, and adults with a pushchair.
Two access rules sit alongside that:
- Slots run every 30 minutes, and waiting times can vary for reasons of capacity and safety.
- Under-18s may only visit accompanied by an adult, with no exception published.
A free guided tour, and a closure on 5 January
The deck shuts every Monday and on eight fixed dates: 1, 5 and 6 January, 1 May, and 24, 25 and 31 December. That 5 January is what sets it apart, because almost nothing else in the city closes on the eve of Epiphany, as the calendar in what opens on a public holiday shows.
Separately from the ticket, CentroCentro runs free guided tours of Mirador Madrid Tuesday to Friday at noon and Wednesdays at 5.30pm, lasting 30 minutes, in groups of 9 people plus the guide. They require advance booking.
The building is operated, according to Madrid Destino, by the municipal company Madrid Destino Cultura Turismo y Negocio rather than by the council directly, which is why its calendar does not match the directly-run city museums listed in Madrid’s free museums.
In December the deck is open at sunset, and how to pair it with the Christmas lights is in Christmas in Madrid for couples.
Frequently asked questions about Mirador Madrid
What happens if the Cibeles viewpoint closes after you have paid?
The ticket is refunded. CentroCentro can close or change the hours without notice for safety or weather, and slots issued for those hours lose their validity and the price is returned.
How much is the Mirador Madrid at the Cibeles Palace?
General admission is €4. The reduced fare, €2, covers ages 7 to 14, over-65s, unemployed visitors and visitors with a disability plus a companion; under-7s pay €1. Online adds €0.50.
Are there stairs or a lift at the Cibeles viewpoint?
Access is from floor 6E up a staircase of 88 steps. Lifts exist but priority use is reserved for people with impaired mobility, reduced mobility, or adults with a pushchair.
What are the opening hours of Mirador Madrid?
Tuesday to Sunday, 10.30am to 2pm and 4pm to 7.30pm, with slots roughly every 30 minutes and last entry half an hour before closing. It shuts on Mondays and on eight fixed dates.
Three euros, eighty-eight steps, half-hourly slots, and a refund written down before the weather turns.