The WiZink Center —officially the Movistar Arena— publishes its entry rules, and they are more specific than people tend to assume. Here is what they say, translated into what matters while you are packing your bag.
The limit is 25 litres, not centimetres
The venue’s rule is not about centimetres, it is about capacity: you may bring in small backpacks or bags of up to 25 litres.
Twenty-five litres is an ordinary day bag. What will not get in is the hiking backpack, the holdall and anything that looks like luggage.
Watch out for the specific event
The venue reserves the right to apply stricter limits depending on the event. The 25 litres is the general house rule; if the artist imposes something tighter, it is announced on the concert page. Checking the day before costs you a minute.
Drinks: plastic, no cap, half a litre
This is the detail that catches most people out. You can bring a drink in, but only in a plastic container, with no cap and no larger than 50 cl. No alcohol.
Having your cap taken is not the security guard being difficult: it is literally the rule. If you turn up with a sealed bottle, either you open it and throw the cap away or it does not come in.
Before you leave home
Free hands count too
The Movistar Arena lets you in with a small bag or backpack of up to 25 litres, and drinks only in a plastic bottle with no cap, 50 cl maximum. With an open bottle in one hand and your phone in the other, the floor gets long. A set of neck-strap cup holders — pack of four, reusable, according to their listing — frees your hands. The listing does not give the diameter they take: check your bottle fits before the night.
Your phone is better hanging than in a pocket. A waterproof pouch with an adjustable cord (pack of two) takes no room in your bag and does not fall out in the crowd.
DSLR and professional cameras do not get in; your phone does. If you would rather not depend on it for photos, a disposable camera with flash — 39 exposures, according to its listing — is the light alternative.
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Food: yes, with conditions
Packaged food that does not need cutlery is allowed. What does not get in is glass containers and food with shells —sunflower seeds, peanuts and the like— because they end up on the floor of the arena.
Prohibited items
The official list of what does not clear security:
- DSLR and professional cameras (your phone is fine)
- Selfie sticks
- Tablets and iPads
- Motorcycle helmets
- Non-folding umbrellas — a small folding one does get in
- Food with shells: sunflower seeds, peanuts
- Glass containers and alcoholic drinks
- Banners larger than A3
There is a cloakroom and storage (and hardly anyone knows)
Contrary to what gets repeated online, the WiZink Center has a cloakroom and storage:
- €2 per garment or item, cash or card
- The outdoor storage opens half an hour before doors, in the Felipe II area, next to the box office, and on some nights also on Calle Fuente del Berro
- Inside there are several cloakrooms, but whether they open depends on the event and the weather: there is no service at basketball games
- It is where you get sent with what is not allowed in: motorcycle helmet, non-folding umbrella, tablet or pram
- Items not collected are kept for up to 30 days
The distinction that matters
It is a cloakroom, not left luggage. It works for your coat, your umbrella or the bag that turned out too big. Do not count on leaving a cabin suitcase there.
If you are coming from out of town with a suitcase
If you arrive in Madrid on the day of the concert, do not drag your suitcase up to Goya only to find out at the door that it will not go in. Drop it first: at your accommodation if you have already checked in, or at a left-luggage office in the centre —the Atocha area is the handiest if you arrive by high-speed train— and carry on to the venue with nothing.
What gets in and what does not
This is what gets past security and what does not:
What gets past security
Everything at a glance, under Movistar Arena's rules.
Gets in
- Power bank / charger
- Phone
- Plastic bottlePlastic bottle only, NO CAP, 50 cl maximum. No alcohol allowed.
- Small folding umbrella
- Everyday backpackUp to 25 L of capacity.
- Food
Does not get in
- Glass containerGlass does not get into any venue.
- Large / non-folding umbrellaNon-folding umbrellas do not get in.
- Cabin suitcase / holdallWell over what is allowed at the entrance.
- DSLR or professional cameraProfessional gear not allowed without accreditation.
- Selfie stickExpressly prohibited.
- Tablet or iPadExpressly prohibited.
- Sunflower seeds, peanuts (shelled)Expressly prohibited: they end up on the venue floor.
- Alcoholic drinkAlcohol is not allowed in.
Also banned here: Motorcycle helmets · Banners larger than A3
This venue has a cloakroom
Cloakroom and outdoor storage at €2 per garment or item, cash or card. The outdoor storage opens half an hour before doors next to the Felipe II box office and, on some nights, also on Calle Fuente del Berro; inside there are several cloakrooms, opened depending on the event. It is a cloakroom, not left luggage.
Coming with a suitcase? The venue cloakroom will not take it: you need left luggage before you arrive.
Find storage in MadridIn short, if you read one thing
A bag of 25 litres or less, a capless half-litre plastic bottle, no glass and no shells. And if something has to stay outside, there is a cloakroom at €2.
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