Summer of fun in Madrid

Britons planning to book a flight to Madrid may be interested in joining the fun of the Summer City Festival - or Veranos de la Villa as it is known to locals - which takes place from July 3rd to August 26th each year.

Major cultural venues in Madrid will be taken over by the festivities, which will include headline acts with a Portuguese flavour such as Brazilian guitarist Toqhino, Portuguese Dulce Pontes and Cesaria Evora, the Cape Verde star.

Locations such as the concert hall Cuartel del Conde Duque, theatre La Muralla Arabe, Jardines de Sabatini, Casa de America as well as outdoor squares and parks, will be filled with crowds keen to view the shows.

Flamenco Nights and Spirit of the Dance are examples of two of the shows' titles, while well-known spectacles will include Madame Butterfly at Conde Duque.

The festival activities are organised by the Madrid Council for Art.

Visitors to Madrid may also wish to visit the district of Salamanca, dotted with places of architectural and artistic significance, in addition to Sol, the city's most photographed square.

For more information, check out the Madrid tourism website.

• British Airways boss underlines Heathrow Airport importance
• Emirates completes move to new terminal in Dubai
• New US airport runways welcomed
• New campaign invites holidaymakers to Paris
• Tokyo 'the world's culinary capital'
• Observation wheel to open in Melbourne
• Visitors offered Christmas bonuses in Brussels
• Stansted Airport eco-certification extended to 2011
• United Airlines to resume flights from London to Denver
• Travellers invited to Australia's cinematic destinations