This is something interesting they do in Germany, they have all the museums open until 3 a.m. and they have music and drinks available as well as a transportation network to shuttle the people between the museums (transp. wouldn't be necessary if you only include the big three). It's very popular and people buy tickets in advance for around 10-15 euros. It's a good way to get folks to the museum who might not normally participate so it's not really geared towards tourists, per say, but I'd be there are plenty out there who would enjoy such an event.

Antonio my ole buddy

A friend of mine said the airport isn't too user friendly, maybe more visable information centers
with multi -lingual service reps.

I imagine somewhere, in some office, in some cabinet there is "public information" available for people seeking it about Building Code Regulations, appropriate licenses, violations, Safety Inspections, or a kind of "Better Business Bureau" (like we have here in the USA which records complaints - etcetera - about a business) for all lodging establishments. And it would be even better if this information was available ONLINE or at the very least IN the tourist offices themselves.

I'd like to be able to go into a tourist office or go online and see about any building/safety/fire/quality-related inspections/information or violations for a particular hostel or hotel I'd be considering for my vacation lodging.

It's great that we have this forum where we can give person reviews and experiences but those don't tell you about any health or safety hazards or violations which may exist in XYZ Hotel.

I suppose this isn't a realistic request because we here in the USA never use such publicly available information either. Okay. Maybe that's all a bad idea. hehehe..

I have an issue with tourist offices in general where they tend to allow "hand-outs" given to them - and offered to the public by them - without possibly any knowledge of that business, service, or establishment, their quality, etcetera. People go into the tourist offices and find stacks of fliers on tables and trust they're offered & approved by the tourist office themselves when it seems this is not the case.

And here's another BRIGHT IDEA for the Madrid Tourism Board: DEVELOPMENT FUNDING for smaller, touristic websites, possibly independent websites , or at the very least a Madrid Tourism Board endorsement if they felt it was warranted.

Another: How about the number of "tourism police" I remember hearing something about? Didn't they increase the number of foot-police by some percentage in order to lower the number of purse-snatchings, pickpockets, and the like? While I don't know, has this percentage lowered? At the very least, how about surveillance cameras in/around Puerta del Sol? I know many people, including locals, don't like the idea of being watched at every second but maybe...

Another safety-related item: Here in the USA, many/all university campuses have these kind of stand-alone SECURITY STATIONS where anyone can step up to a phone with a direct line to police, maybe an alarm sounds above that phone, there are safety lights, etcetera. This could potentially help persons who are being followed, harrassed, or attacked. But maybe these things would be abused by kids or others just wanting to cause trouble. I guess this wouldn't necessarily be a TOURISM-related item but rather a city safety item.

Saludos, MadridMan

How about a simple general tourist info phone number
In NYC you can dial 311 for city info

Antonio I have another thought ..

The staff themselves in the Tourist Office are very variable. Sometimes they are really helpful and sometimes not at all.

Most of the offices don't have much information that you can get at yourself (leaflets, posters etc). Very often you have to ask specific questions, but often I don't know what I want to ask, I just want to browse and see what's on offer - concerts, exhibitions etc etc.

Here in the UK, our Tourist Offices are jam packed with information and also have quite extensive shops with books of local interest, a few souvenirs ... oh and sheep tea towels of course.

Seriously though, I do think the staff thing is relevant. For instance, just a couple of weeks ago I visited two tourist offices in Torremolinos to ask a specific question.

The question I had was

At the first office the gentleman there was unable to give me any information and just said that I would have to go to the University in Malaga and find out myself.

In the second office, which was in the Town Hall building, the ladies there went out of their way to find out the information I needed. They spent a long time calling the university (the line was very busy) and managed to ascertain that yes, it was the real Tomatito (!!!) and yes he was going to be playing and presenting his new album Agua Dulce.

Bingo.

In both offices there was a just a desk with information in leaflet form behind it and accessible only by the staff. I realise this probably saves paper wastage, but it's a shame not to be able to browse the information without having to ask for something specific.

I don't know how much I would want the Madrid tourist board to go out of their way for tourists in so far as events and offers etc. I think the beauty of Madrid lies in the fact that it isn't too contrived in favour of tourism. Does that make sense?

Anyway, enough rambling ..

Hey .. Antonio .. when are you coming to Holmfirth? It would give me great pleasure to show you the wonderful Tourist office there. It's only small, but they can book accommodation, concert tickets, events ... and are a mine of local information (as well as being stockists of the aforementioned sheep tea towels).

Jo

Jo-Ann, where is the sheep photo?

Thanks everyone for your suggestions. I'll comment on some of them:

I agree with that. In fact, they are not allowed to recommend any places. They can just give the information. Tourist offices should only give a full list of places or no places at all.

Well, one of my suggestions was to give an annual award for the best websites / organizations that contribute to the promotion of Madrid. That one was included among others in a document we gave to the Consejero de Economía.

The city council is trying to atract more Japanese tourists and one of the ideas was to have an emergency hot line for them. Again, our proposal was to have that available for all tourists.

JoeSambuca, in my opinion it's much more important to have an emergency number than a general info one. Having a 24 hours / multilingual phone line must be very expensive. Tourist offices, guides and online resources should offer all the information.

Well, this time your wish has become true The city council will install surveillance cameras in Plaza Mayor quite soon. We (at the hostales sector) think it's a great idea and it should be extended to many other places where tourists go.

Come on, more suggestions!!!. What about activities with children?. There is no "Things to do with children in Madrid" guide. What do you do in your country? What have you found in other cities specially designed for them?.

There are a few places online where you can find lists of things to do with kids in Madrid. A book called Pick Your Brains About Spain is nice (see it here ), and something like that just for Madrid would be neat. I have a book of activities to do in the Philadelphia area with kids, and it's a helpful resource.

How about a Madrid Passport for children? It could be quite small and include a list of places especially nice for kids to visit, and then when they go they can get their "passport" rubber-stamped. For example, a family goes to the Prado and gets a stamp in the passport in the shape of an artist with a paintbrush. Then they go to the zoo and get a stamp of a lion. At the Royal Palace they could get a stamp of a crown, and in the Armory a stamp of a suit of armor. At the Retiro, a rowboat... The idea would be to get as many stamps as you can. There is a similar idea in my area at Longwood Gardens , which has a plant hunt for children called "Seek and Find." When they find the plant in the little booklet, there's a small rubber stamp tied to a stand with a chain, and they can stamp their own booklet. In a large place like Madrid, perhaps they can get their "passports" stamped at the entrance when they get tickets. I think it might encourage families to visit more places, and kids like collecting.

It's a nice idea Diana . That "passport stamps" could encourage parents to take their children with them. But I'd guess you have to do more than this if you want children to enjoy a museum. I think Reina Sofía or Thyssen museums have a special workshop or something like that for children.

I'll write your idea down in my list. Thanks a lot.

Mummy Jo, any other ideas? :p