Exploring Pokemon Go Fest Madrid

• Go Fest Madrid brings Pokemon Go Players Together
• Tons of Shinies and Special Pokemon appeared in person
• Lots of places to take cool photos

After experiencing Pokemon Go Fest in London last year, which was a stone’s throw away from my doorstep, I was pretty excited for my next Go Fest event. Pokemon Go Fest's next series, for this year, has already kicked off and when it was announced I decided that I simply had to make it along. The closest to me was Madrid, so I was very excited when I finally booked tickets and went off to play.

Go Fest is the more traditional version of Pokemon Go’s in-person event, unlike their newer City Safari, which we attended in Barcelona last year.

Niantic's Go Fest concept is pretty straightforward. The base ticket allows you to go to a huge greenspace that has been divided - digitally - into several zones. These zones, during the 5-and-a-half-hour ticket time, are filled with themed Pokemon in that specific zone. There is a higher Shiny rate, normally some exclusive Pokemon, and also just tons to do within the park.

Go Fest Madrid was absolutely massive - much larger than the park that we went to in London, with Niantic only using a small portion of it. There were tons of beautiful parts to explore, with some areas decorated and others left as is.

Pokemon Go Fest Madrid in-game content

When it comes to in-game content, that’s one of the main focuses in Pokemon Go. There are tons of gyms that appear in the park when your time slot goes live. These are full of ultra beasts, including Necrozma. Only people doing raids in person with a ticket (as opposed to remoting into the ones outside the park) could get a Shiny Necrozma. Those in the park were restricted to local-only raids, which makes sense due to how fast they fill up anyway. 

Each of the individual cities had their own special perks. We had Klefki spawning here (normally a regional Pokemon in France), Unown Question mark (which could be Shiny), the chance to transform Furfrou into an Asian version of the creature, and the debut of Shiny Crabrawler. Other cities have slight differences when it comes to these Pokemon. 

In all locations, there are also special Costume Eevees that - at the time of writing this article - have not been announced as a part of Go Fest Global. I was super pumped that I got a Shiny of each in the park! 

There are also quests to follow as you go around the park, which can guide you through the areas. They result in you getting the Pokemon Marshadow - which you only have one shot to get (either in person or at Global Go Fest). I actually got the Hundo, which was super exciting. 

Park play is limited to your ticket time, and as soon as it ends the entire park goes dark and nothing spawns there in Pokemon Go. You can actually purchase a City Experience pass, for up to three days, allowing you to explore the city and see spawns from all of the different biomes. You can also take on some quests for some extra premium items. The city play, in my experience, actually has a better spawn rate than the park experience. This seems to be Niantic’s way of trying to encourage getting out and exploring. Go out and Play is their motto after all. 

Parque Juan Carlos I Itself

Parque Juan Carlos I is massive, as I have stated! There are a few scattered photo points in each of the different areas. My absolute favourite was the maze, which took an existing maze area inside the park and filled it with mushrooms and smoke. Going through it ended in a few freebies - key chains and Pokemon Go patches! There was also a neat psychic feeling area, along with a big path of cutouts showcasing the different Team Leaders and the old backgrounds from the game.

Niantic Village was a little out of the way, but this is where you could find the Wayfarer information booth and pick up a pin if you have a medal in Pokemon Go. There is also always a photo opp that allows you to download a video of you and Pokemon. I really do love the concept behind these and always attend them! 

There are a few interactable areas that are always at Go Fest, the first being the PvP Battlezone, where a coach can help you build up an amazing team, especially if you are willing to spend some stardust, and then you can take on other trainers in hopes of winning three matches in a row. This is one of the two ways to win the special Go Fest Madrid pin, with the other being passing the Pokemon Knowledge quiz inside the Player’s lounge tent. This test was extremely confusing as the answer to “How many Costume Pikachu are there in Pokemon Go” is - according to them - eight. I have literally 40 in my account and there were two at the event, but that’s what they’d accept! 

Another fun, exclusive to Madrid, interactive point included a bunch of football (soccer?) players from Madrid. Each day they were doing autographs and helping you learn how to kick a ball into a goal. You could kick a ball into a Pokeball (you did have three tries) in order to win a ticket to a raffle, which can result in you getting a digital Pokemon Go stop in a town of your choosing! I got it on my first try, with the help of the footballer. This was a really unique experience and I enjoyed it.

Go Fest Madrid also had food trucks, plenty of places to recharge, a notable trainer area where you could meet your favourite Pokemon Go content creators and booths that had information about things like the Pokemon Go Ambassador Program and Campfire. These booths are a good way to learn more about what Niantic is doing with Pokemon Go and the companion apps to the game itself. You could also take a picture with Eevee or Pikachu, depending on who was out, but it was so hot and sunny in that area that I’d not have stayed in line long.

It was very, very hot in Madrid, but there were several areas to refill water bottles for free and stay out of the sun for a bit. Go Fest Madrid also had a merchandise booth, which had exclusive t-shirts, but honestly, I like the purple one you can order online better and Pokemon should just open a Pokemon Center near me. 

Playing with Trainers

As a member of the press, I ended up spending a lot of my limited time in Madrid in the park, exploring and catching Pokemon. There is something so magical about being in a big, open space, all with people doing the same activity you are doing. Everyone is a big Pokemon fan. Everyone is willing to talk to you about your Pokemon. Everyone cheers when someone shouts Hundo after a raid. It’s just a fantastic environment if you are a fan of Pokemon. 

Pokemon Go Fest isn’t just a fantastic way to get shinies and rare Pokemon, but it’s also a way that you can find a bunch of people who feel like your people. This was my first solo trip abroad in quite some time and I really felt at home in the park, surrounded by people who love Pokemon Go just like me. There were also a lot of Americans in Madrid, like myself, probably due to the Go Fest in New York happening on the 4th of July!

As always, I greatly look forward to my next Pokemon in real-life experience!