Spanish · Travel & Getting Around

"City center (downtown)" in Spanish: centro

el centro

Say it: SEN-trohmasculine · el centronoun/ˈsen.tɾo/

Downtown is el centro. It is masculine. Say Voy al centro for I'm going downtown.

Taxi

Lléveme al centro, por favor.
Take me downtown, please.
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How to pronounce centro

Say it

SEN-troh

/ˈsen.tɾo/

SEN-troh. Soft c like s. Stress SEN.

"City center (downtown)" in Spanish: quick reference

SpanishEnglish
el centrodowntown / city center

Main urban core.

al centroto downtown

Direction of travel.

en el centrodowntown

Location.

centro históricohistoric center

Old-town core.

How to use centro in real life

  1. 1Taxi

    Lléveme al centro, por favor.

    Take me downtown, please.

    Clear ride request.

  2. 2Plans

    Hay muchos cafés en el centro.

    There are many cafés downtown.

    Walking day.

  3. 3Hotel

    Nuestro hotel queda en el centro.

    Our hotel is downtown.

    Location fact.

Mistakes English speakers make with centro

Incorrect: La centro está lejos.

Correct: El centro está lejos.

Centro is masculine: el centro.

Incorrect: Voy al downtown.

Correct: Voy al centro.

Use centro, not English downtown.

Good to know

Centro means downtown or city center. Centro histórico is the old historic core many tourists visit.

Try it in a ChatPal conversation

Choosing where to stay

  1. ChatPal

    ¿Prefieres hotel en el centro?

    Do you prefer a hotel downtown?

  2. You

    Sí, quiero estar en el centro.

    Yes, I want to be downtown.

  3. ChatPal

    Hay más ruido, pero todo cerca.

    There's more noise, but everything is close.

  4. You

    Me sirve. Camino mucho.

    That works for me. I walk a lot.

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"City center (downtown)" in other languages

FAQ

Common questions about "City center (downtown)" in Spanish

Gender of centro?

Masculine: el centro.

Go downtown?

Voy al centro.

Historic downtown?

El centro histórico.

Pronounce centro?

SEN-troh, soft c like s.

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