Visitar Present Tense Conjugation in Spanish
The present tense of visitar — "to visit" in English — is the form you need for what happens now, for habits and for general truths. This page gives you the full present conjugation table for visitar with all six persons, explains exactly how the tense is formed for this verb, shows when to use it with real examples, and finishes with a quiz so you can test yourself. Visitar means "to visit" — a place, a city, a museum, or a person. Spanish uses it more widely than English does: you visit a doctor, you visit a website, you visit your grandmother on Sundays. The present tense covers regular visits (visitamos a la abuela los domingos), planned trips (visitamos Madrid en junio) and general facts about tourism. It is a fully regular -ar verb, so its present tense is a clean model for the whole -ar family. To see it in a real sentence: Nosotros visitamos a la abuela los domingos. — "We visit grandmother on Sundays.".
Present tense conjugation table: visitar
Every person of visitar in the present tense. The gerund is visitando and the past participle is visitado.
| Person | Form |
|---|---|
| yo | visito |
| tú | visitas |
| él/ella/Ud. | visita |
| nosotros/as | visitamos |
| vosotros/as | visitáis |
| ellos/ellas/Uds. | visitan |
How the present indicative of visitar is formed
The present indicative of visitar is built from the stem visit- plus the present indicative endings for -ar verbs. Take the infinitive, drop the -ar ending, and add the ending that matches the person. The table below shows the endings, and the full table above shows them attached to the stem.
| Person | Ending | Form |
|---|---|---|
| yo | -o | visito |
| tú | -as | visitas |
| él/ella/Ud. | -a | visita |
| nosotros/as | -amos | visitamos |
| vosotros/as | -áis | visitáis |
| ellos/ellas/Uds. | -an | visitan |
Because visitar is a regular -ar verb, there are no surprises in the present indicative: the stem visit- never changes, and every person takes its normal ending. The only spelling detail to watch is the written accent on the vosotros form, visitáis, which carries an accent on the vowel of the ending. Learn the six endings once and you can conjugate any regular -ar verb the same way.
The gerund of visitar is visitando and the past participle is visitado. Both are regular for this verb, and the participle is the form you need for all the perfect tenses with haber.
When to use the present tense of visitar
The present tense is not one single use — it covers several situations, and visitar appears in all of them. The five uses below are the ones you will meet most often, each with an example that shows the verb in a natural sentence.
Visiting family regularly
The present describes a repeated routine — every Sunday, every month, every summer.
"Nosotros visitamos a la abuela los domingos." — "We visit grandmother on Sundays."
Tourism and sightseeing
Travellers use the present for what they visit on a trip, including planned visits.
"Yo visito Madrid en junio." — "I visit Madrid in June."
Museums and places
Visitar + a place is the standard way to talk about going to see somewhere.
"Tú visitas el museo todos los meses." — "You visit the museum every month."
Visiting a doctor or professional
In Spanish, you visit a doctor rather than "going to" one — visitar al médico is the normal phrase.
"Mi padre visita al médico cada tres meses." — "My father visits the doctor every three months."
Visiting a website
The same verb covers digital visits: visitar una página web is standard Spanish.
"Nosotros visitamos la página del banco cada semana." — "We visit the bank's website every week."
The present tense vs the closest tenses
Present — habit or general fact vs Preterite — one finished occasion
The present describes a habit, a routine or a general fact — something that happens again and again or that is true in general. The preterite reports one finished occasion in the past. Use the present when the action repeats or is still true, and the preterite when you are telling what happened once, on a specific day.
- Present — habit or general fact: Yo visito a mis tíos en Navidad. — "I visit my uncles and aunts at Christmas."
- Preterite — one finished occasion: Yo visité a mis tíos en Navidad. — the same idea, placed in the preterite.
Present — now vs Imperfect — a past habit or background
The present talks about now. The imperfect talks about the past as a background — a repeated habit, an ongoing situation, something that used to happen. If you can add "used to" in English, the imperfect is usually the right choice; if it is happening now or always, use the present.
- Present — now: Tú visitas el parque con tus hijos. — "You visit the park with your children."
- Imperfect — a past habit or background: Tú visitabas el parque con tus hijos. — the same idea, placed in the imperfect.
Present — now or a fixed plan vs Future — what will happen
The present describes what happens now, what you do regularly, or a plan that is already fixed. The future describes what will happen later — a promise, a prediction, a plan that is not yet under way. Spanish often uses the present for near-future plans, but the future is the form for a clear statement about tomorrow.
- Present — now or a fixed plan: Ella visita a su amiga en el hospital. — "She visits her friend in hospital."
- Future — what will happen: Ella visitará a su amiga en el hospital. — the same idea, placed in the future.
Examples: visitar in the present tense
Seven sentences that show visitar in the present tense only, across all six persons. Read each one aloud, notice the ending, and check the translation.
- Yo visito a mis tíos en Navidad. — "I visit my uncles and aunts at Christmas."
- Tú visitas el parque con tus hijos. — "You visit the park with your children."
- Ella visita a su amiga en el hospital. — "She visits her friend in hospital."
- Nosotros visitamos Sevilla en primavera. — "We visit Seville in spring."
- Vosotros visitáis a vuestros abuelos en verano. — "You visit your grandparents in summer."
- Los turistas visitan la catedral por la mañana. — "The tourists visit the cathedral in the morning."
- El profesor visita a los alumnos en casa. — "The teacher visits the students at home."
Common mistakes with visitar in the present tense
These are the errors learners actually make with visitar in the present tense. Each one shows the wrong form, the right form, and why the right form is right.
✗ *Yo visito a Madrid en junio (using a before a place).
✓ Correct: Yo visito Madrid en junio.
The personal a is only for people: visitar a la abuela, but visitar Madrid with no a.
✗ *Nosotros visitamos a el médico (a + el not contracted).
✓ Correct: Nosotros visitamos al médico cada tres meses.
A + el always contracts to al: visitar al médico, never a el médico.
✗ *Vosotros visitáis a vuestros abuelos (written without the accent: visitais).
✓ Correct: Vosotros visitáis a vuestros abuelos en verano.
Visitáis carries a written accent on the í. The accent is part of the spelling, not optional decoration.
✗ *Ellos visitan a la catedral.
✓ Correct: Los turistas visitan la catedral por la mañana.
Places do not take the personal a. Visitar a is reserved for people: visitar a un amigo, visitar la catedral.
Quiz: visitar in the present tense
Eight questions on the present tense of visitar. Choose the best answer for each one, then check the answer key below — every answer is explained.
1. Which is the correct present tense form of visitar for tú?
- a) visita
- b) visitan
- c) visito
- d) visitas
2. Complete the sentence: Yo ______ a mis tíos en Navidad. — "I visit my uncles and aunts at Christmas."
- a) visito
- b) visité
- c) visitan
- d) visitas
3. Complete the sentence: Yo ______ Madrid en junio. — "I visit Madrid in June."
- a) visitamos
- b) visité
- c) visita
- d) visito
4. Which is the correct present tense form of visitar for nosotros?
- a) visitamos
- b) visito
- c) visitas
- d) visitan
5. Which sentence uses visitar correctly in the present tense?
- a) Ella visita a su amiga en el hospital.
- b) Ella visitó a su amiga en el hospital.
- c) Ella visitas a su amiga en el hospital.
6. Which is the correct present tense form of visitar for vosotros?
- a) visitáis
- b) visito
- c) visita
- d) visitas
7. Complete the sentence: Mi padre ______ al médico cada tres meses. — "My father visits the doctor every three months."
- a) visita
- b) visito
- c) visitó
- d) visitan
8. What is the gerund of visitar?
- a) visitando
- b) visitado
- c) visitamos
- d) visito
Answer key
d) visitas — The tú form is visitas. The -s ending belongs to tú in the present; visito is yo, visita is él/ella and visitan is ellos/ellas.
a) visito — The sentence needs the yo form in the present: visito. The other options are the wrong person or the wrong tense.
d) visito — The subject is yo, so the present form is visito.
a) visitamos — Nosotros takes visitamos. In the present the nosotros ending for -ar verbs is -amos, attached to the stem visit-.
a) Ella visita a su amiga en el hospital. — Ella visita a su amiga en el hospital. is correct: the verb agrees with its subject. The other sentences use the wrong person or the wrong tense.
a) visitáis — Vosotros takes visitáis. Remember the written accent on the ending — it is part of the correct spelling.
a) visita — The subject is él/ella/Ud., so the present form is visita.
a) visitando — The gerund is visitando. It is the form you use with estar for the progressive (estar + gerund), and it is not the past participle visitado.
Frequently asked questions
Is visitar regular in the present tense?
Yes. visitar is a regular -ar verb, so its present tense follows the standard endings exactly: visito, visitas, visita, visitamos, visitáis and visitan.
What is the gerund and the past participle of visitar?
The gerund is visitando and the past participle is visitado. Use the gerund with estar for the progressive, and the participle with haber for the perfect tenses.
How do you say "I to visit" in Spanish?
Say visito. For example: Yo visito a mis tíos en Navidad. — "I visit my uncles and aunts at Christmas.".
What is the difference between visitar and invitar?
visitar means "to visit", while invitar means "to invite". They are related words that learners often meet together, but they are not interchangeable — use visitar when you mean "to visit" and invitar when you mean "to invite". The full conjugation of invitar is on its own page.
Related links
- Full conjugation of visitar — every tense and mood, with the complete tables.
- visitar examples and quiz — more sentences, dialogues and a longer quiz.
- Spanish Present tense guide — how the present tense works for all Spanish verbs.
- Spanish verbs — the full list of Spanish verbs on VerbFlow.