Road Trip Around Segovia and Avila

This 10 day road trip was around Segovia and Avila, including two nights in Madrid, was to explore some of the medieval heritage of Castile. This was a new area for the three of us (myself, my wife and my Mother) to explore and we celebrated our wedding anniversary and my Mum’s 78th birthday on the trip.

• Recommended days 10
• Budget ££
• Difficulty Easy

Although we were looking forward to this holiday I was absolutely shattered before we even left to drive to Heathrow. Our flight was with BA and left on time but next to us there was a family with 4 young children who were very excited to be on a plane so there was no chance of me getting any sleep! We watched Race Around the World to get us in the vibe instead.

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We actually had hold luggage this time which did make the airport transit and boarding a lot easier and we met Mum as we were collecting our luggage. The Budget hire car for this road trip was a Renault Australe and once we had finished the quite complex route out of the Madrid environs we were able to head to Valladolid for our first couple of nights. The roads were excellent as always and quiet and we paid just under €16 in tolls to reach the city, about a 3 hour trip.

Vallodolid Accomodation

We’d hired an apartment for our first stop on our road trip around Segovia and Avila, I’m not quite sure why but there must have been some logic at the time. When we arrived we found it had no parking though which really annoys me as I always select the parking as a filter on Booking.com.

Initial communications were with someone who spoke excellent English but when we got the keys it was from a lady who spoke no English at all and her Spanish was so rapid Mum could barely make out any words and the translation app just shrugged its digital shoulders.

The apartment was on the 5th floor of an old building, nice inside and luckily it had a lift! The roof was low but nothing you can’t deal with. There were limited plug sockets but wifi was good, it was well laid out and there was lots of tourist info. The apartment was quiet, had a nice bathroom and everything we needed was there. It was also a good base to explore the city and surrounding countryside. The price was excellent too.

Valladolid

I’m not honestly sure why I chose Valladolid to visit, there were a few tourist sites and some wonderful architecture but maybe I’d decided it was just a good base as we were there for 2 nights. We left the apartment and Deb navigated us through the city to La Rosaleda garden that I had researched which was quite beautiful. The surrounding tower blocks made it rather less photogenic but it must have been a lovely oasis for the residents to escape to and was well cared for.

From there we walked along the river before heading back into the streets to get to the cathedral but there was a service going on so we didn’t stay long although it was nice to see a decent attendance for a Tuesday afternoon. The tickets for the bell tower had to be purchased at the tourist office so that was another 10 minute walk in low 30s temperature but there were no tickets for today so we booked those for tomorrow, quite pricey at €34 so I hope they are worth it!

We ambled through the streets, a mix of baroque and vile concrete architecture, looking for somewhere to eat. There were lots of places open but none seemed to start serving food until 8PM and although it was beautifully warm – 26 degrees – we didn’t want to hang around. We eventually found a little restaurant near our apartment, Macondo Restaurant, which served food, had a helpful waiter, delicious meals and was fantastic value – €40 for the 3 of us. One thing that was apparent form today’s meanderings was that English was not widely spoken in the city though!

After a restless nights sleep I got up at 5:30 to work out the days route and write up yesterday’s activities before I forgot what we’d done. There was a lot to see within 30 minutes drive but it transpired that all the places we wanted to visit closed for lunch from 13:00 until at least 16:00 so that made it a busy morning! We walked to a nearby cafe for breakfast before I collected the car for today’s sightseeing.

Castillo La Mota

We left Valladolid and drove through the countryside on a selection of minor roads. The scenery was just magnificent, rolling fields of barley, vineyards and beautiful fields of poppies in red and pink.

Our first stop was the Castillo La Mota, a fantastic brick built 15th century creation with a deep moat and fully restored. The castle was built on relatively low lying ground so didn’t dominate the area but the main tower was tall enough to make up for it.

Entry was free so we did a circuit of the inner walls before going in to the central courtyard. There were flocks of swallows flying around the castle but looked and sounded beautiful but meant that every photo needed extensive editing to remove their blurred images!

We couldn’t access the keep, other than as part of a tour so we went back to the ticket office to book that. Unfortunately the next tour was the dungeons and gun ports in the walls rather than the keep and the tour of the keep and rooftop wasn’t for another hour and a half. This would heave meant we wouldn’t get to the next castle in time so we had to skip that, bad planning on my part. I did a walk around the outside of the castle and saw some ruined medieval walls nearby, presumably part of an earlier fortification.

Castillo de Coca

Coca Castle was another Gothic Mudejar brick extravaganza, again built in the 15th century, and only a 30 minute drive away. Once we got inside we saw that we only had 30 minutes before they closed for lunch so we did a whirlwind tour of the keep and rooftop before taking our time exploring the outer bailey and then doing a circuit outside the walls.

This castle was even more ornate than La Mota but was also very overgrown on the battlements and the route through the keep started with climbing four flights of a dilapidated spiral staircase, not Deb’s favourite thing! Mum and I went on ahead , leaving Deb to go at her own pace. The rooftop battlement views were just awesome and the rooms had lots of frescoed decoration.

We spent about another 30 minutes walking around the interior of the walls and then Mum and Deb went to find a cafe and I did a circuit of the castle exterior. Like La Mota the castle walls appear deceptively low as the moat is barely visible until up close and is on low lying ground rather than a hill. The restoration gives you a chance to see the castle as it was in its heyday, rather than being a crumbling pile of authentic bricks.

Coca City Walls

I walked through a park to the original town walls and gate, saw the statue to Theoderic I and then met Mum and Deb for a coffee before we all went back to the town gates, sat in the little cafe next to the sky pine trees and enjoyed an ice cream. Coca seemed a beautiful little town, clean, quiet and pretty. The drive back to the city was through more wonderful scenery, very much like Wiltshire with low hills, scattered woodland and lots of farmland, but a lot warmer!

Back at the apartment we all had a most welcome and needed shower and relaxed for an hour before leaving to walk through the Parque Campo Grande. The more time we spend in Vallodolid, the more I appreciate the city. There are lots of green areas and river walks, the architecture in the centre is largely beautiful and it seems a very chilled place as well as being ridiculously cheap by UK standards. The park was very pretty and the shade was just wonderful – there were lots of other people taking advantage of it too, very pleasant.

Vallodolid Cathedral and Bell Tower Tour

After leaving the park we arrived at the Catedral de Nuestra Señora de la Asunción de Valladolid for our tower tour. After a little wait we were let inside and met the lady leading the tour. She explained it was only in Spanish and we then took the lift to the floor with the bells on before we changed to another lift, went up a few more floors and then climbed the final few flights of stairs.

The views outside were as impressive as expected and the guide explained what each of the main buildings were and a potted history of the city. This took a long time and didn’t really help my vertigo as we were probably on the exterior walkway for about 20 minutes! This was further exacerbated by Deb stamping on one of the metal boards which caused it to reverberate under by feet and I thought the whole structure was collapsing. She and Mother found it funny though so it’s nice to see their true nature revealed!

We then retraced our route but stopped at different floors on the way down. We saw the weights of the bells, the mechanical clock and some information on the cathedral tower and how it compared with the other towers in the city. This was a fabulous tour and the guide went out of her way to explain things to us and showcase her city. I’d certainly recommend it. We stopped at a tapas bar for dinner and then meandered home, taking longer than expected as we did go the wrong way!

Back at the apartment we had another shower – it was still over 30 degrees – before writing up notes and sorting photos as well as planning tomorrow’s visits.

I had another bad nights sleep and I didn’t wake until nearly 8AM, Deb got up about 10 past so we decided to just relax in the apartment before checking out at 11:30. We had coffee and the almond biscuits Mum had bought yesterday for breakfast and then worked out the way to Avila, our next stop. We were going to visit a botanic garden on the way but it was only open 11 – 1 so that was out.

Once we left the main road for the last 40km to Avila we barely saw another car. The scenery was still fantastic with arable and dairy farms and we stopped at a small village because Deb had spotted a cafe. We had bocadillo for lunch, another ridiculous bargain and watched the storks nesting on the church roof before continuing on to Avila.

As we approached the city we could see the surrounding walls on the hilltop and they looked magnificent. Like many places in Spain, Avila has Roman, Visigothic, Arab and Christian heritage. After the reconquest of the city by the Christians the walls were built for protection and they are the most complete medieval walls in Spain. It is also the birthplace of St Teresa, an important Catholic figure.

Avila Accomodation

We entered the city to head to our hotel, the Parador, and some of the streets were extremely tight but we made it unscathed, parked and checked in to our rooms. The Parador was a converted palace so the rooms and common areas were beautiful and spacious and there was a small garden too. 15 minutes later we were walking through the old town, a mixtures of medieval and modern buildings, to get our bearings before our first tour.

Avila TukTuk Tour

As a different way of exploring the city, I had booked us all a tuktuk tour. We arrived at the collection point and there was a German couple there too, waiting for the trip. This made it interesting as it only seated 4 plus the driver so our row was quite cramped! Deb had very limited visibility as she was in the middle and Mum and I had to grip on for dear life on any corners as we only had one buttock on the outer seats!

The tour was good though, both inside and outside the walls and showing us the highlights of the city. The best part for me was the visit to the viewpoint over the city which saved us a long walk! We also saw the Roman bridge which I did intend to walk down to and look at properly but never managed it.

Once we were dropped off from our tour we walked towards the cathedral – a massive 12th century creation in a mix of grey and blood red stone – to look for a gelato shop. The one we found was still preparing to open so we opted to just get drinks instead and then start the walk on the city walls.

Avila Walls

The walls are about 2.5k in length and you can walk along about 1.2k, in three sections. The lady in the ticket office was fabulous and explained everything to us before Mother and I walked up the first section. This gave us views over the cathedral and Basilica of St Vincent and was impressive but the next section topped that. The entrance was just inside the Puerta del Alcazar – an impressive structure in its own right – and had a double height tower which gave views for miles over the surrounding countryside.

After that we agreed we needed a gelato so we stopped at Vhola, now open, and enjoyed some of their delicious flavours while sat in the shade. The heat on the walls was brutal, low 30s, so in medieval armour it must have been a challenge just to stay awake.

After this refreshment we walked back through the city by a very serpentine route to arrive at the Parador. After a definitely needed shower and freshen up we met in the bar cafe for some snacks, which turned out to be extremely filling, and drinks before bed.

After a restless night we got sorted and met Mum for breakfast at 8:30. The breakfast was fantastic and we were there for an hour before we dragged ourselves away and waddled up to our rooms to grab cameras etc. Our first stop was the walls, to continue the final part that you were able to visit.

Luckily the entrance was only a couple of minutes from the hotel so we walked the entire length, admiring the views, wildflowers and sunshine, although after an hour the latter lost it’s appeal! This section also let us see more of the panorama of the town and walls as it involved descending the hill to the west and south and then climbing again it so we could see the full extent of the walls on the northern, western and part of the southern sides of the city. The walk was only 700m but it was a there and back again route, so 1.4km for us plus a bit extra for climbing into the towers. After that exertion we stopped for a quick cake and drink in a cafe visit to cool down a bit.

Church of St Peter the Apostle

Today the intention was to visit three of the religious sites within the town, the Church of St Peter the Apostle, The Basilica of St Vincent and the Cathedral. All three were built, or at least started, in the twelfth century as soon as the city was reconquered from the Muslims, so these were early medieval buildings and they also all used a mixture of pale granite and a red and white limestone.

First stop was the Church of St Peter – this was the impressive building near the Alcazar Gate that we had seen from the walls. When we arrived there was a mass going on and visiting hours were only 11:30 – 12:00 and 13:00 to 13:30 I think. I walked around the church and read the info board while Mum and Deb waited and then we filed inside as the people were leaving from Mass.

The church was built in the 12th century in the Romanesque style and had some fabulous Renaissance painted altars and beautiful vaulted ceiling. Entry was free and there was also a strange multicoloured stone font that warrants further research. The church had a podium built by the Inquisition to celebrate the burning of heretics too!

When we left the church there were some ladies doing traditional dancing which was great to watch for a while. Lots of enthusiasm and castanets!

Basilica of St Vincent

We then walked back across the square to a couple of the cake shops we had spotted earlier, buying gifts to take home, before continuing down the hill to the Basilica of St Vincent, just outside the St Vincent Gate, surprisingly! St Vincent was killed during the reign of Diocletian and his attempt to return stability to the Empire by having a great purge of Christians.

The Basilica was another 12th century creation, built on the legendary site of St Vincent’s martyrdom and the had some beautiful altars and an interesting crypt too. The cenotaph of the saints, a monumental 12th century carving, was fantastic and showed the story of the martyrdom but was unusual in that it was all painted rather than just bare stone or wood. The crypt was a lot brighter than expected and had more altars. Like all the churches we have been in to in Avila, the material was a mix of granite and a sort of mottled red stone.

Cathedral of Avila

Continuing our run, the final stop was the Cathedral of Avila, a monumental building that was part fortress and part religious centre of the city. This had some incredible stonework carvings and also some beautiful painted altars. The cathedral was fabulously bright with lots of windows and a beautifully high vaulted roof. There were lots of saints and, I assume, bishops tombs, as well as a few knights and we were also able to visit the cloisters. These had been restored in the 1970’s and it looked like this was ongoing with a couple of areas blocked off and netting/sheeting covering some parts.

One of the attractions included in the €10 entrance fee was the VR experience. This was a fabulous addition and showed some areas from a different perspective as well as giving a good history of the cathedral. Sadly, of the 10 or so VR stations, only 1 was actually working so we had to take it in turns.

After all this exertion we felt we had earned an ice cream so we visited Vhola again and had a different selection whilst sat in the shade. It was a relatively quick walk back to the hotel to do more notes/photo editing/shower before going out for dinner.

It took a while to find a decent venue as even at 8PM, most places were still closed. We eventually found one next to our gelato shop and had ridiculously large pizza, goats cheese salad and chicken risotto for another bargain price. By the time we left things were starting to get busy and other places were opening up. We walked a half circuit of the walls and watched the sunset from the Carmen Gate. This was fantastic, there were huge numbers of swifts flying around and eating all the insects and plenty of people just enjoying the scenery.

We got back to the hotel and had cheesecake and a beer. I honestly think that I have doubled my calorie intake this holiday and although we have done some walking it is nowhere near enough to compensate for my lack of willpower. Deb then went back to the room and Mum and I walked out the gate and along the walls to the next gate, again enjoying the sight of the walls lit up and people just relaxing. No drunkeness, no litter, no graffiti, no violence. Just lovely. We got back to the hotel after 11 to discuss options for tomorrow.

After another fabulous breakfast we checked out of the Parador, collected the car and drove to El Escorial Palace, the massive monastery/palace/seat of government of the Spanish Hapsburg and Bourbon dynasties. We chose to go by smaller roads rather than the motorways and the CL505 road was just stunning, beautiful scenery and some fabulous bends that would have been great on a motorbike. We did actually see a huge cafe with rows of bikes parked outside as we were descending the mountains before joining the trunk road and continuing to El Escorial.

The sat nav took us on quite a convoluted route through the town, probably because most streets were one way, and the car park had one of the most awkward entrances I have ever seen. It would have pleased any castle designer with an S shaped entrance route and concrete columns either side, we drove VERY carefully through that to park!

El Escorial Palace Monastery

We hadn’t booked tickets but luckily there was almost no queue so we bought our tickets and followed the route through the rooms. The palace is so huge that it would not be sensible to let people wander so there is a precise route with ticket checks at several of the building entrances as you progress through. The scale of this palace is mind blowing, far larger than any stately home or Versailles for example. The courtyards outside the buildings were the width of a football pitch and there was no shade from the baking midday sun! As it was a Saturday it was reasonably busy but it absorbed the people easily.

First stop was the library, a fantastically decorated room with shelves of books (all put in spine first which seemed strange) and various globes interspersed with desks down the central aisle. The next room was the basilica, another larger than life room with a magnificent altar and domed ceiling. There were a large group of pilgrims inside so we didn’t stay long.

The first floor was blocked to visitors but we were able to see a magnificent painted ceiling above one of the staircases before another set of rooms with amazing ceilings and lots of artwork and then it was below ground to see the crypts. Spanish royalty have been buried in these tombs from the 16th century and although the tombs were uniform and rather austere, certainly compared to the Austrian Hapsburg tombs in the Kaisergruft, there was a definite majesty and permanence to them.

One of the most famous rooms in the complex is the Hall of Battles and this was the next stop on our tour. It lived up to it’s reputation with an immense hall with the walls adorned with huge paintings of various battles and campaigns. The main one seemed to be the Spanish fighting the Grenadines and the accuracy and detail was quite phenomenal. There were various other smaller paintings too showing battles against the French and Dutch, a very interesting part of the tour, for me anyway!

After the Hall of Battles there were various state rooms, furnished as they would have been a few hundred years ago. The were adorned with massive and intricate tapestries, mostly woven in Spain after the loss of the Spanish Netherlands and their weaving schools. I must admit these rooms interested me very little so I skimmed through them.

Our final stop, once we found them, were the gardens. These were immense, but frankly rather dull. Rather like the palace itself, where there was no ornamentation or architectural decoration and it was really rather austere. They were very formal and almost entirely consisted of box hedges with the occasional small orange tree. The wall bordering the gardens was planted with rose bushes which were in a beautiful and uniform pink colour and obviously well manicured.

There was a small area outside the complex where you could look over a pool and get reflections of the palace so I walked there while Deb and Mum sheltered from the sun. It was really rather hot and there was no shade in the gardens so they were probably quite sensible! There were a couple of gift shops in the complex but no cafes at all, it is a strange thing that the National Trust would probably have had a huge cafe with a terrace and do a roaring trade but very few Spanish attractions seem to do this.

After this exertion we got back to the car, very carefully navigated out of the car park and then took the motorway most of the way to Segovia for the penultimate stop on our road trip around Segovia and Avila. We had been warned by our hotel, Hotel Real Segovia, that there was no parking as it was on a pedestrian street so we would have to leave the car 80m away in a marked bay and they would move it to a parking garage.

What we didn’t realise was that we had to drive through a lot of other effectively pedestrian streets to get to the parking spot. That was quite a nerve racking drive but at least once the car was parked we wouldn’t need it for 2 days. It was quite amazing how busy the city was after what we are used too, Segovia was like Bath on a summer weekend.

Segovia Accomodation

The Hotel Real Segovia was lovely and only a few minutes walk from most of the sights. There was also a roof terrace with all round views so I hope to try that out later. Most importantly, we had a kettle! The hotel is on a pedestrian street so we opted for valet parking at €18/night which let us drop off the car about 50m away, unpack and then the car was removed to an offsite car park until we needed it again.

The location is in easy walking distance of all the main attractions in the city – the Alcazar is 15 minutes one way and the Aquaduct 10 minutes the other, with the walls, Jewish quarter, cathedral etc being in between. The bathrooms were lovely with a bath included, even in the standard rooms. There is also a rooftop terrace which we only visited once but would be lovely if you had a more relaxed stay!

We opted for breakfast both mornings rather than walking elsewhere and it was a varied selection with cooked as well as buffet options for €12. Service was friendly and efficient throughout our stay.

Segovia Bell Tower Tour

We unpacked and then met up with Mum to find somewhere to eat before our 6PM Cathedral Bell Tower tour. We found a popular cafe, had a quick tostada and coffee and then walked to the cathedral. This is a huge Gothic construction, built in the 16th century and incredibly elegant although the top of the bell tower is a later construction as the original burned down after a lightning strike. To appreciate the beauty of the building you really need a drone or hot air balloon as the skill of the medieval masons can’t be properly appreciated from the ground. I did a quick circuit of the outside before we all went in to start the tour. As soon as the woman mentioned it was a 200 step spiral staircase Deb very sensibly backed out!

The tour was actually fabulous, despite being in Spanish. There was an audio guide in English but as neither Mum or I had headphones it would have been a bit intrusive to have used it. After the first 70 or so steps – steep but very well maintained – we got to the initial stop, a multimedia presentation. This was absolutely fantastic and I’d happily watch it again, telling both the story of the cathedral and the history of Western religious art and how it permeates our entire culture.

We continued up the next 70 or so steps to the bell ringers house. This was a complex of rooms used for the bell ringer and his family to live in and was in use until the 1950s! There was a balcony for insane people to walk on and look at the view, 88 metres below. The final floor was an open room with the bells in arches and views all over the city and countryside. Although I was a complete wuss it was amazing to be able to see such a spectacle, even if all my pictures were taken 2m away from the arches and tower edge! Despite my cowardice I would recommend this tour to anyone, especially people I don’t like.

Segovia Cathedral

Included in the ticket was entry to the rest of the cathedral and it seems that each cathedral we have visited on this trip gets more and more spectacular. There was more fabulous artwork throughout the building but especially in the underground galleries.

The cloisters were just beautiful, especially with the low sun casting shadows across the floor. The rooms with clerical vestments and church treasures and reliquaries were certainly worth visiting too as was the Tapestries Room, although these were rather faded after 400 years. It was interesting that the paintings on display downstairs – including some famous ones – were listed by artist and then the title of the work. All in all I think we spent 2 hours in the cathedral.

We stopped for the obligatory gelato on the way back to the hotel before going our separate ways. I wrote up my notes but didn’t get a chance to sort the photos from today as I wanted to have a nice soak in the bath!

Woke at 7:30 to, oh, what a shock, blue skies! We had a nice cuppa in the room due to the bliss of having a kettle! After an extensive breakfast at the hotel we walked down the hill to the aquaduct. This structure was built in the reign of Trajan so is almost 2000 years old and extends for 1km through the town with over 170 arches and was still in use until the 1950s.

Segovia Aquaduct

Mum and Deb went to Ale Hop whilst I climbed the hill on each side for the views and then met them at the foot of the aquaduct where there was an outdoor basketball tournament going on. As a punishment for going shopping, Mum got stung by a honey bee on the cheek as we stood looking over the aquaduct! We were able to take the sting out immediately but the swelling and infection lasted a few days. Luckily she is a trooper so just soldiered on.

To get a better understanding of the aquaduct there is an interpretation centre that explains the construction oand use of the structure. We didn’t get a chance to visit this time but something else for our next visit. We climbed up the hill next to the aquaduct and then continued on into the Jewish Quarter.

There was a large Jewish community in the city prior to the expulsion in 1492 although they suffered periodic purges, expulsions and massacres, with their synagogues being converted into churches. There is a Jewish cemetery on the hill overlooking the Alcazar but very little else remains to mark their presence.

Mum and Deb walked down the main road to the Alcazar while I followed the route of the city walls, which were surprisingly intact in places although largely built on and into by newer houses. I re-entered the town through the Gate of San Andres and met up with them and we followed the route to the Alcazar.

Segovia Alcazar

This structure was started in the 12th century, after the Christian reconquest of the city from the Muslims. It was a royal palace for the Kings and Queens of Castile as well as an armoury, archive store and meeting places for the Castilian Cortes and 22 monarchs lived at the castle during its history. After its royal role declined the castle was used as the headquarters for the Royal School of Artillery. The castle was remodelled in the 16th century, adding the slate roofed tower spires that inspired Walt Disney to use Segovia as the Disney castle. Further remodelling took place after a fire in the nineteenth century.

We bought our tickets (€7 each) and frustratingly the tower tickets were all sold out. I hadn’t even thought of that or I’d have book them in advance. The tour through the castle was fabulous and it had a sensible route that was well signposted. There were displays of medieval arms and armour, fabulous stained glass windows and some absolutely awesome ceilings.

A lot of the work was done by Islamic craftsmen so there is a heavy Muslim influence in the design of the rooms and similarities with the Alhambra and Seville Alcazar. We also saw the throne room of the Castilian monarchs and the Royal Chambers and bed. The Hall of the Kings had an amazing decorated ceiling and a gallery of the rulers of Castile and Leon and the chapel had a famous 16th century rendering of the Adoration of the Magi.

The walls were impressive and the moat rendered the fortress pretty much impregnable to assault so it was more of a luxury retreat than a military fortress, certainly losing it’s military role as the frontier moved south during the Reconquista. The final area we visited was the Museum of Artillery – this had some interesting exhibits but all the text was in Spanish so we didn’t spend as long as we could there, much to Mum and Deb’s relief!

After that mental exertion we decided to have a drink in the cafe. Yes, the first place we have been to in Spain with a cafe on site! We decided that Mum and I would do a circuitous walk back to see one of the churches and a viewpoint and Deb would go back to the hotel to chill. Or relax anyway, you can’t chill in 30 degree heat.

Vera Cruz Church

There was a viewpoint over the Alcazar on the other side of the valley and from there you could walk back to the town via various footpaths so Mum and I opted to do that while Deb walked back to the hotel. Our walk led us out of the Alcazar grounds and then down a very steep, wooded hill before crossing the river and climbing the other side to the Iglesia de la Vera Cruz.

This is a beautiful 13th century church, possibly Templar in origin but now owned by the Sovereign Order of Malta, descendants of the Hospitallers. The church is twelve sided with an attached bell tower and originally held a fragment of the True Cross. Entry was €3 and the interior was plain other than a couple of paintings including an altar screen (I think). We climbed the bell tower, which had a very worn and very narrow set of spiral stairs, to enjoy the vista of the Alcazar at the top of the hill before leaving to continue our walk.

Mirador del Alcázar y los dos Valles

We left the Church of Vera Cruz, followed the road through the village, crossed the bridge and started our climb. After a while we reached the viewpoint – Mirador del Alcázar y los dos Valles – and it was worth the exertion. The panorama of the Alcazar and cathedral was just fabulous, one of the most iconic and inspiring skylines I have seen for a while.

We continued on the path although without Google I have no idea where we’d have ended up as there were various criss-crossing paths, trails that seemed to disappear and then continue and a general sense of navigating by feel. We were walking parallel to the city walls and then dropped down into the valley, climbed the hill and zig zagged until we re-entered the city at the Isabel Gate.

The route was beautiful, with wild flowers and pine forest to complement the fabulous human created scenery. We did stop at a cafe as soon as we got somewhere we recognised as we’d made the rookie mistake of taking no water to walk two hours in high twenties heat.

Back at the hotel I had a most welcome and required bath before typing up my notes while I remembered things. We then chilled for a while before heading out to dinner. By 7PM the temperature was very pleasant and there was a gentle breeze too. We walked to one place that looked good, only to find they were closed so we then walked back to the main square by the cathedral and looked to see what was open and, more importantly, actually doing food.

We settled on Pandora and that proved to be inspired. Mum and I had salmon with orange and rice and Deb opted for Ribs and fries. Ours was delicious and a lovely blend of flavours. We followed with triple chocolate dessert and arab filo pie with fruits, again both were fantastic. We then went back to the hotel ready to go out a bit later to watch sunset.

Sunset turned out to be a bit of a failure due to low cloud but Mum and I walked down to the aquaduct and took a picture of the selfie devil before strolling back. A few more steps to top up today’s total! The rest of the evening was spent sorting photos and notes which let my legs recover a little!

After breakfast at the hotel we packed and checked out. We had to wait for the car to be delivered back so Mum and I did a little 15 minute circuit to see the Selfie Devil and aquaduct again and the car was ready by the time we returned. The aquaduct is really quite an awe inspiring structure, even after 2000 years it is a monumental piece of architecture. I wonder if the Romans were as constantly proud or if they just took it for granted.

The drive out of Segovia was a little nerve wracking as some of the streets and corners were tight but we made it safely. We had decided to go and visit a castle for a change of scenery! This was a 40 minute drive from the town along a winding B road through fabulous farmland and hills with mountains in the distance. The area was incredibly sparsely populated but the villages we passed through were universally beautiful – well looked after and some lovely cafes which really ticks my two most important boxes!

Pedraza Castle

As we approached the castle along the valley road we had to stop for a photo as we could see Pedraza, perched on the clifftop above us. The whole village was on a cliff, like one of the Italian fortified hilltop villages. Which is what it was I guess. Only not Italian. We drove up the access road, through the narrow village gates and then followed an interesting route with the added delight of stone benches outside a lot of the houses just to make things a little narrower and turns a little bit more fraught. The parking area was huge and I guess it was for the entire village plus any events held at the castle.

As we approached Pedraza Castle we saw large birds of prey soaring overhead and from the signs at the entrance, it appears that the area is a nature reserve. The castle has quite a chequered history, built in the 13th century and home to the Dukes of Frias its claim to fame is that it was the prison of Francis I’s sons, held hostage after his capture at Pavia in 1515. The castle was slighted by Napoleon in revenge for the alleged poor treatment of the Princes and then abandoned, being used as a quarry by the locals.

In the 20th century the castle was bought by the painter Zuloaga for a nominal sum and restored as a residence and painting studio and his family still own the property. It is now a tourist attraction and also used for events such as weddings.

There is a large rock cut moat separating the castle from the rest of the village and this, combined with the steep cliffs, greatly aided its defense. The door was covered in metal spikes, probably as a defence against axes and fire maybe? It looked impressive anyway.

We entered the castle, paid our €5 each and walked up on to the outer ramparts. The views were, frankly, terrifying and I had flashbacks to that damned bell tower. We were able to watch the birds though which was distracting and then we returned to ground level and went through the access tunnel with portcullis to the inner bailey. This had a beautiful garden and also a swimming pool.

We were able to go inside the keep, which had been converted to living quarters for the Zuloaga family with some very nicely appointed rooms. Outside the castle I walked the length of the moat as there was a such a profusion of wildflowers it was beautifully photogenic. We walked through the village which seemed to have a lot of heavily restored houses so I’m not sure if it is a holiday location or just well looked after. The main street was very pretty and it seemed everyone had pots of window boxes of geraniums outside their house.

We stopped at El Corral de Joaquina cafe and had some fantastic cakes and much needed cold drinks! The village is around 1100m above sea level and it seemed stiflingly hot. Nothing that cake can’t solve though, the filo and cream one being particularly good. We then collected the car, carefully drove a different route through the village and then rejoined the B road for more scenic driving to our next stop.

La Granja

La Granja was chosen as a destination purely for the gardens, built by Philip V at the turn of the 18th century and influenced by Versailles. There is also a palace attached to the gardens, La Granja de San Ildefonso, but that was closed on Mondays. We were staying at the Parador, about 10 minutes walk from the palace and gardens so after checking in and dumping our stuff in our rooms, we met up and walked to the gardens.

Gardens of La Granja de San Ildefonso

It was around 4PM and still oppressive but we walked in the shade where possible. The gardens were free to enter so we walked through the gates to be presented with a beautiful spectacle of low box hedges and dahlias, interspersed with statues.

There wasn’t a route to follow as such, or not one we noticed anyway, so we just meandered around through the gardens, avenues and woodland. There were lots of fountains, due to the abundance of mountain streams nearby, but none were active and most were empty although the original hydraulic systems are largely still in use. The statues were impressive and were made of lead but painted to look like copper and bronze and displayed the usual mythological scenes.

We eventually reached the vista over the cascade that flowed down through more ornamental gardens that fronted the palace itself. Or they would have cascaded if the whole area wasn’t undergoing renovations and the entire cascade was being rebuilt.

What had been done so far looked wonderfully impressive and I think Philip V would have approved but for us I think we arrived a year too early. We continued exploring around more pools and bridges and eventually, after maybe 90 minutes gentle walking, found a bench so Mum and Deb could sit in the shade for a while. We walked back, along the rear of the palace, to the entrance. We had seen maybe 3 other groups of visitors during our time in the gardens and were frustrated that, yet again, there was no onsite cafe.

We walked back to the hotel, I nipped upstairs for a refreshing wash and then we all sat in the cafe with cool drinks to discuss our plans for the evening. Looking on Google and Trip Advisor it appeared that it wasn’t only tourist attractions that closed on Mondays so we decided to eat in the hotel later, even though the restaurant didn’t open until 20:30! We went back to our rooms, I had a definitely needed shower and a shave. Why does my stubble grow so much quicker in the sunshine?! I then spent some time doing notes before we met up at 8PM.

After looking through our information on Madrid, I felt a little better about visiting there. Our apartment is about 10 minutes walk from the Royal Palace, Temple of Debod and Royal Cathedral so that’s good, no city centre driving for me!

Accomodation in La Granja

We only had standard rooms in the Parador at La Granja, rather than upgrades but they were fabulous – large rooms with spacious bathrooms, a good sized desk, excellent wifi, plenty of sockets and plenty of storage. They did lack a kettle though, which was frustrating as I am usually up around 6AM and like to start the day off with a drink before breakfast. They were very good value too.

I’d say English was a bit limited at the hotel with most staff having about by level of Spanish although some were fluent in English but there were no issues and we were always able to work out what each other was saying.

We used the cafe twice in the Parador and the service was excellent each time as well as the coffee and cakes. We had a fabulous dinner at the Parador, pork shank for Mum, veal tenderloin for Deb and I with what we thought was a vegetable side dish but was actually a soup! Vegetables do seem a rarity in Spanish restaurants. Mum was so stuffed she just had a coffee for dessert, which she struggled to finish, I had a Segovian cake and Deb had berries marinated in lime and a carrot ice cream.

The breakfast the next morning (a €21 option) was excellent with a wide variety of cooked and buffet options in a lovely setting. A lovely way to start the day.

Valley of the Fallen

We had such a huge breakfast that we decided against visiting the Royal Palace at La Granja as it would have made the day too rushed. It will be good to return when the cascade is finished and the fountains are active and then visit the palace alongside the gardens. We had a chilled hour in our room, which went far too quickly, before meeting for coffee in the cafe. I am ashamed to say I ate more cakes and crisps despite needing an expandable waistband on my shorts.

Our first stop of the day was Valle de Cuelgamuros, the Valley of the Fallen monument, built in the Franco era to honour the war dead from both sides. It is a contentious monument as the 30,000 plus dead that were buried there were done at Franco’s behest rather than at the request of their families, often directly against their wishes. Franco himself being buried there only added to the controversy and his body was recently exhumed and moved by the Socialist government in 2019.

After buying our tickets on the entrance road (€9 each) we drove up the winding road, through pine forests, to the basilica. This is deserving of the name monument as the scale truly is monumental. The courtyard in front was massive and could have held thousands of people in an awesome setting, high up in the Guadarrama mountains, carpeted with pine trees. If you look at the pictures of the site, the scale can be seen by the miniscule size of the visitors. Once through the doors and in to the basilica this scale continued. It reminded me of a Chapter House of Space Marines in Warhammer 40k with massive gothic statues of armed angels looking down on you.

The interior of the basilica is apparently larger than St Peter’s but because it is dug in to the mountain rather than built up it can’t hold the record for largest church. It does hold the record for largest cross though with the cross that tops the hill being 150m tall, surrounded by 20m tall angels. As far as I know the cross can’t be visited any more as the funicular has been out of action for 10 years and there is still no date for returning it to use. The domed roof of the basilica has a fantastic painting of Jesus receiving the souls of the dead warriors (I think) but I was disappointed that there was no information at all about the site or the war and you weren’t allowed to take pictures.

Mirador del monte Abantos

We left the basilica and drove back down the hill to our other stop before we reached Madrid, Mirador del monte Abantos. From the photos, this Mirador gave fantastic views over the El Escorial Palace so we naively followed the sat nav, initially through the town on roads like the ones you see on the car chases in San Francisco, very very steep hills with a junction at the top and no place to stop and a moron behind trying to get in your boot.

Eventually this led on to a forest road marked “Residents Only” (but in Spanish) but hey, the Google reviews said people had driven here so off we went. After a hair raising, or stubble raising in my case, climb through the mountains we reached the viewpoint.

We dutifully took a couple of pictures, did a 9 point turn and then drove down the hill. The sat nav chose a different route down and all was good until we came to a barrier across the road, padlocked shut. Another 9 point turn, actually probably more like 15 point and we retraced our steps and went back the way we had originally come. The road was very narrow and potholed but luckily I had Deb in the back to give me advice …..

After a while, another barrier, again padlocked shut. Mum and Deb crossed the road to chat to the fire service guys there but they had no key and told us to speak to the park rangers a little way up the hill. Luckily they were able to open the gate and we shamefacedly drove through. So the lesson is, obey the signs and don’t blindly follow sat nav!

We continued on to Madrid, my heart rate slowly returning to normality. It’s a shame my Oura ring broke a few days ago because it would have made for interesting data analysis.

Accomodation in Madrid

It was a relatively easy drive to our apartment for the next two nights, in the Principe Pio area and Carlos was true to his word and met us there. The apartment looked fantastic and is less than 10 minutes walk from all the attractions we wanted to see. It also had an underground car park so we could leave the car as we won’t need it until we drive to the airport.

Temple of Debod and Principe Pio Viewpoint

After a quick coffee – we actually had a kettle in the apartment – Mum I left for the 10 minutes walk up the hill to the Temple of Debod. This is a 2nd century BC Egyptian temple that was gifted to Madrid following their help in preserving it after the Aswan Dam flooded it. The temple now stands on the site where the French executed Spanish rebels in 1808, depicted in the famous Goya painting and also where the military uprising that started the Spanish Civil War took place.

Frustratingly, the pools around the temple were all empty so no reflection shots for me and also you need to have a ticket to enter (free of charge but you need to register) and all slots were filled for today and tomorrow, despite no one being there other than 3 security guards. Slots are apparently for a maximum of 30 minutes, 15 visitors per slot but it looks like it takes 10 minutes at the most to visit so capacity could be doubled at a stroke …..

We walked around the park, looking at the views over the Royal Palace and Cathedral, tomorrow’s visit, before carrying on up the hill to visit the rose gardens we had spotted earlier to check them out for Deb. They were part of an Expo which finished 2 weeks ago but the roses were still fabulous so we had a good walk around to ensure they would meet Deb’s standards.

Back at the apartment I had a refreshing shower and then we crossed the road to Cafe del Ray for dinner. This was a fabulous experience, we were there two hours which was about an hour longer than expected but the food was wonderful (chicken risotto with mushrooms for me), they had 1906 beer, the carrot cake was fantastic and it was a lovely atmosphere. The 2 guys working there were rushed off their feet but it was nice to be able to relax and have a pleasant meal while people watching.

Gallery of the Royal Collections

Today was our day to explore the sights of Madrid near our apartment. We walked around the corner to our complimentary breakfast stop, provided with the apartment, before continuing on the ten minute walk to the Gallery of the Royal Collections.

This is a modern building next to the Royal Palace that houses 40,000 artifacts from six centuries of collections and had around 700 on display. We were intending to visit the Royal Palace but that had sold out so I opted for the collections instead, which in hindsight was sensible as we have been a bit overloaded with palaces already! Admission was €15 each and it opened promptly at 10.00. After leaving our bags in the locker we started our tour.

The gallery is split into two sections, the first details the Austrian monarchs, 16th – 18th centuries and the second the Bourbon monarchs, 18th – 21st centuries. This was a fantastic museum with a sensible selection of artifacts but laid out in a complementary way and with plenty of historical context information. We spent over 2.5 hours exploring the two floors and there were, as you’d expect, numerous items that were just fabulous, from paintings to tapestries to armour to blueprints to tableware.

There were descriptions of every monarch and their achievements and historical context and then further information on the individual items associated with that monarch. There were several excellent video presentations too, my favourite being the evolution of some of the royal palaces. The history of the monarchy in the last century was particularly interesting with the interruptions caused by the Spanish Civil War and the 1920’s coup d’etat and then the restoration of the monarchy in 1975.

One advantage of the galleries being in a new building was that they had a decent cafe, on site! After such an overwhelming amount of information we needed to sit down and process it before our next stop. I had the chocolate lava cake – which was delicious – and Mum and Deb had more humdrum desserts, which they found enjoyable.

Madrid Cathedral

We left the cafe and walked a few minutes to the Catedral de Santa María la Real de la Almudena, a 19th century creation not finished until the 1990s, that holds the Virgin of Almudena, patron saint of the city. The Virgin of Almudena is a wooden statue that dates back to either the 11th or 16th century, depending on the source I read but the altarpiece she was presented in was definitely 16th century.

We didn’t spend long in the cathedral but the painted ceilings and some, not all, of the modern stained glass were just fabulous and added light and colour to the building. There was no charge for entry, just donations.

Madrid Cathedral Crypts

Round the corner from the cathedral were the original 11th century Arab walls but there wasn’t much to see other than the information boards. We continued on to the cathedral crypts, another 20th century building. They were interesting to visit but for some reason I was expecting a lot older structure with more historical interest. Entry was again free with an optional donation.

From there we tried to teach Mum how Google Maps worked so she could navigate us back to the apartment. That was an education but we all arrived safely to relax, write notes and have a coffee. There was a discussion about visiting the rose gardens but a general air of apathy had set in with my travelling companions.

We visited Cafe del Ray again for dinner, a lovely experience again, before returning to our apartment to pack ready for tomorrow’s flight.

Leaving Madrid

We left around 6AM for the drive to the airport and returned the hire car with no issues. We went our separate ways after a coffee in the departure lounge, Mum to her domestic departure terminal and us to the international terminal.

We all agreed, at least to my face, that our road trip around Avila and Segovia had been a wonderful break. It was slower paced than we usually do with more free downtime each day. The two medieval cities of Segovia and Avila were absolutely wonderful and could easily have absorbed another day each. The Castilian countryside was beautiful, with fields of wildflowers and rolling hills and dotted with castles and palaces to visit. The bird life we saw was also fabulous, there were huge numbers of swallows in Avila and Segovia as well as the castles in between and Pedraza allowed us to view black vultures.

It was an eye opening at the lack of English spoken away from the coastal areas. We had certainly been spoiled in our previous trips so we will need to make far more of an effort for next time. Food wise, although there are some fabulous dishes, especially if you are a meat eater, there seems to be a distinct lack of vegetables served in restaurants. For next years road trip we are looking at the cities of Toledo and Merida, with a few short stops in between, another new area of Spain to explore.