Segovia had been on my journey bucket checklist since I first noticed photos in my highschool Spanish 4 class. I even discovered a poster of the Segovia fort to hold on my bed room wall. So after we took a two-week household journey to Spain, I knew Segovia needed to be on our itinerary and we determined to take a Segovia day journey from Madrid.
Segovia is a captivating UNESCO World Heritage metropolis and we fell in love with its cute and crooked streets, spectacular historic sights, pleasant individuals, and nice meals. Situated simply 90 kilometers north of Madrid, a day journey to Segovia is simple so as to add to your Spain itinerary.
Segovia has one thing to enchantment to the entire household, together with an impressive 2,000-year-old Roman aqueduct, a fairy-tale-like fort, and a jaw-dropping cathedral. My eight-year-old cherished all of the issues to do in Seville with youngsters and rated it her favourite cease on our complete journey to Spain.
Attending to Segovia
By Automotive
Attending to Segovia is admittedly fairly simple. If in case you have a automotive, it’s a one-hour drive up the freeway. Plentiful parking is accessible on the prepare station and close to the Roman Aqueduct. From there you may simply stroll into city.
By Practice
One of many best methods to get to Segovia on a day journey from Madrid is on the high-speed AVE prepare, which is simply 27 minutes from Madrid’s Chamartin station. The trains are spotless and really snug. In case you are planning to take a Segovia day journey from Madrid, you may simply present up and attempt to purchase a ticket, however many trains do promote out so it’s safer to purchase tickets upfront.
f you’ve gotten any bother buying prepare tickets immediately from the USA, I have a tendency to make use of RailEurope when buying prepare tickets in Europe for simplicity. I feel it’s value shopping for upfront if you already know your plans for the peace of thoughts of a assured seat.
Simply remember the fact that there are a number of prepare stations in Madrid and your prepare to Segovia will probably go away from Madrid’s Chamartin Station. The station is pretty giant so you’ll want to give your self loads of time to find the proper observe on your prepare.
You’ll arrive at a really clear and trendy prepare station in Segovia. Plan to cease by the vacationer agent to get a map, bus schedule, or different recommendation about issues to do in Segovia. Because the station is barely out of city, you’ll must take a cab or a really quick, cheap bus journey downtown to a cease close to the aqueduct.  Since we needed to go to the Fort first after which stroll down the hill into city, we determined to take a cab to the Alcazar de Segovia, because it was the farthest web site we needed to go to.
By Bus
One other option to get take a Segovia day journey from Madrid is by bus. The bus will prevent somewhat cash, but in addition take a bit longer (most are 1 hour and 20 minutes versus the roughly half-hour on the high-speed prepare.) Busses go away from Moncloa Station in Madrid and arrive within the Segovia bus station.
Issues to do on a Segovia Day Journey
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Tour the Alcazar / Segovia Fort
Probably the greatest issues to do in Segovia is go to the Alcazar. It’s mentioned that the Alcazar de Segovia, together with the Neuschwanstein Fort in Germany, had been inspirations for Cinderella’s fort in Disney. When you spy the blue-gray turrets of this fortress on a hill, you will notice why.
After seeing the Moorish structure in Seville and Granada, the Alcazar in Segovia was our first glimpse of a medieval fort. The Alcazar de Segovia dates again to the twelfth century, beginning as an Arab fort earlier than turning into a royal palace.
In 1474, Queen Isabella I of Castile and Leon was topped on the Alcazar. As chances are you’ll know, she went on to turn into a big determine in Spanish historical past. Earlier than leaving on our journey, my daughter had learn a e-book about Isabella and noticed her as a robust girl and chief. On the journey, she turned conscious of her bloodier facet and needed to reconcile her uniting the nation with the atrocities dedicated towards Jews and Muslims throughout the Spanish Inquisition.
After serving as a palace, the Alcazar later turned a jail after which a army academy. At the moment, it’s a museum that’s open to the general public. Contained in the fort, you’ll find the armor of medieval knights, stained glass home windows, lovely tapestries, and carved engravings of Spanish rulers. Â
In case you are up for the climb, you may mount 152 stairs of the Tower of Juan II for a sweeping view of the hillside or a ravishing view over the city and cathedral. After taking time to discover the fort, we took a 15-20 minute stroll down into city. Â
Eat Roast Suckling Pig
The entire city is legendary for its roast suckling pig, however maybe none greater than Meson de Candido, which serves the pig entire and cooks it so tender they lower it with a plate. Earlier than visiting Spain, we watch On the Highway Once more on PBS with Mario Batali and Gwyneth Paltrow. It was an ideal introduction to Spanish delicacies and even acquired our daughter enthusiastic about making an attempt new meals. Once I noticed the episode in Segovia, I knew we needed to go to this restaurant and take a look at the roast suckling pig.
Meson de Candido sits within the shadows of the aqueduct with a ravishing out of doors cafe and indoor restaurant. We nonetheless have a household joke about seeing that little pig splayed out on a platter in its full kind. It was somewhat a lot for my daughter to deal with, so we didn’t order the entire pig, only a common serving of a leg on a plate.
For those who don’t get a reservation at Meson de Candido, there are numerous different locations to strive roasted pig on the town, together with Jose Maria.
Discover the Roman Aqueduct
After having fun with our lunch, we set about exploring the aqueduct. Constructed within the 1st or 2nd century, the aqueduct is 818 meters lengthy and options greater than 170 arches. Constructed by hand with out utilizing any mortar, that is an architectural feat that even youngsters will marvel at! I do know you may see Roman ruins all through Europe, however this was essentially the most spectacular exterior of Rome. The truth is, I discovered it much more spectacular than the aqueduct in Rome.
Undoubtedly take the time to stroll up the steps from Plaza del Azoguejo to see the aqueduct and town from above.
Go to the Segovia Cathedral
Strolling again by way of city to go to the outlets we quickly realized that the entire city was closed for siesta. Fortunately, the cathedral was nonetheless open so we stepped inside to chill off. The final gothic cathedral inbuilt Spain, the Segovia cathedral holds many similarities to those we visited in Barcelona and Seville. Â
Constructed within the sixteenth century, the Catedral de Segovia towers over town. Situated in Plaza Mayor, the Cathedral isn’t removed from the Alcazar so when you get an early begin, you may go to each within the morning earlier than lunch. Nevertheless, I loved visiting within the afternoon when most of the outlets on the town had been closed.
There are 21 beautifully-decorated chapels within the Cathedral. Nevertheless, our favourite a part of the Cathedral was the peaceable Gothic cloister that surrounds the backyard and timber within the middle courtyard. It was cool and calm within the cloister and we spent a while there enjoyable and catching up on our journal writing. You may additionally wish to take a look at the Chapter Corridor, which has many intricate tapestries.
Stroll by way of the Jewish Quarter
After the cathedral, we went to discover La Juderia, the outdated Jewish quarter, since we had been in search of out the small remnants of the Jewish neighborhood and Jewish historical past all through our time in Spain. The slim, crooked streets on this quarter are very charming and we noticed a couple of Jewish outlets and eating places.
We had been completely satisfied to lastly come upon a Jewish Instructional Middle with multimedia shows exhibiting the destiny of Segovia’s Jews. Whereas there aren’t many Jews left in Segovia, there’s proof of their legacy all through the quarter.
Earlier than heading again, we checked out the outlets on the town for some compulsory pig-related souvenirs and stopped at a bakery for a couple of scrumptious snacks. On the finish of the day, we caught a bus again to the prepare station.
We actually loved exploring the city of Segovia. The streets are clear and quaint, the surroundings is gorgeous and the websites are breathtaking. In case you are visiting Spain, you shouldn’t miss a day journey to Segovia!
We discovered it simple sufficient to discover on our personal, however there are additionally guided tour choices when you want. Whereas many individuals take facet journeys from Madrid to Toledo, I don’t suppose as many learn about Segovia. Perhaps that may be a good factor so it doesn’t lose its allure however I nonetheless extremely suggest it to anybody with a day to spare in Madrid!
If in case you have extra time to spend in Segovia, many individuals take pleasure in taking a sizzling air balloon journey, however we determined to try this after we had been in Ronda in Andalucia. You can even take a day journey that features Avila and Segovia.
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