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Royal Palace of La Granja of San Ildefonso

15 Plaza de España, Real Sitio de San Ildefonso, Castilla y León

Description

The Royal Palace of La Granja de San Ildefonso ("La Granja") was built in the 1720's (during the reign of Philip V) to serve as a summer residence for the Kings of Spain. It was designed in Baroque style with a strong influence from Versailles Palace, including extensive French formal gardens (610ha) with sculptural fountains representing themes from classical mythology. On the left side of the palace is an outbuilding that houses the Museum of Tapestries. The rooms of the palace currently open to the public correspond to the former royal apartments (including the Hall of Marble) and the royal chapel or Collegiate Church.

Access & Transport

The estate is located in the small town of San Ildefonso, 12km southeast of Segovia (CL-601). From Madrid it is a 75mins (75km) drive.

Instructions & Recommendations

The Royal Palace of Riofrío is only 15km away but there is an overlap in the nature of these attractions so we would not recommend visiting both on the same day.

Meta review

This is a well-known royal palace that is generally featured in travel guides and gets excellent online reviews with a few caveats. The highlight for most visitors is the beautiful gardens with the water features; the issue however is that most of them are seldom operational even though the layout is centred around them. As for the palace itself, the rooms are certainly visually impressive but photography is prohibited and the audio-guide is too descriptive and perhaps not informative enough. The tapestries get good feedback.

Environmental & Social

We could not find any environmental or social related information. We deem this attraction marginally negative from an environmental perspective (heating/lighting) though this is compensated by the green spaces. Part of the country's architectural and artistic heritage.

Conclusion

La Granja is impressive and enjoyable in many ways and deserve a special trip but it falls short on just a few aspects to make it the perfect package, beginning with having more water features operational. Still, we do recommend this attraction.

Key positive

Extensive gardens with plenty of sculptures and water features

An easy day trip from Madrid

Key negative

Lack of guided tours in foreign languages

No photos allowed inside

Suitability

Accessible for visitors with reduced mobility

About this Rating

TYPE

Desktop

RESEARCHED IN

August 2024

PROVIDER

Koreval

Included Items
None
Timing
Duration of visit
Last admission is 1h before closing. Closed on 24-26 Dec, 31Dec/01 Jan and 06 Jan

av. transport time:0h 45m

est. visit time:2h 30m

Regulated hours

Start of Season 1:Apr, 01

Season 1

MONDAY -

TUESDAY10:00 - 20:00

WEDNESDAY10:00 - 20:00

THURSDAY10:00 - 20:00

FRIDAY10:00 - 20:00

SATURDAY10:00 - 20:00

SUNDAY10:00 - 20:00

Start of Season 2:Oct, 01

Season 2

MONDAY -

TUESDAY10:00 - 18:00

WEDNESDAY10:00 - 18:00

THURSDAY10:00 - 18:00

FRIDAY10:00 - 18:00

SATURDAY10:00 - 18:00

SUNDAY10:00 - 18:00

Pricing
Age band
Age band
Regular price / pers.
Senior
65 - 99
€4
Adult
17 - 64
€9
Child
5 - 16
€4
Infant
0 - 4
€0
Price for students up to 25yrs old is 4 €

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