Sierra de Guadarrama National Park (also know as Parque Nacional de la Sierra de Guadarrama) is
a 340 km² Spanish park in Guadarrama mountain range in the border between the Community of Madrid and Castile and León. It is quite popular for people in Madrid to have day trips. The National Park was created in 2013.
How do I arrive to Sierra de Guadarrama National Park?
The ways to arrive to this National Park are diverses.
- Train: there are trains every hour to Cercedilla (aprox. 1 hour 20 minutes), in line C8, from Atocha Railway Station for 4.30€ (one way). From Cercedilla there are at least 4 daily trains to Navacerrada Pass (aprox. 25 minutes) and Cotos Pass (aprox. 40 minutes).
- Bus: there are buses from Plaza de Castilla Bus Station in Madrid every 30 minutes to Manzanares el Real (aprox. 1 hour), 3 daily buses to Rascafría (aprox. 2 hours 15 minutes), buses every 15 minutes from Moncloa Bus Station to Cercedilla (aprox. 1 hour 10 minutes) and every 30 minutes to Navacerrada (aprox. 1 hour). There are also buses to Real Sitio de San Ildefonso from Segovia (aprox. 35 minutes).
- Car: if you rented a car and want to reach Cercedilla, it's 30 minutes trip from San Lorenzo de El Escorial, 45 minutes from Segovia, 1 hour journey from Madrid and from Ávila.
Once
in the Park, a good choice to move along it is renting a bike and cycling along it or going hiking on it. Using the park you can go from Cercedilla to Navacerrada (aprox 10 minutes), to Manzanares el Real (aprox. 20 minutes), to Rascafría (aprox. 45 minutes) and to Real Sitio de San Ildefonso (aprox. 35 minutes) too.
History
The area has being an important crossing point between the northern and southern part of the Inner plateau, keeping some remains of former Roman ways. Around Middle Ages, with Henry IV of Castile there was a palace in Valsain (precursor of current Granja de San Ildefonso Palace) and it began to be use for hunting by the Castilian monarchy, but it was owned by the House of Mendoza (whose castle was in Manzanares el Real). From the 16th onwards it was used as shoot place for Spanish kings like Charles V. In the Peninsular War here took place the battle of Somosierra (1808), with a French army leaded by Napoleon I forced a passage to Madrid and in the Spanish Civil war occured the battle of Guadarrama, in which the Spanish Republic army managed to stop the advance of the rebels one. The National Park was established here in 2013.
What can I visit in Sierra de Guadarrama National Park?
These are some things to do in this National Park, explained now according to the town where they are or the nearest one:
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Cercedilla Natural Pools
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Cercedilla: 6,948 inhabitants town located in the entrance of the National Park. It's part of one of the oddest and less known trails of the Way of St. James, Madrid's one.
- Cercedilla Natural Pools: natural water pools located in the middle of the mountain. Nearby it can be found an adventure park.
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Miradores de los Poetas Trail (7.8 km): trail around the natural pools of Cercedilla, that gets into the woods and by a former Roman road. From the viewpoint Mirador de los Poetas there are very good views.
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- Rascafría: 1,663 inhabitants town in located in the northern part of the National Park, close to the parish of El Paular
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Interior of El Paular Monastery
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El Paular Monastery (11-13:30 and 16-19 from Apr to Oct; 11-13:30 and 16-18 from Nov to Mar; 7€/ 4€ adults/ retiree): Carthusian monastery built in 1390 (the first of its kind in the kingdom of Castile) with Gothic and Baroque styles. Its most outstanding piece is the alabaster altarpiece from the 15th century.-
St. Andrés Apóstol Church: 15th century church with some works of art that come from El Paular Monastery amd whose spire was destroyed during the Spanish Civil War.
- El Perdón Bridge: 14th century bridge restored in the 18th century.
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Purgatorio Waterfalls
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Not far from the town of Miraflores de la Sierra (6,262 inhabitants), it can be done Canencia Pass Trail (13.1 km). This hike is quite easy and it's one of the most attractive ones that can be done in the national park. It's also close Purgatorio Waterfalls, a waterfall that can be visited by taking Purgatorio Waterfalls via Morcuera Shelter Trail (10.9 km), that begins at Morcuera Pass. It's very recommended to do it in spring, the moment when it has more water falling. Another posible hike from Morcuera Pass is Morcuera Pass-Navahondilla Trail (13.9 km).
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| Granja de San Ildefonso Royal Palace |
Real Sitio de San Ildefonso: 5,267 inhabitants town located in the region Castile and León, in the province of Segovia, but still part of the National Park.
- Granja de San Ildefonso Royal Palace (10-20 Tue-Sun from Apr to Sep; 10-18 Tue-Sun from Oct to Mar; 9€/ 4€/ free adults/ retiree, students and kids under 16/ kids under 5): Rococo style palace built in the 18th century by king Philip V of Spain, considered to be Spanish version of Versailles Palace. Its interior displayings rooms with marble from Carrara, Japanese lacquer, crystal chandeliers, portraits and other paintings and a museum of Flemish tapestries. The palace is still one of the official residences of the Spanish royal family. Its French style gardens designed by René Carlier are also very impressive, considered to be one of the greatest examples of European garden from the 18th century. Its main highlights are its fountains.
- La Granja Royal Crystal Factory (9-19 Tue-Sat, 9-15 Sun from Apr to Sep; 10-15 Tue-Sun from Oct to Mar; 6€/ 5€/ free adults/ retiree and students/ kids under 10):
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Forest at Boca del Asno Trail
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factory founded by Philip V of Spain shows several pieces and
machines used for glass production and modern creations with this
material. - Close to this town there's the village of Valsaín (173 inhabitants), home of the Ruins of Valsaín Palace, a 16th century palace comissioned by king Philip II to the architect Gaspar de Vega that suffered a fire in 1682 and was abandoned. From here there are some interesting hikes such as Boca del Asno Trail (11.4 km), a trail that goes by river Erasma into a pine forest in the area known as Boca del Asno.
Where can I eat in Sierra de Guadarrama National Park?
Some of choices to eat within Sierra de Guadarrama National Park are Terraza Jardín Felipe (Calle Mayo 2) in Navacerrada or Rincón del Alba (Calle de la Paloma 2) in Manzanares el Real.
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Banknotemaniac
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