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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.
History
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:
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 - 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.
Manzanares el Real: 8,600 inhabitants town by Manzanares river. It's part also part of Madrid version of the Way of St. James.
Manzanares el Real Castle
- Manzanares el Real Castle (10-17:30 Tue-Fri, 10-18 Sat-Sun; 5€/ 3€/ 2.50€ adults/ retiree and kids under 14/ students): 15th century castle built by Mendoza family in Isabelline style. It has a nice Gothic gallery and all the castle is decorated with 16the to 19th century furniture and 16th century Flemish tapestry.
- Nuestra Señora de las Nieves Church: 14th century church with a mixture of styles, having a Romanesque style nave and also a 16th century Renaissance portico.
Not far from Manzanares el Real it can be found La Pedriza, a geological feature of eroded granitic outcrops of great scenic interest. There's a short trail (1.5 km) and a long one, La Pedriza Loop (8.9 km), to explore these landscapes.
La Pedriza - Manzanares el Real is the starting and finishing point of other routes that go close to La Pedriza too: Collado del Cabrón-Los Llanillos Trail (10.2 km) and Collado Dehesilla-Collado Ventana Trail (12.4 km). This latter is a beautiful and complete excursion that offers amazing rocky landscape and a variety of flora and fauna that the visitor will enjoy.
La Maliciosa - Beginning in Cantocochino it can be discovered a trail that connects Manzanares el Real and Navacerrada, Charca Verde-Los Chorros-Maliciosa Loop (18.4 km), going by the pond Charca Verde and the peak La Maliciosa.
- Navacerrada: 2,911 inhabitants town located in the border between Madrid and Castile and León.
- Maliciosa Loop (8.6 km): difficult trail that goes by a river and reaches the peak La Maliciosa (2227 m).
- Barranca-Mirador de las Canchas Loop (10.4 km):
trail that crosses some streams and reaches the viewpoint Mirador de las Canchas.
Navacerrada in winter - It has Navacerrada Pass
(1,858 m high), very popular for locals in winter season to sky and
enjoy the snow. It's the origin/ending of several routes such as: Siete Picos Trail (12.1 km), a wonderful and popular hike with spectacular views and nice flora and fauna; Bola del Mundo Trail (6.5 km), moderate hike that is quite popular and that arrives to the peak Bola del Mundo (2257 m high), known because of its antennas. It works as a ski resort too.
- There's also a route, Montes Valsaín-Bola del Mundo-Cotos Pass Route (23.7 km), steep hike that connects Navacerrada Pass,
Cotos Pass and part of Valsaín Mounts, including Valtueña Waterfall.
Views from Peñalara Peak
- Not far from Navacerrada there's Cotos Pass. It's the starting point of trips such as Peñalara Trail (10.5 km), a trail that reaches Peñalara Lake and Peñalara Peak (2428 m high), the tallest mountain in the region of Madrid; or Peñalara Big Lagoon Loop (6.2 km), that arrives to the glacial lake Peñalara Big Lagoon and goes close to its sibling, Peñalara Small Lagoon.
- Rascafría: 1,663 inhabitants town in located in the northern part of the National Park, close to the parish of El Paular
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.
Interior of El Paular Monastery - 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.
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).
Purgatorio Waterfalls
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 - 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):
factory founded by Philip V of Spain shows several pieces and machines used for glass production and modern creations with this material.
Forest at Boca del Asno Trail - 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.
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