Walking
tours
The Patronato Municipal de Turismo (telephone number:
(91) 588 1636) organises a number of 90-minute walking tours in
English, costing €3 each.. Two of the more popular tours are
Hapsburg Madrid, and include the Royal Palace,
major churches and monasteries and taking place on Saturday 1000
hrs, all year round, and Legends of Old Madrid,
an informative and entertaining introduction to the city, during
the summer only. Both depart from the Oficina Municipal
de Turismo, Plaza Mayor.
Bus
Tours
Madrid
Vision (telephone number: (91) 779 1888 or 541 6321; fax number:
(91) 383 0766) bus tours depart daily from Puerta del Sol,
and run every ten to 25 minutes, depending on the season, 1000 hrs–2100
hrs during the summer and 1000 hrs–1900 hrs during the winter.
Cassettes with English commentary are provided on the tour, which
runs for approximately 75 minutes.
There is a choice of 3 routes:
Historic Madrid
(including the main sights of the Hapsburg and Bourbon city)
Modern Madrid (including the Paseo de la Castellana
and Santiago Bernabéu Stadium, Real Madrid’s football
ground)
Monumental Madrid (exploring
the Gran Via).
The hop-on-hop-off trip costs €10–12 (concessions are
available) and tickets are valid for one or two consecutive days
(depending on the option chosen).
Excursions
for half day
Monasterio de San Lorenzo de
El Escorial
This monastery is situated just 50km (31 miles) northwest
of Madrid, in the town of San Lorenzo de El Escorial.
The extraordinary rectangular edifice with four spired towers was
built by Philip II, as a memorial to his father,
Charles V, and is a combination of monastery, church
and palace. It contains numerous artistic treasures, an austere
17th-century church and a beautifully decorated library with vaulted,
painted ceiling.
Trains depart from Charmartín
Station to El Escorial, from where a two-minute
bus trip leads to the monastery.
Buses also
leave from outside Madrid’s metro Moncloa,
going directly to El Escorial monastery.
The road route
is along the NVI motorway, turning off on the A6 at 50km (31 miles).
The monastery is open Tuesday to Sunday 1000 hrs–1700 hrs.
Admission costs €3.01. Information is available from the Tourist
Office, Calle Grimaldi 2 (telephone number: (91) 890 5313), and
the Cultural Centre, Calle Floridablanca 10 (telephone number: (91)
542 0059).
For a Whole Day
Toledo
Often described as the soul of Spain, Toledo
lies 70km (43 miles) south of Madrid and is easily reached by bus
(from Estación Sur de Autobuses), car (along the N401) or
train (regular departures from Atocha Station). The capital of Visigoth
Spain (AD 567–711), Toledo is closely associated with the
Cretan-born painter, El Greco, who lived and worked
here from 1577 until his death in 1614. Regarded as the first great
genius of the Spanish School, some of his most famous paintings
are on show here, including El Espolio (Christ
Stripped of His Garments) in the Cathedral and The Burial of Count
Orgaz in the medieval church of Santo Tomé.
The hilltop city has changed little since medieval times and enjoys
a magnificent setting atop the Tagus Gorge. Visitors
should look out for the Moorish gate, Puerta de Bisagrai,
the Sinagoga del Tránsito, built in the
1360s and now a museum to Sephardic culture and the Jewish Diaspora
of the Spanish Jews, the cathedral and the magnificent Renaissance
hospital of Santa Cruz, now a museum. The Tourist Office, Puerta
de Bisagra (telephone number: (92) 522 0843) can provide further
information. |
