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In the middle valley of the Lozoya River, Buitrago stands on a promontory surrounded by the Lozoya River, from which it takes part of its name. It is located at the foot of the mountain pass of Somosierra and about 75 km north of the city of Madrid.
It stands out for the medieval wall as Muslim as Castilian and Christian, which surrounds its historic center and is in turn surrounded by the Lozoya River. Its castle or Alcazar together with the Church of Santa Maria del Castillo, the Clock Tower and the wall give a medieval air to this municipality, which boasts a cultural agenda so active that has proposals for the four seasons.
Buitrago del Lozoya is one of the most picturesque municipalities of the Community of Madrid because of its walled enclosure, well preserved and surrounded by the river from which it takes its name.
Along with ten other tourist municipalities of the Community of Madrid, Buitrago del Lozoya is part of the tourist promotion program Villas de Madrid. This town was declared a Historic-Artistic Site and an Asset of Cultural Interest in 1993, thanks to its spectacular walled enclosure of Arab origin, the best preserved in the Community of Madrid.
Since the Middle Ages, Buitrago has had great strategic importance as a communications hub. Over time it has suffered various confrontations in its territory, such as the passage of Napoleonic troops in 1808 that caused a population and economic collapse from which Buitrago took many decades to recover or the Spanish Civil War, with the location of the Somosierra front just a couple of kilometers from the municipality.
More information: Buitrago del Lozoya
Credits Image: Buitrago del Lozoya © Andrés García Martín. Shutterstock
To begin our route through this region, we start on the A-5 to Villamantilla, a town with the important church of San Miguel Arcángel, from the 16th century. We continue to Villamanta, in the old town it is worth stopping at the church of Santa Catalina. Continuing along the M-507, we arrive at Aldea del Fresno known for its beach.
We continue our route towards Villa del Prado, where we have to visit the church of Santiago Apostle from the 15th century. We have to cross a small stretch of the province of Toledo to reach our next destination, Cadalso de los Vidrios, where its heritage legacy will surprise us.
From Cadalso we arrive at Cenicientos, it is relevant to observe the Piedra Escrita, a Roman monolith from the 2nd century. If we continue, we arrive at Rozas de Puerto Real, it is worth visiting its Church of San Juan Bautista, from the 15th century. We arrive at San Martín de Valdeiglesias, where we must visit the 15th century Castillo de la Coraceda. Inside you can taste some of the wines of the area. If you are traveling with your family, you will be interested in a visit to the Enchanted Forest, especially if you are traveling with children.
If we take the M-501 towards Madrid we find Pelayos de la Presa, a traditional village of river vacationers. It has interesting remains of a 12th century monastery, as well as prehistoric paintings. In the area of the Pantano de San Juan, you can also practice outdoor activities such as climbing. We pass the port of San Juan and come across Navas del Rey, a town where the Garganta de Picadas stands out.
We take the M-512 and cross a satellite tracking station (which is part of the NASA deep space network), at the end we reach Robledo de Chavela, where we highlight the Church of the Assumption (Gothic of the fifteenth century). From Robledo to the west, we arrive at Valdemaqueda, a town where its five-eyed bridge over the Cofio River is characteristic.
We can follow a circular route through towns like Robledondo, Navalaespino, Santa María de la Alameda, Las Herreras, La Estación, La Paradilla and La Hoya.
We continue to Zarzalejo, where the 15th century Church of San Pedro Apóstol stands out. We continue to Fresnedillas de la Oliva, where the Church of San Bartolomé, from the 16th century, stands out. From Fresnedillas, we arrive at Navalagamella, where the Church of Nuestra Señora de la Estrella, from the 15th century, stands out. If we continue along the M-610, we pass through Colmenar de Arroyo, where we can see the Romanesque bridges of La Fragua and El Caño. We finish our tour of the Sierra Oeste in Chapinería, a town where we must observe the Church of the Immaculate Conception and the Palace of the Marquis of Villanueva de la Sagra, both from the seventeenth century.
Learn more: https://www.madrural.com/
The park is located in the Guadarrama Range, between Madrid and Segovia. These mountains are an extraordinary refugee of biodiversity. Glacial Cirques and Lagoons, mountainous landscapes and huge pine groves make the area an attraction for the active tourism like hiking or winter sports.
Te presentamos MadRural, un proyecto que agrupa la rica oferta turística rural de tres áreas de la Comunidad de Madrid: la Sierra Norte, la Sierra Oeste y la zona de Las Vegas y la Alcarria. Naturaleza, patrimonio histórico, cultura, ocio e infinidad de experiencias turísticas.
¡MadRural te sorprenderá!
Más información: MadRural
Santiago Bernabéu stadium is home to the Real Madrid Football Club. It also houses the soccer club's trophy collection, the Real Madrid Museum. Its visit also allows a guided tour of the Santiago Bernabéu stadium to see the dressing rooms, the facilities and the perimeter of the field itself.
Address: Av. de Concha Espina, 1, 28036 Madrid. Travel the easiest by Metro, you just need to get off at Santiago Bernabéu Station.
Cívitas Metropolitano is Atlético de Madrid Football Club main headquarters. As its neighbour team, Real Madrid, Atlético’s main stadium also hosts a club museum, Territorio Atleti. Inaugurated in 2020, it has 1400 m2 dedicated to the history of the local football club.
Address: Av. de Luis Aragonés, 4, Madrid. Easiest way to reach the stadium is travelling by Metro to Estadio Metropolitano Station (Line 7)
In the Sierra de Guadarrama National Park, at the gates of La Pedriza, stands the Castle of Manzanares El Real, the best preserved castle in the region of Madrid. Located in a place steeped in history, heritage and culture, it was declared a historic-artistic monument in 1931.
The history of this castle dates back to the Reconquest, when the area was in conflict and the lords of Segovia and Madrid fought. After the mediation of Alfonso X, it passed into the hands of the Crown and was called "El Real de Manzanares". At the end of the 14th century, Real de Manzanares passed into the hands of Mendoza, who enjoyed its maximum splendour for the next two centuries.
The theatrical visits to the Castle of Manzanares aim to bring us closer to the Spanish Renaissance period, through characters belonging to one of the most influential families of the time, the Mendoza family. During the plot we will discover the history, architecture, uses and customs of the different rooms of the castle.
The National Museum of Natural Sciences, located in Madrid, is one of the most important natural science research institutes in Spain. Its fields range from climate change and biodiversity to palaeobiology.
The Chamberí district is home to one of the oldest natural history museums in Europe and the most important in Spain. Since its foundation in 1771 by King Charles III with the acquisition of the collection of the enlightened Pedro Franco Dávila, and the creation in 1776 of the Royal Cabinet of Natural History, which allowed the institution to increase its holdings, it has held scientific and didactic collections that have supported research and the dissemination of natural sciences.
Many of its collections are permanent, such as 'Minerals, fossils and human evolution', 'Biodiversity' or 'The Royal Cabinet'; others are temporary and aim to bring the sciences closer to the younger public. Discover the history of the most lively science in the heart of Madrid.
The Madrid Planetarium was inaugurated in 1986 and soon became a major reference in the spreading of astronomy, science and educational research. It is located inside the Tierno Galván park and recently, during 2016 and 2017, it underwent a thorough renovation of both technology and its facilities.
Always with the aim of contributing to the dissemination of astronomy and science in general, both among schoolchildren and among the public of any age and condition, it has a varied offer of audiovisual projections, exhibitions and activities in the field of scientific spreading (workshops, courses, conferences, public observations...).
Come to the Planetarium to discover a universe of constantly renewed projections. Come and gaze upon the stars!
Are you ready for an even greater and more fascinating adventure? Don't miss the Museum of Illusions, where a visual, sensory and educational experience awaits you. A range of new unexplored illusions will leave you completely intrigued.
The museum is a space of tours for all ages. From the youngest children to adults, a world of illusions awaits in its rooms to surprise everyone. The tricks and illusions have a playful and spectacular purpose, but also an educational one. Everyone will learn through the most sophisticated illusionism.
Your senses will betray you -you will be simply fascinated. Dare and join this sensory journey that will make you doubt whether you are in reality or in a parallel world where everything is magical. A unique space for new experiences and enjoyment with the family, not to be missed.
The Madrid Wax Museum, one of the most attractive family museums in the city, is located in the central Plaza de Colón. It opened its doors in 1972 and, since then, it has been surprising its public with impressive recreations of well-known personalities and faces.
Sportsmen, singers, actors or politicians; the museum houses figures of celebrities from all over the world. Rafa Nadal or Marc Márquez; on the other hand, Cleopatra or Napoleon- everything is possible in the Wax Museum! What's more, the recreation of atmospheres, settings and decorations adds an immersive value that will make you feel like you're standing in front of your idols.
The museum has a total of 450 figures, some with a long tradition in the museum, others recently added to its collection. Come and visit the always intriguing Madrid Wax Museum!
The permanent exhibition of the Navy Museum, through its rooms, offers a journey through Spanish naval history, from the end of the Middle Ages to the present day, and shows the contribution of the Navy to the social, cultural, economic, military and scientific progress of Spain and the world.
Visitors can learn about the different types of ships and shipbuilding systems developed throughout history, the scientific advances in navigation and its related sciences, such as cartography and astronomy, the weapons and equipment used for life on board, the Spanish discoveries and expeditions during the Modern Age and the evolution of the Navy itself over its eight centuries of history.
Interspersed in this historical itinerary, a series of monographic spaces develop in depth specific aspects related to the rich and heterogeneous collections of the museum. By the end of the tour, the visitor is expected not only to have enjoyed and learnt, but also to be convinced that he or she belongs to a secular nation with a Navy with centuries of history.
A real sweets museum that offers an immersive experience through taste, delicious! Discover this innovative concept that breaks with the traditional contemplative way of enjoying a gallery.
At SweetSpace Museum, the sense of taste displaces all others to immerse you like never before in a great collection of experiences. Do you dare to try? Innovative experiences and lots of fun in a tour of themed rooms with interactive exhibits to stimulate all the senses. An interactive tasting adventure.
OThe ABC de Serrano shopping centre hosts this unique and sweet proposal where the protagonist is the sense of taste. Through different experiences, the little ones will have fun with interactive exhibitions that seek to stimulate all the senses, inspiring imagination and creativity.
A very special museum with the collaboration of different artists such as Agatha Ruiz De La Prada, Okuda San Miguel or Antonyo Marest, among others. Don't miss it!
Atlantis Aquarium Madrid is an aquarium with more than 2,300,000 litres of water and 10,000 marine animals from all over the planet, distributed in 20 ecosystems or real tanks.
It is a new concept in educational and participatory leisure. It is open every day of the year and is located within the large family leisure centre, C.C. intu Xanadú.
Its aim is to raise awareness of the importance of sustainable development and learning about aquatic ecosystems and thus promote their conservation and that of the entire planet.
To meet its educational and awareness-raising objectives, Atlantis has a space of more than 6,000 square metres (including the technical area) to reproduce various habitats and keep the animals in unbeatable conditions.
Are you going to miss it?