How to Spend a Weekend in Segovia

segovia spain travel guide weekend parador travel outfit summer
Segovia is a small city with big heritage. The soaring aqueduct is undoubtedly its most famous landmark and it is probably the most important Roman monument surviving in the heart of a modern city. However, this is not the only jewel of the city. Segovia’s Alcazar looks like a fairy tale castle, in fact, it is said that Walt Disney was inspired by it to create Sleeping Beauty’s Disneyland castle.
Would you like to join me in a walk around this magical and stunning city?Unesco World Heritage old town roman aqueduct Segovia travel guide weekend Spain

El Acueducto is an 894m-long engineering wonder. Built in the 1st century AD, not a single drop of mortar was used to hold more than 20,000 granite blocks together. Seems impossible, right? That’s why we are still amazed by it today.

Unesco World Heritage Alcazar Segovia travel guide weekend Spain

Looking at this place, I feel that Rapunzel could have been trapped in one of these towers. This fairy tale looking fortress was originally built in Roman times and rebuilt in the 14th century. The place was destroyed in the 19th century so what we see today is a reconstruction of the original. The name Alcazar comes from he Arabic al-qasr which means fortress.

Unesco World Heritage Alcazar Segovia travel guide weekend Spain
segovia spain travel guide weekend san millan cathedral old town Unesco World Heritage

Other places worth visiting in Segovia’s Unesco World Heritage old town are the Gothic cathedral and San MillĆ”n, the most important Romanesque church.

segovia spain travel guide weekend romanesque

The region of Segovia has so much more to offer. Once you are done with the city, there are a few other places where you must stop. First and foremost is the Royal Palace of la Granja de San Ildefonso which we visited on last week’s post.

segovia spain travel guide weekend la granja san ildefonso royal palacesegovia spain travel guide weekend parador travel outfit summer
In this little town you can also find a great place to stay: El Parador de la Granja. This beautiful hotel is in the Top 10 Paradores list for good reason. It is housed in the Casa de los Infantes, built by king Charles III in the 18th century as a home for the infantes Gabriel and Antonio. Even though Segovia has it’s own Parador, this one is far more charming and it’s only 10 km away from the city. segovia spain travel guide weekend parador hotel la granja
segovia spain travel guide weekend parador la granja

In the Parador restaurant you can try dishes from the local cuisine like the famous judiones de La Granja (broad beans from La Granja) or suckling pig and lamb slowly roasted in a wood-burning oven.

segovia spain travel guide weekend parador menu typical food judiones la granja
segovia spain travel guide weekend parador menu typical food
segovia spain travel guide weekend parador menu typical food
segovia spain travel guide weekend parador menu typical food
segovia spain travel guide weekend parador menu typical food
Royal Glass Factory and Museum of La Granja is another must in this town. Here you can discover the evolution and methods of working this material over the centuries. The factory was established in 1727 by king Philip V to make lamps, windows and mirrors for the Royal Palace.
segovia spain travel guide weekend glass factory and museum
segovia spain travel guide weekend glass factory and museum
segovia spain travel guide weekend glass factory and museum
Last but not least we have the Royal Palace of Riofrio. This palace was used by the Bourbon dynasty as a hunting pavilion and a place to rest and relax. Here you can visit the Hunting Museum and see great examples of tapestry and sumptuous 19th century furniture. It is 10 km from Segovia and 20 km from La Granja de San Ildefonso.segovia spain travel guide weekend riofrio palace palacio
segovia spain travel guide weekend riofrio palace palacio

Segovia is a great day trip from Madrid or weekend getaway if you want to visit nearby areas too. Full of Spanish history, there’s no shortage of things to learn here.

PRACTICAL INFO

  • The most famous restaurants in Segovia are Conde Duque and Meson de Candido. They are said to serve the best cochinillo (roasted suckling pig) in town. Make reservations ahead.
  • You can get to Segovia from Madrid by bus, train -the high speed train takes only 30 minutes- or drive for one hour.
  • On Sunday mornings you can enter the Cathedral for free, otherwise it’s 3€.
  • Entrance to the Alcazar is 8€.

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segovia spain travel guide weekend alcazar judiones

0 thoughts on “How to Spend a Weekend in Segovia”

  1. What an interesting place. The cathedral reminds me of a German castle. Thanks for the guide xx Passion fruit, Paws and Peonies

  2. Loving this post about how to spend a weekend in Segovia. WeĀ“ve only been once and it was too cold to really enjoy or see much.. canĀ“t wait to go back and explore more šŸ™‚

  3. What an amazing place. I love all the pictures and the food looks to die for! I would for sure love to visit .

  4. Couldn't you just get lost in the Royal Palace of la Granja de San Ildefonso?! It looks amazing. Hope it's not one of those palaces that they rope off 90% and only let you see a few rooms and the gardens.

  5. Heather Castillo

    I've never heard of Segovia, but it's absolutely breathtaking. It looks like the Disney castle has come to life!

  6. I had only really heard of Segovia's aqueduct before but the rest of the city looks so beautiful to explore – the Alcazar really does look like something from Disney, I can well believe he was inspired by it. There are so many Spanish cities I'd love to spend a weekend at, but this is definitely one of them. Thanks for linking up with #citytripping

  7. Untold Morsels

    Somehow I missed beautiful Segovia on several trips to Madrid. I'm definitely going to have to rectify that. What a stunning place – as you say, straight out of a fairytale. Thanks for sharing on #FarawayFiles

  8. Clare Thomson

    Segovia looks absolutely stunning, Cristina! The castle alone would make me want to visit but there's so much more to it too. I love smaller cities like this. Definitely adding to my wishlist. It's a wonderful share for #FarawayFiles

  9. What a beautiful place – and somewhere I’m not familiar with – so thanks for the introduction! It does have a fairytale look to it and the aqueduct is incredible! Thanks for linking #citytripping

  10. Anywhere We Roam

    Looks like a great place to spend a weekend, but the food! WOW, some of those dishes looked amazing.

  11. Chrissy Carroll

    Wow, this looks like something out of a fariy tale! I would love to just walk around an explore, as well as try all the tasty foods you mentioned.

  12. And all this time I thought the Disneyland Castle was inspired by Neuschwanstein Castle in Bavaria, Germany!! You learn something new everyday!

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