Aranjuez Royal Site

Aranjuez was a royal spring residence from the sixteenth century, and its layout is the reason UNESCO listed it in 2001: an unusually complete example of a designed cultural landscape, where a palace, formal gardens, irrigated plantations, a planned town on a grid and a river system were conceived together. The palace, largely eighteenth century, holds a porcelain room with walls entirely covered in Buen Retiro porcelain and a smoking room in the Alhambra style. The Jardin del Principe stretches for a kilometre and a half along the Tagus with a boat house museum and the Casa del Labrador, a small pavilion of extravagant interiors. Rodrigo's Concierto de Aranjuez was written about these gardens.

What to look for

• The palace state rooms - including a porcelain room and Arab smoking room.
• The Jardin del Principe - a long riverside garden along the Tagus.
• The Casa del Labrador - a small pavilion with lavish interiors.
• The planned town - an eighteenth-century grid around the royal site.

When to go

April to June and September to October, when the gardens are at their best; the strawberries the town is known for come in spring. Summer is very hot on the plain, and the palace closes on Mondays.

What to expect

The Casa del Labrador requires a separate ticket and timed entry, and has been closed for restoration at times. The gardens are large and involve long walks. Palace interiors are seen on a fixed route with photography restricted.

Nearby

Chinchon lies northeast; Toledo is forty kilometres west.