La Granja de San Ildefonso

Philip V, the first Bourbon king of Spain and a grandson of Louis XIV, built La Granja from 1721 on the site of a farm belonging to the Segovia monks, and he built it to remind him of Versailles: a palace with a long garden front, and gardens laid out by French designers over 150 hectares with woodland avenues, parterres and twenty-six monumental fountains of lead sculpture depicting classical scenes. The fountains work entirely by gravity from a reservoir above, with no pumps, and they run on a small number of announced days each year, drawing large crowds. Inside, the palace holds a tapestry museum with Flemish and Spanish work. A royal glass factory in the village produced the palace's mirrors and chandeliers.

What you actually see

• The gravity fountains - twenty-six lead fountain groups running without pumps.
• The formal gardens - 150 hectares of French-style parterres and avenues.
• The tapestry museum - Flemish and Spanish weaving in the palace.
• The glass factory - a royal works in the village with a museum.

When to go

April to June and September to October for the gardens; the fountains run only on a handful of announced days, typically around late May, July and August, and dates are published each year. Winter here is severe, with snow common.

Honest expectations

The fountains are off on almost every day of the year, and visitors who arrive expecting them running are usually disappointed. Running days draw very large crowds. The palace interior is seen on a fixed route and is smaller than the gardens suggest.

Nearby

Segovia is eleven kilometres northwest; the Guadarrama national park rises directly behind.