Spain Guide
Around Madrid
Aranjuez
A short train journey from Madrid, in a little oasis in the beginnings of New Castile, Spain's eighteenth-century Bourbon rulers set up a spring and autumn retreat in ARANJUEZ. Their palaces and luxuriant gardens, which inspired the composer Joaquín Rodrigo to write the famous Concierto de Aranjuez, and the summer strawberries (served with cream – fresas con nata – at roadside stalls), combine to make it an enjoyable stop.
The showpiece eighteenth-century Palacio Real, alongside the river (Tues– Sun: April– Sept 10am–6.15pm; Oct– March 10am–5.15pm; €4.50) and its gardens (daily: April– Sept 8am–8.30pm; Oct– March 8am–6.30pm; free), were an attempt to create a Versailles in Spain; Aranjuez clearly isn't in the same league, but it's a very pleasant place to while away a few hours.
The palace is more remarkable for the ornamental fantasies inside than for any virtues of architecture. There seem to be hundreds of rooms, all exotically furnished, most amazingly so the Porcelain Room, entirely covered in decorative ware from the factory that used to stand in Madrid's Retiro park. Most of the palace dates from the reign of the "nymphomaniac" Queen Isabel II, and many of the sexual scandals and intrigues that led to her eventual removal from the throne in 1868 were played out here.
Outside, on a small island, are the fountains and neatly tended gardens of the Jardín de la Isla. The Jardín del Príncipe, on the other side of the main road, is more attractive, with shaded walks along the river and plenty of spots for a siesta. The small Casa de los Marinos or Museo de Faluas here (Tues– Sun: April– Sept 10am–6.15pm; Oct– March 10am–5.15pm; €2), houses the brightly coloured launches in which royalty would take to the river. You can do the modern equivalent and take a boat trip through the royal parks from the jetty by the bridge next to the palace (Tues– Sun 11am– sunset; €7).