One of the most popular day trips from Madrid is Segovia. Just about an hour away from Madrid, it’s an easy, inexpensive trip with lots of history and old world culture to offer. So naturally, it was the first day trip I took! 

Here is a peak into my day trip into Segovia with some helpful tips at the end!

My Day in Segovia:

The plan was to spend more time there, but between one thing and another I arrived at the Segovia train station around eleven. My day had been weird from the start: missed my alarm, spilled my coffee, you know, Murphy’s Law. Well, he struck again and our bus full of people got a flat on the way from the station into the city. It wasn’t a total disaster though; the view was pretty and ultimately I just laughed.

Once in the old city, I set off on foot. That’s my favorite way to get around a new place and discover all it’s quirks. The aqueduct is enormous, so I walked all around it to see from several points of view. I mean, it’s crazy to think that a Roman aqueduct built around 100 AD was used into the 19th century. Plus, it’s not held up by cement or mortar and is still standing. It’s not a complete ruin either: it’s deteriorated but not to the naked eye.

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After wandering up and around a ton, I decided to head into the old city. The aqueduct kind of serves as a gate between the old and new, and that’s what I came to explore: the old city of Segovia.

Now, there’s no specific path to take, or at least not one I took. I wandered, with the goal of eventually reaching Plaza Mayor, the main square of Segovia. Didn’t take long!

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Segovia’s Plaza Mayor has two main landmarks: the Cathedral (Catedral de Segovia) and the city hall building (Ayuntamiento de Segovia). I brought myself a homemade sandwich – because #budgettravel – so I sat and ate it on a bench there, observing my surroundings. It was a Friday, so there were several school trips, an Italian tour group and several workers setting up Christmas decorations on the city hall facade.

The Cathedral

After my snack, I went to the Cathedral. Because I’m a huge Cathedral dork, I paid to go inside and then to go up the tower to see the bells and the bell-ringer’s home. This seems crazy, but a bell-ringer and his family lived in the Cathedral tower up until the mid-1900’s! The whole system and set-up was really impressive. Now, the bells operate using an electronic system.

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One standout thing for me about the Cathedral was the inner courtyard, with several naves (kind of like wings) around it. Now they house artifacts and are more like museum spaces, but in it’s prime they were a library, reading and prayer rooms, and a grand hall where high-ranking Catholic officials would come meet. You’re not supposed to take pictures in there, so I could only get the courtyard and exterior shots of the naves.

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After the Cathedral visit, I meandered more around the old city, up and around. I accidentally made my way outside the wall, then back in, then back out. I took so many photos it’s obscene. Of street corners, balconies, and rooftops. Part of me felt like Belle walking around her town in Beauty & The Beast, it was that cute.

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Cochinillo Asado

Aside from the physical landmarks, Segovia is known for one other big thing: cochinillo. Now, to be a certified Cochinillo de Segovia, there are certain weight and age requirements, but essentially this it’s baby pig, reaching no more than three weeks old. It’s also normally served whole or cut in half, basically down the middle. Yes, it’s graphic. (Google it if you’re interested.) That alone is enough to put some people off, but being the foodie that I am, I had to try it, just not the traditional way. I went for the small portion or ‘racion’ of cochinillo asado, which was already cut in bite-size pieces and served with little crispy potato strings. Much easier on the eyes this way. I am going to go ahead and say nope. Not a fan. It has a very tender, slightly chewy texture with a strange flavor that I really can’t compare to anything else. I’m glad I tried it but never again.

I ended up downing two beers in an attempt to cleanse the palate, which fortunately came with a tapa also. Note: there are two recommended places for Cochinillo. I went to Restaurante Jose Maria, which I definitely recommend. There were tons of local families there and people on lunch from work, and the tapas and beer were both good!

The Alcazar

My haphazard attempt at a meal over, I was ready for my next major stop: El Alcazar de Segovia. I only knew one thing about the Alcazar: it was one of the two castles that supposedly inspired Disney’s Cinderella Castle. That alone is enough to intrigue you, right? Yeah. Me too. So I wound my way up more streets to the entrance of the gardens and up to the castle.

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Let me go ahead and say, technically the Alcazar is actually a fortress that passed through many hands, serving later as a palace, prison and military academy. I didn’t know this beforehand, so I expected a castle, preserved much like others I’ve seen throughout Europe. Wrong! It is now mostly a military museum, with only a few rooms styled to look like they might have when it served as a palace. Because of this, I didn’t quite love the inside. It felt weird, like a patchwork of history from room to room, not really telling much of a story. Plus, there was this one hall with tons of gold adornments and busts. Most people were in awe but it kind of weirded me out for some reason. The more I learn about history the more I associate all those gold adornments with some kind of medieval show of power and those things lose their charm.

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One thing I will say, the Alcazar has some views. If you can handle about 150 steps up a tight spiral staircase, then do it. The tower leads up to a terrace with panoramic views of the whole city that are simply breathtaking.

After asking several random strangers to take pictures of me, I made my way out of the building. From above I’d seen a walking path that seemed to go around the castle, so I headed for it. Since I was the only one headed this direction, I thought I’d found some kind of hidden gem. Low and behold it’s even marked as an ‘observation deck‘ on Google Maps! (It’s really a field, not a deck).

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I followed the path around the Alcazar to the Jewish cemetery, which is barely marked but was a medieval cemetery for Segovia’s Jewish community. From there, I headed back into the old city, had a coffee and made my way back to Madrid.

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Overall, I really enjoyed Segovia. It felt like I was going back in time and it wasn’t overly touristy like many other old cities I’ve visited in Europe. I would actually love to do a fully guided tour of the city, the Jewish Quarter and the Alcazar, so who knows! Maybe I’ll be back!

Tips for Travelers:

• Getting to Segovia: as I said before, you can go via bus or train. Train was the easiest for me because it seemed like the most user-friendly option. I couldn’t even figure out the bus website. Take the train from Madrid – Chamartin station and then the bus to the Aqueduct. If you’re concerned you’re on the wrong bus, ask the driver. They’ll help you out.
• Bring water bottles. Tap water is drinkable in Segovia, so you can fill up your cup rather than spending the extra euro or two. It’s a lot of walking, you’ll need it!
• Go on a weekday, if you can. Because of it’s accessibility to Madrid, Segovia is a very popular tourist and school field trip destination. It gets crowded.
• Visit the Cathedral and go up the tower. The video they play is kind of silly, but the bells and bell-ringer’s home are really cool. Plus, the views from the tower are stellar.
• Climb up the steps of Torre Juan II in the Alcazar. Also, entrance is free on Dia del Patrimonio de la Humanidad, which happened to fall on Nov. 16, 2018, the day I went. It was a lucky coincidence but if you’re traveling in November it may work out for you too!
• When visiting the Alcazar, walk down to Paseo del Eresma to a spot called Mirador de la Pradera de San Marcos. It’s a great path with stunning views of the Alcazar that leads around the wall.
• There is a bus from Madrid, which is a direct shot to the aqueduct, but I prefer train travel. I don’t like riding in buses if I can help it; you don’t know how the driver will be and trains tend to be roomier and a smoother ride. So on my trip, I decided to take the train from Madrid to the Segovia station and then the city bus from the station into the old city. *Spoiler alert: Segovia is much larger than just the old city, so the aqueduct is about a 15 minute bus ride from the station.*

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