Royal Palace of Aranjuez

The Royal Palace of Aranjuez was the country residence of the kings of Spain, the house to which the court moved in spring. It stands in the plain where the Tagus and the Jarama meet, surrounded by 111 hectares of gardens open to visitors, and is part of the Aranjuez Cultural Landscape, a UNESCO World Heritage site. You enter by the façade facing Plaza de Parejas, on Avenida de Palacio.

What you tour

The visit passes through the Bourbon rooms, furnished and decorated as court apartments. The two pieces most remembered are the Porcelain Cabinet, a room entirely covered in porcelain plaques from the Buen Retiro factory, and the Hall of Mirrors. Allow an hour and a half on your own, unhurried; with a guide, an hour.

Prices

Basic admission costs €9 and the reduced rate €4 (ages 5 to 16, over-65s and students up to age 25). The audio guide costs €5 and the guide service €8 on top of admission, which makes the guided visit €17. On Saturdays and Sundays there are guided sessions at 10:30 and 12:30; on weekdays there are more. Arrive at the ticket desk ten minutes early. Tickets are bought at the official Patrimonio Nacional ticket desk, online or at the palace itself; the ticket desk does not accept €200 or €500 notes.

The Casa del Labrador, the little palace in the Prince's Garden, has a separate ticket, at €10. The Island and Prince's gardens are free.

Hours and free afternoons

It opens Tuesday to Sunday: from October to March, from 10:00 to 18:00, with last entry at 17:00; from April to September, from 10:00 to 19:00, with last entry at 18:00. It is closed on Mondays all year and on some public holidays: in 2026, 1 and 6 January, 1 and 29 May, 4 September and 24, 25 and 31 December. On weekends in March and October, with the clock change, the hours vary.

On Wednesday and Sunday afternoons, from 15:00 to closing, admission is free for EU and Latin American citizens and residents with a work permit, with a ticket from the desk.

During the visit

You may take photos without flash for personal use, except where indicated; tripods and selfie sticks are not allowed. There is access for people with reduced mobility and manual wheelchairs on loan, in the palace and in the Royal Barges Museum.

How to get there and what to do afterwards

By train, the Cercanías C-3 line from Atocha; by bus, the AISA and SAMAR lines from the Estación Sur at Méndez Álvaro; by car, on the A-4 and the turn-off to the M-305. When you leave, the Island Garden is right next to the palace, and the Prince's Garden leads to the Casa del Labrador and the Royal Barges Museum. The day of palace, gardens and boat puts all that together.