La Pedriza Visitor Centre

The La Pedriza Visitor Centre is the logical first stop before entering the massif. It is on the Camino de La Pedriza, about 2 km from the centre of Manzanares el Real, next to the tarmac track that climbs via the Quebrantaherraduras pass to Canto Cochino, and about 200 metres before the barrier. It is also the headquarters of the environmental education area of the Sierra de Guadarrama National Park. Entry is free.

What is inside and outside

The building has reception and information, a library, a conference room and temporary exhibition rooms, as well as the permanent exhibition 'Journey to the Sierra de Guadarrama', which tours the sierra from the summits to the valleys. Outside, on a fenced and landscaped plot of about two hectares, there are themed areas: the Pequeña Pedriza and the Rock Garden for geology; the Arboretum, Forests for the Future, the Aromatic Garden and the Ecological Garden for plants; and a bird observatory, an aquarium and a herpetofauna centre. They are visited independently; groups must book.

It is accessible for people with reduced mobility and has an adapted route for people with visual impairment. With prior booking, it lends two joëlette chairs so that qualified people can carry someone with reduced mobility through the mountains.

What it is useful for before a walk

Here they tell you which routes suit your level and time, and how access to Canto Cochino is. The Canto Cochino car park has a quota of 270 cars, which at weekends from October to May usually fills between 8:30 and 9:00; if it is full, from the centre itself the path of the Camorza gorge leaves on foot, easy and 4.9 km to Canto Cochino.

They also remind you of the rules: you do not leave the paths, dogs are always on a lead, camping is not allowed, swimming in the Manzanares is not permitted and bivouacking, only with a sleeping bag and no tent, is allowed only at Las Torres, El Laberinto and El Yelmo. There are guided activities for groups, which can be enquired about on 918 539 978, and for individuals in the Park's activity calendar.

Opening hours

The centre is open every day of the year from 9:00 to 15:00, except 1 and 6 January and 24, 25 and 31 December. Do not confuse these hours with those of the Canto Cochino information point, next to the Manzanares bridge, which from November to March opens only at weekends and on special days from 9:00 to 16:30, and from April to October daily, until 19:00 at weekends.

Getting there

By car, from the M-608 linking Collado Villalba and Venturada, at the turn-off at kilometre 25.7. By public transport, the 724 bus leaves from the Plaza de Castilla interchange; from the stop by the church or the one at the Montañero roundabout it is about 15 minutes on foot along the path parallel to the track. Line 720, between Colmenar Viejo and Collado Villalba, also stops.