Sierra del Rincón Biosphere Reserve Information Centre

The Sierra del Rincón Biosphere Reserve Information Centre is at Calle Real, 64, in Montejo de la Sierra, about 8 km before the Hayedo de Montejo. It is a compulsory stop: all passes to visit the beech forest, both those booked online and same-day ones, are collected here. It is open Monday to Sunday from 9:30 to 14:45. Online passes are collected at least an hour before the path (the 10:00 one, at 9:30); the afternoon ones, before 14:30.

How the beech forest passes work

A visit to the Hayedo de Montejo is free, but the number of visitors a day is limited to protect the forest, and each person needs a pass, including children, except babies carried in a backpack. There are two ways to get one:

• Online booking. Passes are allocated by draw in two periods each month, from the 1st to the 5th and from the 16th to the 20th. If you are drawn, you have to collect it at this centre on the day of the visit and at least an hour beforehand; if you do not collect it in time, it is cancelled and goes into the in-person passes pool.
• Same-day in-person pass. The centre hands out on the spot the passes still free, including cancelled ones. If you have no booking, arrive early.

Schools, associations and local residents have their own procedures on the Reserve's website, sierradelrincon.org.

When you cannot visit

The beech forest is closed on Mondays, or the first working day of the week if Monday is a public holiday, and also on 24, 25 and 31 December and 1 and 6 January. Pets are not allowed in, except assistance dogs with their documentation. The access rules are set out in a 2025 resolution that can be consulted on the same website.

What else is at the centre

Besides the passes, the centre has a permanent exhibition on the natural and cultural heritage of the Reserve, with maps, models, dioramas, an ethnographic collection and audiovisuals. It also provides information on activities and on the tourist and hospitality offer of the six municipalities of the Sierra del Rincón, and the website proposes suggested routes around the area. For accessible information, the Reserve's website refers to the Community of Madrid's audio information and its data on accessible paths and facilities.

Contact: 91 869 70 58 and [email protected].

How to organise the day

Montejo de la Sierra is at the northern end of the Community of Madrid, and there is no useful bus for a same-day return: you need a car. Work out the journey so as to reach the centre with margin before the collection time, pick up the pass and continue the 8 km to the beech forest. On the way you can stop at Buitrago del Lozoya, where the tourist office on Calle Tahona is, and eat at the Asador Las Murallas.