Beyond Madrid
Toledo, a private day from Madrid.
Half an hour from Madrid by high-speed train, with your own guide waiting at the station. The cathedral, the workshops, a table booked in advance, and back before dinner.
Why Toledo takes the whole day
Toledo sits on a hill inside a bend of the Tagus, and for centuries Christians, Jews and Muslims lived within the same walls. What is left of that is close together and easy to walk past: the cathedral, the synagogues, the churches, the workshops where metal is still worked by hand. It is the city El Greco chose to live and paint in. Seen in a hurry, it is a beautiful old town. Seen with someone who knows it, the streets start to explain themselves. That takes a day, and we plan it as one.
- Duration
- Full day
- Format
- Private guide, by train
- Guests
- Your party only
- Best hour
- Out in the morning, back before dinner
- Price
- On request
What it includes
- A private guide for the whole day, waiting at Toledo station
- Lunch booked before we leave
- Tickets arranged in advance
- A conversation before the date, not a form
- Reconfirmation 72 hours before you arrive
Settled in the written proposal
- The day, and the train out of Madrid
- How many are in the party
- Whether lunch and tickets are inside the figure
- What goes into the day, and what is left out
How the day runs
01
Out of Madrid
A high-speed train from Atocha at the hour fixed in the proposal. About half an hour later your guide is waiting for you at Toledo station.
02
The morning
The cathedral and the old quarter on foot with your guide, in the order agreed before the date.
03
Lunch
A table booked before you leave Madrid, chosen for the day rather than for the guidebook.
04
The afternoon
The workshops, a synagogue or El Greco, depending on what your party chose. Then the train back, in Madrid before dinner.
What can go into the day
The cathedral
The Gothic cathedral at the centre of the old town, usually the first visit of the day.
El Greco
The painter lived and worked in Toledo, and his work is still in the city, The Burial of the Count of Orgaz in the church of Santo Tomé among it.
The synagogues
Santa María la Blanca and El Tránsito, two synagogues of the city’s old Jewish quarter.
The workshops
Damascene, gold and silver thread worked into steel, is still made by hand in Toledo. We go to a workshop to watch, not to a shop to buy.
Before you write
- How far is Toledo from Madrid?
- About half an hour by high-speed train from Atocha, and around an hour by road. The day we plan goes by train: your guide meets you at Toledo station and sees you back onto the train.
- Is the day trip private?
- Yes. The guide works for your party and nobody else that day. There is no fixed departure and nobody joins the group.
- Is lunch included?
- Lunch is booked before we leave Madrid. Whether it is inside the figure, and the same for entry tickets, is set out in the written proposal before you commit to anything.
- What should we wear?
- Comfortable shoes. The old town is built on a hill and most of its streets are steep and paved in stone. In summer the afternoon heat is serious, and the day is planned with that in mind.
- Can we choose what to see?
- Yes, and we would rather you did. Tell us what your party is curious about and what they would rather skip, and the day is designed around it. The cathedral, El Greco, the synagogues and the workshops are where most plans start.
- How much does a private day trip to Toledo cost?
- It is quoted with the plan: the distance, the hours, how many of you there are, and whether lunch and tickets are inside it. Write with the dates and the size of the party and the figure comes back in writing.
Tell us when you would like to see Toledo.
The dates, the size of the party and what they are curious about. You will have a written reply within 24 hours.
concierge@insideexperiences.com