Aqueduct of Segovia
This Roman built aqueduct bridge of Segovia is one of the city’s three major attractions. When you first arrive into this small town, this aqueduct is the first to greet you. Followed by the Segovia Cathedral in midtown and at the far back is the castle. This place felt like something out of a Disney movie. And funny enough, the castle did in fact inspire Walt Disney’s Cinderella Castle. This beautiful small town is a Unesco World Heritage – a visit here made it easy to see why, such a magical place!
The Aqueduct of Segovia is the most impressive Roman structure in all of Spain. The Romans built this one among many more during their imperialism. It’s a towering feat, it stands at 29 meters (95 ft) and stretches 818 meters long (2,683 ft), and features 170 arches in total. It really is an impressive and beautiful structure built by the romans.
The Aqueduct of Segovia even acts as a gate of sorts, on the other side you’ll find many restaurants and shops that cater to tourists. The highlight for me was the castle in the far back. I’ve seen castles before in Japan, Portugal, China and England, but this one was pretty special. Before reaching the castle, you’ll come across the Segovia Cathedral in the center square. This attractive cathedral was the last gothic cathedral built in Spain, built in 1768 and a stunning sight to gaze at.
Segovia Cathedral
There are a number of restaurants in this square to sit, relax and take in the sights of this stunning gothic cathedral. The purpose for my visit was the castle, so I kept moving but not before stopping for a few photo ops of the wonderful vistas from this town. Beauty just surrounds and thrives here.
It was a warm summer day during my visit – I covered a lot of ground walking the length of the aqueduct and to the far back of the town to reach the castle. Each of the three attractions were wonderful, but the castle – just beautiful!
Alcazar of Segovia
The Alcazar of Segovia was built sometime around 1122 and rebuilt after a fire in 1862. Walt Disney took inspiration from this castle, it does indeed look like something you would find at Disneyland. There are a couple of courtyards inside and the two guard towers offer wonderful views of the surrounding areas. And there is even a lifting bridge at the front of the castle!
It costs about €5 for a combined ticket of the castle and for the upper tower. I spent a decent amount of time viewing the inner castle before making my way to the top. To enter the top you will have to exit and go through a separate security entrance. The stairs to the top, are steep and quite narrow. You’ll have to go through a dark and claustrophobic spiraling staircase to reach the top – there is not enough space for more than 1-2 people to ascend and descend at once. After a warm day and loads of walking, this was a pretty taxing climb.
Inside you will find a chapel and a gallery room, war room, throne room and the queen’s chambers. There are four floors an attic and a large basements. The interior is decorated with golden ceilings of square and rhombus shapes and walls covered in velvet and portraits of royalty. There was a lot to see once inside, but just like with every other tourist attraction – expect to have to deal with crowds of people.
I visited Segovia from Madrid, which is an hour and fifty minute train ride and costs about €9. From the train station you can catch bus No. 11 for €1 and it’ll take about 20 minutes to reach this beautiful town. You’ll need several hours to really enjoy this town, which is totally worth visiting. I loved my one-day mini trip to Segovia. Before I left I did stop by a few souvenir shops and for a well earned late lunch. If you are visiting Madrid be sure to pay this town a visit too. Happy Travels!