Cobbled streets, narrow alleys and imposing historic buildings make up the fantastic atmosphere of Toledo. This historic city is home to one of Spain’s best-preserved ancient towns. Conveniently located a 1 hour drive from the capital, Madrid – Toledo makes the perfect day-trip destination. Its location and compact size makes Toledo a popular tourist destination; you can pack all the sights into one day, we however recommend spending at least a second day in this fantastic fortified town to truly immerse yourself in it!
Below is a list of all the things you simply must see in this beautiful city. Fair warning: Toledo is full of steep inclines so if you hate walking up steep hills and stairs, Toledo is not for you!
Alcantara Bridge
Not only are the buildings in Toledo stunning, the bridges you cross to get there are just as breathtaking. If you are driving to the city or plan on camping in your motorhome check out the best parking location below.
Toledo Park Up
If you have parked in the car park we recommend this is the bridge you cross to get into the fortified town. We must say it is quite the grand entrance! Alcantara Bridge was built by the Romans and spans the Tagus river. The bridge has a lot of history with it being rebuild many times, so if history is your thing this bridge should certainly interest you. We mainly love the bridge for how noble it looks and how it makes you feel important when you walk through the stone arches at either end of the structure.
City Gates
Toledo is a walled city, so to enter you need to go through a ‘gate’. The gates to the city in reality are grand stone archways. After crossing the Alcantara Bridge you are greeted by the Puerto del Alcantara (one of the city gates). There are many other gates for you to find in Toledo including Puerta Bisagra Nueva, Puerta del Cambrón and in our opinion the prettiest one – Puerta del Sol.
Catedral Primada
The gothic Cathedral Of Toledo is a real showstopper. Not only is the cathedral eye catching and massive, it is also normally surrounded by tourists taking pictures – you can’t miss it. Toledo Cathedral sits in the heart of the city in Plaza del Ayuntamiento, a square surrounded by beautiful buildings. It is considered one of Spain’s most important cathedrals, therefore it can be said this landmark is the most important building in Toledo.
You can explore the cathedral with an audio guide €12.50. This admission also gives you access to the bell tower, here you can enjoy panoramic views of Toledo.
Alcázar of Toledo
Dating back to the Roman times the historic Alcázar of Toledo is another example of a stunning building in Toledo’s skyline. Like most of Toledo, this building has an interesting past, it was sieged during the Spanish Civil War. Now the Alcázar of Toledo is home to the Spanish Army Museum.
If, like us, you are not the biggest history buff or museum fan the Alcázar of Toledo is best observed from a distance. We recommend waiting until the sun sets so you can see the building lit up at night – this is when the Alcázar of Toledo looks its finest.
Cromatica Museum
As we have already mentioned, we are not the biggest fans of museums – Cromatica Museum, however, is a museum we would definitely visit again. The exhibits in the museum are intricately painted musical instruments. You can get really close to see the amazing detail. Some of the paintings are beautiful, others, not so much. As well as the exhibits there is also live music from different performers throughout the day.
There are two different entrance fees to the museum. It is €8 to enter and receive one beer, wine or soft drink. Alternatively, it is €13 to enter and receive a cocktail. There is no option to enter without a drink. The museum is more like a bar with music which also happens to have a museum in it. We definitely recommend getting a cocktail here. The cocktails we drank in the Cromatica Museum are the best cocktails we have ever tasted!
Conclusion
Toledo is a beautiful, ancient city best explored on foot. You’d be mad to miss the opportunity to explore Toledo for a day, better yet, two days. The roman architecture is absolutely stunning and the atmosphere of the city feels like real, authentic Spain. No trip to central Spain is complete without checking out Toledo.
We hope this list helped inspire you to visit this fantastic ancient city in the Centre of Spain. There are many other great things to do in the nearby cities such as Madrid and Segovia too!
More Spain content coming soon!
If you have any questions please don’t hesitate to comment down below and we will get back to you! Also if you have any suggestions of other things ‘you must see in Toledo’, let us know!
