Philip V was a homesick king. Born in France and raised at Versailles, he came to the Spanish throne in 1700 and spent much of his reign longing for the gardens of his childhood, so in the early eighteenth century he built himself a retreat at La Granja de San Ildefonso, on the northern slope of the Sierra de Guadarrama, and filled the grounds with French-style avenues, clipped hedges and an extravagant series of fountains and statues. The result is a baroque palace that looks out on a mountain wall rather than a French plain.
The gardens are the draw. Water is fed from the mountains above, and on certain days the fountains are switched on in sequence, a spectacle that draws crowds in summer and is worth timing if you can. The palace itself, a warm pink and cream building, houses a fine collection of tapestries, and Philip V, who abdicated and then returned to the throne, is buried in the collegiate church next door. There was also a royal glass factory in the town, which turned out mirrors and chandeliers, and the glass tradition survives in a museum.
The town sits at an altitude of around twelve hundred metres, which means cool nights even in summer and proper winters, and the pine forests of Valsaín stretch up behind it towards the Puerto de Navacerrada. The riding in and out is a lovely mix of sweeping main roads and narrower forest lanes, with plenty of shade and the scent of pine resin. The surface is good in general, but ice can linger in shaded bends from late autumn to early spring, so check conditions in the colder months.
San Ildefonso itself has about five thousand people and is a convenient stop, with a petrol station, cafes along the main street and several bakeries selling the local speciality of ponche segoviano, a sponge cake layered with custard and marzipan. Segovia, with its Roman aqueduct, lies only a short distance down the hill, so you can pair the two on a single day.
If you are here for pictures, the best light on the palace front comes in the morning, before the tour coaches arrive, and the gardens look their best in autumn when the chestnuts and limes turn gold.