In this guide
💡 The Short Version: Take Cercanías C-3 from Atocha, Sol or Chamartín. The Royal Palace is €9, open Tuesday to Sunday and closed Mondays; the Wednesday and Sunday 15:00 to 18:00 free window is for EU citizens, residents and Latin American citizens only. The Tren de la Fresa, a restored wooden-carriage train, runs on set weekend days to 8 November 2026: the English Tour is €53 and the train alone, Fresas al Natural, is €32. Or book a tour: Guided Day Trip to Chinchón, Aranjuez & Toledoad is from €69 for 11 hours and lists the Royal Palace entry as included; on the ground, Aranjuez: Royal Palace Guided Tourad is from €12 for 75 minutes. A tour covers three towns in one booking (GetYourGuide).
Getting there
| Option | What to know |
|---|---|
| Cercanías C-3 from Atocha, Sol or Chamartín | Zone T of the Tourist Travel Pass covers Cercanías; fares and times on renfe.com |
| Tren de la Fresa | Historic train from the Museo del Ferrocarril to Aranjuez on set days to 8 November 2026 |
| Day tour | 11 hours, from €69ad, with Chinchón and Toledo |
The C-3 runs through the Sol tunnel, which Renfe has closed on weekends in 2026 for works. Check Renfe’s notices before you travel.
The Strawberry Train
English Tour €53 · Fresas al Natural €32 · weekends to 8 November 2026
The Tren de la Fresa has run since 1984 over the route of Madrid’s first railway, built in 1851 for Isabella II to reach the palace at Aranjuez. It leaves from the old Madrid-Delicias station, now the Museo del Ferrocarril, and actors ride with the passengers. The Fundación de los Ferrocarriles Españoles runs it on weekends in spring and autumn. The autumn 2026 season runs from 3 October to 8 November, on set days that include 17, 18, 24, 25 and 31 October and 1, 7 and 8 November. The spring season returns in 2027.
| Ticket | Adult | Child (1 to 1.40 m) | What it includes |
|---|---|---|---|
| English Tour | €53 | €42 | Return train, a video-guided visit to the Royal Palace, entry to the Royal Barges Museum, guided walks and a coach tour of the monumental area and gardens, and strawberries on the way back |
| Fresas al Natural | €32 | €24 | The return train only |
On the English Tour the train leaves between 10:00 and 11:00 and returns between 18:38 and 19:30; children under 1 m travel free if they do not take a seat. Book at trendelafresa.es, where the days for each ticket are listed.
The Tren de la Fresa, a steam locomotive hauling wooden carriages. Photo: Andrés Gómez - Club Ferroviario 241, Wikimedia Commons, CC BY-SA 2.0.
Tours from Madrid
Prices are GetYourGuide’s lowest “from” prices for one adult. The Royal Palace’s own ticket is the cheaper way in; the tours add the guide and, in the first case, the transport.
| Tour | Length | From | What it covers |
|---|---|---|---|
| Guided Day Trip to Chinchón, Aranjuez & Toledoad (183 reviews) | 11 hours | €69 | Three towns; the listing includes the Royal Palace entry |
| Aranjuez: Royal Palace Guided Tourad (115 reviews) | 75 minutes | €12 | A guided tour of the palace, in Aranjuez |
| Aranjuez: City and Gardens Guided Walking Tourad (47 reviews) | 2 hours | €12 | A walk through the town and the gardens |
Tickets and prices
Patrimonio Nacional runs the palace and sells tickets at tickets.patrimonionacional.es. Prices are the operator’s own.
| Ticket | Adult | Reduced | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| Royal Palace, self-guided | €9 | €4 | Reduced: ages 5 to 16, over-65s, students to 25; under 5 free; online booking fee €0.77 |
| Royal Palace, guided by staff | €17 | €12 | In Spanish, about 1 hour |
The palace opens Tuesday to Sunday, 10:00 to 18:00 from October to March and 10:00 to 19:00 from April to September, and entry stops an hour before closing. It is free for everyone on 18 May. The guided visits in winter run on Tuesday, Thursday and Friday at 10:30, 11:30, 12:30, 13:30 and 15:15, on Wednesday at 10:30, 11:30, 12:30 and 13:30, and on Saturday and Sunday at 10:30 and 12:30.
What to see
Aranjuez is a flat town about 50 km south of Madrid at the meeting of the Tagus and Jarama rivers, and UNESCO lists its royal estate as a cultural landscape. It was a springtime residence of the Spanish kings. The palace is the one ticket; the rest is walking.
The Royal Palace
€9 · Tuesday to Sunday 10:00 to 18:00 until 31 March
The 18th-century palace has rooms that include the Porcelain Study and the Throne Room. The guided visit lasts about an hour. The palace is closed on Mondays.
The west façade of the Royal Palace of Aranjuez. Photo: Rodelar, Wikimedia Commons, CC BY-SA 4.0.
The gardens
Jardín de la Isla and Jardín del Príncipe
The Jardín de la Isla is a formal garden beside the palace. The Jardín del Príncipe is a large riverside park with a botanical garden, a Chinese garden, the Casa del Labrador and the Royal Barges Museum, which the Strawberry Train’s English Tour includes. Hours and prices are on Patrimonio Nacional’s pages.
A path between fruit trees in the Jardín del Príncipe, Aranjuez. Photo: Javier Perez Montes, Wikimedia Commons, CC BY-SA 4.0.
The town
Aranjuez is known for its strawberries and asparagus. A tourist road-train, the Chiquitren, runs round the town and the Prince’s Garden. On Saturdays there is a street market on Calle Valeras, facing the palace.
Planning the day
- Not Monday. The palace is shut.
- Check the C-3 for weekend works at Sol before you book a Saturday or Sunday.
- Palace first, then the gardens, in the morning, as the palace stops entry an hour before closing.
- Weekends to 8 November are the Strawberry Train; otherwise the train is the Cercanías.
- Free afternoons on Wednesday and Sunday are for EU citizens, residents and Latin American citizens; everyone else pays €9.
Aranjuez is one of the day trips from Madrid. El Escorial is the other Patrimonio Nacional trip, and Toledo shares a tour with it. Madrid public transport covers Cercanías and the Tourist Travel Pass, and what to book before you go to Madrid lists the sights that need tickets. Where to stay in Madrid compares the areas. The Royal Palace in Madrid itself is in Royal Palace of Madrid tickets.
Common questions
How do you get from Madrid to Aranjuez?
By Cercanías line C-3 from Atocha, Sol or Chamartín. The Tourist Travel Pass in zone T covers Cercanías. The C-3 runs through the Sol tunnel, which Renfe has closed on some weekends for works, so check Renfe's notices for your date.
How much is the Royal Palace of Aranjuez?
€9 for an adult and €4 reduced (ages 5 to 16, over-65s, students to 25); under 5 free. A visit guided by Patrimonio Nacional staff in Spanish is €17. Online tickets carry a €0.77 booking fee. The palace is closed on Mondays and on 1 and 6 January, 1 May, 29 May, 4 September and 24, 25 and 31 December in 2026.
Is the Aranjuez palace free?
On Wednesday and Sunday from 15:00 to 18:00 for citizens of the European Union, residents and workers there, and Latin American citizens, at the box office, for the visit without a guide. It is free for everyone on 18 May. Visitors from the UK, US, Canada and Australia pay.
What is the Strawberry Train?
The Tren de la Fresa is a restored wooden-carriage train from the Museo del Ferrocarril in Madrid to Aranjuez, run by the Fundación de los Ferrocarriles Españoles on weekends in spring and autumn. The autumn 2026 season runs from 3 October to 8 November. The English Tour is €53 for an adult.
Is Aranjuez worth a day trip?
For a palace and gardens it is the easy one: a commuter train from Atocha, a palace that opens Tuesday to Sunday, and a river garden beside it. The royal estate is a UNESCO cultural landscape.
