Fodor's Travel Talk Forums - Trip Report 13 Glorious Autumn Days in Spain!

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Day Trip to Toledo – Monday, November 11, 2020

Holy Toledo! On Monday we were off on a day trip to see the spectacular cathedral in Toledo (a quick half hour train ride from Madrid), see more El Grecos (we’d viewed several of his paintings at the Prado), wander the old town, and ride the little tourist train across the Tagus river for scenic views of the city. From our hotel we rode the Metro to Atocha Rail Station and caught an early train (38 Euros for two senior round trip tickets) to the beautiful rail station in Toledo, designed in neo-Mudajar style. A quick taxi ride (6 Euros) deposited us in Zodocover Plaza, and from there we walked to the famous cathedral (built 1226-14930), stopping to buy some nougats along the way.

We bought our tickets, which came with a very helpful audio guide (18 Euros for two), and spent an hour-and-a-half touring this amazing place. Viewing the altarpiece (constructed 1498-1504) with its intricate polychrome carvings depicting scenes from the life of Christ was a highlight. The ornate golden ironwork screens here and in front of the choir and chapels were so beautiful, as was the San Blas Chapel (1397) with its blue ceiling and wall paintings, and El Transparente (The Transparent), a Baroque altarpiece that is uniquely lighted by natural light, thanks to openings in the ceiling that allow shafts of sunlight to illuminate it.

The Choir was notable for its organ, the 13th century sculpture of the White Virgin and another depicting the Ascension of the Virgin, two carved wooden lecterns, and rows of intricately carved stalls, some adorned by whimsical animal carvings. The lower stalls were carved by Rodrigo Alemán between 1489 and 1495 and tell the story of Granada’s conquest.

In the Chapter House and the Cloisters we enjoyed beautiful wall frescoes, while the Sacristy displayed impressive works by Rafael, Velazquez, and El Greco, most notably his famous painting The Disrobing of Christ.

The centerpiece of the Treasure Room was the 10-foot high, 15th-century gildedMonstrance de Arfe, which is carried through the streets of Toeldo during the Feast of Corpus Christi.

From the Cathedral we walked a few minutes to Iglesia de Santo Tome to see El Greco’s 1584 painting Burial of the Count of Orgaz (6 Euros for two). We were underwhelmed with both the painting and the church and would suggest that unless you’re a big fan of El Greco, move this down or even off of your list of sights to see in Toledo.

We were hungry by this time and made our way to Bar Ludena at Plaza Horno de la Magdalena 10 for lunch. All of the seats inside were taken but we were able to sit outside, with heaters to help keep us warm on a chilly day. My husband ordered the paella (8 Euros), which was very good, while I had the menu del dia (15 Euros), with a first course of Judias blancas (white beans with chorizo), a second course of carcamusas, bread, drink, and flan for dessert. The white bean soup was so good and so filling that I could have stopped there, but the carcamusas was delicious, too, and I’ve never had a flan I didn’t like, including this one. Total cost of the lunch with my husband’s drink was 26 Euros.

We meandered through the streets of Toledo back to Plaza Zocodover, bought tickets for the TrainVision sightseeing train (14 Euros senior rate for two) and warmed ourselves with hot coffee at McDonald’s while we waited for the train, which carried us across the river and stopped at two viewpoints, where we were able to get off and take lots of photos over the old town of Toledo. I bet the view was even more beautiful at night.

The train returned us to Plaza de Zocodover and we walked around the old town for a while before taking a taxi back to the rail station (6 Euros), catching the 5:57 pm train back to Madrid Atocha, and the Metro to our hotel. We’d had a large lunch and weren’t hungry enough for dinner but walked through Plaza Mayor to Chocolateria San Gines and indulged in the delicious churros and chocolate we’d been searching for throughout Spain ($8.80). What a great way to end the day!

Miles walked 7.08 miles

Taxis (Cordoba and Madrid) 12 Euros

Train (Madrid-Toledo RT) 99 Euros for 2, senior fare

Hotel (in Madrid) 84 Euros

Lunch 26 Euros

Snacks 7.40 Euros

Churros & Chocolate (in Madrid) 8.80 Euros

Admissions(Churches) 24 Euros

Sightseeing Train 14 Euros for 2, senior rate

The Neo-Mudajar Toledo Rail Station

Sounds like a great day.

Still here, enjoying and reliving my trip! Thanks!

Quote:

Originally Posted by Adelaidean (Post 17079440)

Sounds like a great day.

I have mixed feelings. I LOVE visiting cathedrals and this one was beautiful but not really more impressive than many others I've visited. Part of me wishes we'd had another day in Madrid instead. I think we would have enjoyed Toledo more had we spent the night.

Quote:

Originally Posted by joannyc (Post 17079773)

Still here, enjoying and reliving my trip! Thanks!

Great! Getting ready to post more from Toledo! I hope the current crisis passes soon so that we can all get out to see more of this beautiful world.

Toledo Cathedral - The Retable

Toledo Cathedral - The Choir

The Choir was notable for its organ, the 13th century sculpture of the White Virgin and another depicting the Ascension of the Virgin, two carved wooden lecterns, and rows of intricately carved stalls, some adorned by whimsical animal carvings. The lower stalls were carved by Rodrigo Alemán between 1489 and 1495 and tell the story of Granada’s conquest.

https://cimg1.ibsrv.net/gimg/www.fod...a3480cedd4.jpg
Looking into the choir

https://cimg8.ibsrv.net/gimg/www.fod...e220b68da3.jpg
Looking from the choir toward the altar

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The organ

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The White Virgin

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Carving on choir stall

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Carving on choir stall

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Carving on choir stall

Toledo Cathedral - The Transparent

El Transparente (The Transparent) is a Baroque altarpiece that is uniquely lighted by natural light, thanks to openings in the ceiling that allow shafts of sunlight to illuminate it.

https://cimg6.ibsrv.net/gimg/www.fod...79ef2f3943.jpg
Looking toward El Transparente

https://cimg5.ibsrv.net/gimg/www.fod...180f10e04b.jpg

https://cimg3.ibsrv.net/gimg/www.fod...4490d9685c.jpg

https://cimg8.ibsrv.net/gimg/www.fod...7d83c1c8d2.jpg
The opening in the ceiling allows sunlight to illuminate the altarpiece.

https://cimg7.ibsrv.net/gimg/www.fod...ed097d375f.jpg

https://cimg9.ibsrv.net/gimg/www.fod...3aff803dba.jpg

Toledo Cathedral - San Blas Chapel

Toledo Cathedral - The Chapter House

Toledo Cathedral - The Cloisters

Toledo Cathedral - Other Cathedral Photos

Toledo Cathedral - Works of Art

https://cimg3.ibsrv.net/gimg/www.fod...36b61f24c4.jpg
El Greco - The Disrobing of the Christ

https://cimg5.ibsrv.net/gimg/www.fod...1c9879265f.jpg
El Greco sculptural piece

https://cimg7.ibsrv.net/gimg/www.fod...ee6cba6e3d.jpg
Caravaggio - St John the Baptist

https://cimg6.ibsrv.net/gimg/www.fod...77c17de6de.jpg
Van Dyk - The Holy Family

https://cimg3.ibsrv.net/gimg/www.fod...5c167de0d8.jpg
Ceiling of the vestry

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One of the many beautiful ceilings in the cathedral

Eating in Toledo

Eating in Toledo

Somehow this posted twice and I couln't figure out how to delete the entire post but did manage to delete the photos.

Out and About in Toledo

Views of Toledo from the Train Vision Train

I take it you did not make the mistake that I did of climbing the tower at the cathedral--a hard climb only to get up there and realize that the grating ruins photography. Like you, I would like to have had an overnight stay for Toledo.

Quote:

Originally Posted by twk (Post 17080357)

twk - We didn't do any tower climbing on this trip o(other than my husband's walking down the Nativity Tower at Sagrada Familia in Barcelona) because on past trips I was overly ambitious on the first few days and blew out my bad knee, making the rest of the trip more challenging. We decided that the tower views weren't worth the risk. An overnight stay everywhere would be a plus. We love being out on the streets at night and towns look so different then.