23409SPA
Morning or afternoon sightseeing with local guide
Sightseeing includes:
Cathedral inside visit
Iglesia de Santo Tomé inside visit
(to see El Greco’s “El Entierro
del Conde de Orgaz”)
Sinagoga de Santa María La Blanca inside visit
Sword and Damascene Jewellery Factory inside visit
· Lunch is normally included on this day instead of dinner.
· Call or text local guide at least one day in advance to confirm appointment and meeting place
· Whilst the local guide pays all entrances, all the confirmations are in your Araque envelope so be sure to take them.
· Please make sure everyone in your group has their whispers sets before heading out on sightseeing ( and that you have the microphone/s for the local guide)
· Hand out headsets to pax and make sure that they are all working well before heading off on tour – it is advisable to take spare batteries and a couple of spare whispers sets and earphones with you on the tour in case they run out during the visit.
· The sightseeing is all done on foot so comfortable shoes are essential.
· Tell pax to dress appropriately for the Cathedral – all hats removed and no bare shoulders or thighs!
· Warn the group that it is very easy to get lost in Toledo and that they must keep together. You should either stay at the end of the group or have one of the group leaders do so to ensure all the group is together.
· If the Cathedral is closed, the local guide will give a brief explanation outside and the church of San Juan de los Reyes will be visited instead.
· There are no public restrooms in Toledo. If necessary, a stop can be made near the Iglesia Santo Tomé halfway through the sightseeing – however, guides will usually try to include a brief café stop.
· If your restaurant for lunch is in the old town, you will need to use the new bus set-down area on Calle de Gerardo Lobo for drop-off and pick-up. The buses cannot park here for very long – it is strictly drop off and pick up only, so arrange a time for the pick-up with your driver and be sure to have his phone number in case of any delays. From the bus drop-off enter the car-park building in front and to the right and take the upward escalators. At the top climb the stairs and turn left along the main road. Follow the main road uphill. The road runs past the town hall alongside the Zocodover (main square) in the centre of town. See Map below.
· If your restaurant is in the old town, you might want to change the order of the visit – discuss with the local guide when you confirm the appointment.
· For afternoon visits with lunch in a restaurant in the old town, arrange your rendezvous with the local guide here.
· If the pax buy any swords, you have to be mindful of whether you have to take the AVE later during the trip – if so, the swords need to be shipped to the US or, time permitting, the last hotel on the trip. They can only be taken on the train if Suarez provide receipts dated a maximum of 24 hours before train departs as it is then able to be classed as souvenirs – better to ship if possible.
· If you visit on a Sunday, your starting time will be later, as you will have part of the visit, lunch in town, and then see the Cathedral. This is because the Cathedral does not permit tourist visits until 2pm on Sundays.
FACTS AND FREE TIME SUGGESTIONS
Tourist Offices Outside Bisagra gate plus small booth with maps in the Cathedral Square. There is also a tourist information centre called ‘Casa del Map’ in Plaza Zocodover, 8
Post Office Calle Plata 1
Church
Services San Juan de Los Reyes / Services 09.30. 13.00, 19.00. Always check times in advance just in case.
Transport Train station: Paseo de la Rosa / Bus station: Avenida de Castilla la Mancha / Both of these are outside the citadel and down the hill / Buses also run from Plaza de Zocodover. The bus journey from Madrid takes about 45 mins The AVE now runs also to Toledo. Journey time from Madrid between 15 to 30 mins If you bring your group by train, take a bus into town to avoid a walk uphill. You can get back to the station on foot (all downhill, about 5-10-minute walk once you cross Puente de Alcántara, and ca. 15-20 mins from Plaza Zocodover).
See Yellow Pages for opening times and admission costs
THINGS TO DO
Hospital
de Santa
Cruz 16th and 17th C paintings
Museo de
Arte
Visigótico Church of San Roman / Entrance with the same ticket as the Hospital
Convento
de Santa
Úrsula A convent where you can buy sweet biscuits from the nuns
Cristo de la Luz Visigoth Church, then Mosque, then Mudéjar Church
Museo
Sefardita El Tránsito Synagogue
Museo El
Greco Set in a copy of his house – the house part is not open, only the museum. Entry price Group +20 (booked 2 weeks ahead) =3€ but check before you commit to this price with a group // GRAL= 5€, combined with the Museo Sefardi . Closed on Mondays
Monasterio
de San
Juan de los
Reyes Built by the Catholic Kings, this church was originally meant to house their tombs.
Hospital de
Tavera A 16th century hospital converted into a museum with works by El Greco, Tintoretto and Zurbaran. Ribera’s “lady with a beard” is here!
Alcazar Sight of the Civil War siege. The former dungeons house the hospitals that were used and bullet holes can still be seen in the walls and books. This building now houses the National Military Museum. Entry price: FREE ENTRY ON SUNDAYS + under 18 // GRAL 5€
Taller del
Moro A former workshop turned museum of mudéjar tiles and ceramics/ Renovation works finished in early 2016 and apparently it’s open again, but best call to check: tel. +34 925227115 (closed on Mondays and Sun afternoons)
Tapas If you are staying in Toledo, El Mesón Restaurante Corral de Don Diego is a good place for a pre-arranged tapas menu or Toledan specialities
Panoramic
Train Tour A noddy train leaves from the Plaza Zocodover and takes you around the major streets as well as driving around the outside of the walls for a panoramic view. 1 hour ride
Inquisition
and Witch
museum Of the two, the inquisition museum is the more interesting – the other is quite pathetic and relates more to the New Forest than Toledo…
EVENING ACTIVITIES
Behind
Plaza
Zocodover Where young people congregate at night
Live Music Broadway Jazz club on Plaza Marrón usually has live music, as does the Disco Zoco near Plaza Zocodover. Café Picaro, Calle Cadenas 6, Tel 925 221 301.