Manzanares el Real - Mendoza Castle

Continuing along the C 607 from Colmenar Viejo, at the little town of Cerceda a minor road leads off right to Manzanares el Real (908m/2,979ft). In the wide valley of the Manzanares, which has been dammed here, producing the Embalse de Santillana reservoir, the magnificent Mendoza Castle occupies a dominating position. Built in the 15th C. in the Gothic-Mudéjar style, it was faithfully restored at the end of the 1970s. To view the castle it is necessary to join a conducted tour.