N 601, going southeast from Segovia into the Sierra de Guadarrama, comes in 11km/7mi to the little town of San Ildefonso (alt. 1,040m/ 3,412ft), a favorite resort of the people of Madrid, particularly at weekends. The town, beautifully situated at the foot of the massive peak of Peñalara, grew up around a monastic grange (granja) and hospice. In the early 18th century Philip V chose San Ildefonso, with its good air, as the site of a palace modeled on Louis XIV's Versailles which was built between 1721 and 1739.
The gardens are in baroque French-style with a spectacular mountain setting in the foothills of the Sierra de Guadarrama. The drop from the fountain is great enough to set off a series of fountain below. The right side of the garden's entrance is the La Fama parterre of clipped box and yew with lots of urns and sculptures. At the end of the parterre is the Banos de Diana which is the most expensive and huge baroque fountain with multi-layered cascade. At the bottom of the parterre is a bridge leading to the greenhouses and kitchen garden which are not open to public.
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