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What to Do in Segovia: Roman Aqueduct, Alcázar & the Best Roast Pig in Spain

Sep 27
5 min read

Updated: 4 days ago

Segovia is one of those cities that packs so much into such a small space that it works as a half-day lesson plan without any additional planning. The Roman aqueduct — 2,000 years old, 728 metres long, 166 arches, and still structurally sound — is in the centre of the city. The Alcázar at the other end of the old city inspired Walt Disney's Cinderella castle. The Gothic cathedral between them was the last Gothic cathedral built in Spain. And all of this is 30 minutes from Madrid by high-speed train.

January in Segovia is cold and clear and empty of the day-tripper crowds that arrive from Madrid on summer weekends. Here's what to book.

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Best for First-Timers: Segovia Full City Guided Walking Tour

The walking tour of Segovia covers the Roman aqueduct, the medieval Jewish quarter (one of the best-preserved in Castilla y León), the cathedral, and the Alcázar — the castle at the tip of the rock spur on which the old city sits, surrounded on three sides by river valleys. The Alcázar's interior has the original throne room, the Hall of Kings with painted carved effigies of all the Castilian monarchs, and a tower climb with views over the two rivers below.

January mornings in Segovia are cold but the light is excellent and the city is quiet. The guided tour handles the context that makes each site legible rather than just impressive. Two to three hours for the full circuit.

Best for Families & Kids: Roman Aqueduct Engineering Tour

The Segovia aqueduct is one of the best-preserved Roman engineering structures in the world. Built in the 1st or 2nd century AD, it carried water from the Fuenfría river 17 kilometres to the city — the section through the city centre uses 20,400 granite blocks cut without mortar, relying entirely on the geometry of the arch to hold the weight. A guided tour focused on the engineering explains how it was built, why it hasn't fallen down, what the Romans were doing with the water, and how it fits into the broader network of Roman infrastructure across Spain.

For worldschooling families: this covers Roman engineering, architecture, physics (arch mechanics), urban planning, and 2,000 years of continuous use in about 90 minutes standing in front of the actual structure. Hard to beat for curriculum density.

Best if You Only Have a Few Hours: Segovia Half-Day Trip from Madrid

The half-day trip from Madrid by high-speed train is 30 minutes each way and the most efficient way to see Segovia if you're based in the capital. The train drops you 15 minutes from the old city by bus; the main circuit (aqueduct, cathedral exterior, Alcázar exterior, Jewish quarter walk) takes two to three hours. The guided half-day tour that combines the train and the walking tour is the cleanest format — everything handled, no logistics.

January half-days in Segovia are particularly good: the city is quiet, the cochinillo asado restaurants along Calle de Cronista Lecea are running at full capacity for the Sunday lunch trade, and the light on the aqueduct in the low January sun is one of the better photographic moments in Castilla y León.

Most Unique: Roast Suckling Pig Cooking Experience

Cochinillo asado — roast suckling pig — is Segovia's defining dish, cooked in a wood-fired clay oven for several hours until the skin is crackling and the meat falls off the bone. The restaurants that have been doing this for generations (Mesón de Cándido, the oldest, has been at the same table below the aqueduct since 1884) are an experience in themselves — the maestro asador demonstrating that the pig is properly cooked by cutting it with a plate rather than a knife, then throwing the plate on the floor, is one of those bits of culinary theatre that is both completely ridiculous and completely effective.

Some operators run cooking experiences in which you participate in the preparation — the seasoning, the oven management, the timing. A good half-day format for a group that wants to take something home from Segovia besides the photos.

Best Guided Experience: Segovia & Pedraza Medieval Village Tour

Pedraza is a medieval walled village 36 kilometres from Segovia — completely intact 12th-century walls, a castle on a rocky outcrop above a gorge, and a single street of stone houses that hasn't changed in outline since the 15th century. In January it's almost empty of visitors and the castle is open for guided tours. The combination of Segovia and Pedraza in a day gives you the Roman layer and the medieval layer of Castilian history in the same outing.

Pedraza is also famous for its Conciertos de las Velas in summer (candlelit concerts in the Plaza Mayor with all electric light extinguished), but January is when the village feels most like what it is: one of the best-preserved medieval towns in Spain, with almost nobody in it.

Looking for Somewhere to Stay?

Segovia is easily done as a day trip from Madrid (30 minutes by AVE). For an overnight stay the old city hotels — several in converted historic buildings — are excellent in January at rates well below summer. Browse hotels in Segovia →

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