Madrid · EL ESCORIAL TOURS

The 15 Best El Escorial Tours from Madrid

24 tours  ·  from $21 a head

Philip II built a monastery, a palace and his own family’s tomb into one grey granite block an hour up the Guadarrama line. The 15 below differ on whether the Valley visit is included and how long you get inside; prices and timings for each.

Escorial Monastery and the Valley of the Fallen Tour from Madrid - El Escorial: Philip II’s austere royal machine
El Escorial Tours, Royal Monastery Tours, Tour Reviews, Tours

Escorial Monastery and the Valley of the Fallen Tour from Madrid

1.Escorial Monastery and the Valley of the Fallen Tour from Madrid

★★★★★★★★★★5.0 · 2,494 reviews · 5 hours (approx.) · from $74Our pick

See El Escorial and the Valley of the Fallen from Madrid with entry tickets, guided commentary, Wi-Fi bus travel, and useful historical context.

“Our guide, Christina, was a historian who did an excellent job explaining the highlights of both sites. This was a very convenient way of getting to each site without a car. We boarded a bus very close to our meeting site at Fun and tickets. The bus was very nice. We had ear pieces which enabled us to hear everything the guide had to say to us. I am very glad that we took this very reasonably priced excursion.”

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From Madrid: Escorial Monastery and the Valley of the Fallen - Meeting in central Madrid and riding to the mountains
El Escorial Tours, Royal Monastery Tours, Tour Reviews

From Madrid: Escorial Monastery and the Valley of the Fallen

Escorial Monastery and the Valley of the Fallen from Madrid - Inside the monastery: palaces, tombs, and painted ceilings
El Escorial Tours, Royal Monastery Tours, Tour Reviews

Escorial Monastery and the Valley of the Fallen from Madrid

3.Escorial Monastery and the Valley of the Fallen from Madrid

★★★★★★★★★★4.0 · 1,023 reviews · 5 hours 30 minutes (approx.) · from $79

Tour El Escorial’s royal tombs and grand library from Madrid, with an optional visit to the Valley of the Fallen and its vast mountain basilica.

“El Escorial and the Valley of the Fallen is a must for anyone visiting Madrid. The process was efficient. The driver (Ramon) was excellent. The Valley of the Fallen was fantastic and our guide and the amount of time were great. Ou one complaint was at the El Escorial it was too rushed, the Palace ws amazing but too little time to enjoy.”

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From Madrid: Escorial Monastery & Valley of the Fallen Trip - El Escorial: a palace, monastery, and royal statement
El Escorial Tours, Royal Monastery Tours, Tour Reviews

From Madrid: Escorial Monastery & Valley of the Fallen Trip

5.Escorial Monastery & Valley of the Fallen Trip

★★★★★★★★★★4.4 · 389 reviews · 5 - 5.5 hours · from $78

Tour El Escorial’s royal monastery and the Valley of the Fallen from Madrid, with a guide, coach transport, and time-saving access to both monuments.

“Tour guide was lovely, was not too many people on the tour. Lovely transport too, and we got to see everything we wanted to.”

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Royal Site of San Lorenzo de El Escorial Entrance Ticket - The Basilica Completed in 1574
El Escorial Tours, Tickets, Tour Reviews

Royal Site of San Lorenzo de El Escorial Entrance Ticket

6.Royal Site of San Lorenzo de El Escorial Entrance Ticket

★★★★★★★★★★4.4 · 239 reviews · 1 day · from $21Best value

See El Escorial’s royal palace, basilica, library, crypt, gardens, and mountain views with a flexible one-day entrance ticket.

“I went to El Escorial on a rather foggy and relatively cold day but that did not detract from the beauty and history of the monastery. I did a self guided walk through of the monastery so did not get all of the history of this magnificent place. I think from the outside it is nothing special and looks like a prison but the inside is absolutely gorgeous and has plenty of frescos and royal decorations - but I think the juxtaposition of the boring outside and colourful inside adds to the charm of the whole place. There is even a crypt that houses the royals that once used to…”

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From Madrid: El Escorial, Valley and Segovia Day Trip - El Escorial, Philip II’s severe royal machine
1-Day Tours, El Escorial Tours, Segovia Day Trips, Tour Reviews

From Madrid: El Escorial, Valley and Segovia Day Trip

7.El Escorial, Valley and Segovia Day Trip

★★★★★★★★★★4.5 · 134 reviews · 11 hours · from $105

See El Escorial, the Valley of Cuelgamuros, and Segovia’s Aqueduct in one long day from Madrid with transport and entry tickets.

“We were unlucky with weather - it was cold and raining. Visit to Segovia seems too short as we would like to visit the castle. A little chaos with dividing and merging English groups.”

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San Lorenzo de El Escorial: Monastery and Site Guided Tour - Meeting the guide at the main entrance
El Escorial Tours, Guided, Royal Monastery Tours, Tour Reviews, Tours

San Lorenzo de El Escorial: Monastery and Site Guided Tour

8.Monastery and Site Guided Tour

★★★★★★★★★★4.8 · 127 reviews · 2 hours · from $47

Tour El Escorial from Madrid with a Spanish-speaking guide, exploring Philip II’s basilica, pantheon, battle hall, palace rooms, and Royal Library.

“The tour was personal, informative and necessary. We had friends who toured independently using a electronic device as the guide. They were confused, felt lost in a maze and had to walk much longer. We enjoyed a well planned efficient tour with lots of great information. With only 4 people in our English speaking group. It was worth every euro/dollar!”

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Escorial Monastery and Toledo Afternoon Tour - The Valley of the Fallen: striking, solemn, and politically loaded
El Escorial Tours, Royal Monastery Tours, Toledo Day Trips, Tour Reviews, Tours

Escorial Monastery and Toledo Afternoon Tour

9.Escorial Monastery and Toledo Afternoon Tour

★★★★★★★★★★4.0 · 109 reviews · 10 hours 30 minutes (approx.) · from $128

Review of Madrid’s long day trip to El Escorial, the Valley of the Fallen, and Toledo, with practical advice on pace, guides, lunch, and value.

“The tour was for an English speaking guide but this was not a good experience as the translation was missing a lot of information. Luckily for me I spoke spanish but many of the travelers were confused. The monastery is an excellent trip and experience.”

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Avila Tours, El Escorial Tours, Private, Segovia Day Trips, Tour Reviews, Tours

From Madrid: Avila, Segovia and El Escorial Private Tour

10.Avila, Segovia and El Escorial Private Tour

★★★★★★★★★★4.6 · 106 reviews · 11 hours · from $2,038

See Ávila, Segovia, and El Escorial in one private day trip from Madrid, with expert guiding, Roman ruins, royal monuments, and free time.

“The trip was fast paced but our guide Miguel was very informative. He recommended the suckling pig at Candido in Segovia & it didn’t disappoint, we were happy to forego the tour for the !!!”

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Escorial & Valley Half-Day Morning Tour from Madrid - El Escorial: royal power in stone
El Escorial Tours, Half-Day, Morning, Tour Reviews, Tours

Escorial & Valley Half-Day Morning Tour from Madrid

11.Escorial & Valley Half-Day Morning Tour from Madrid

★★★★★★★★★★4.0 · 104 reviews · 5 hours (approx.) · from $79

Visit El Escorial and the Valley of the Fallen from Madrid, with admission, transport, and guided history in a five-hour morning tour.

“Tour guide did a good job and the tour was interesting. The low rating is for the fact there was no provision to get us back to our hotel after the tour. The tour ended about 5 mikes from our hotel where they picked us up in the morning. We did not find this out until during the tour. The tour guide took pity on us and arranged for the bus driver to drive us to an area voids to our hotel.”

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El Escorial, Valley and Toledo Day Tour from Madrid - Toledo’s old city, monuments, and hilltop views
El Escorial Tours, Toledo Day Trips, Tour Reviews, Tours

El Escorial, Valley and Toledo Day Tour from Madrid

12.El Escorial, Valley and Toledo Day Tour from Madrid

★★★★★★★★★★3.5 · 87 reviews · from $104

See El Escorial, the Valley of the Fallen, and Toledo in one long Madrid day, with included admission, guided walks, and practical cautions.

“On the Viator site we booked what we thought was a full day tour. What we ended up getting was two half day tours. This resulted in us having to return to Madrid an extra time and wasting an hour doing so to be dropped off from the morning. Then the tour guide said we'd have to wait and hour and 15 minutes, when she dropped us off from the morning tour, for the bus to pick us up for the afternoon tour to Toledo. We found a place nearby for lunch to waste some of the time. The bus finally left at 3:15 pm for Toledo. An hour later…”

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Toledo & Escorial Full-Day Tour + Optional Valley of Fallen - The Valley of the Fallen adds a powerful but sensitive stop
El Escorial Tours, Full-Day, Toledo Day Trips, Tour Reviews, Tours

Toledo & Escorial Full-Day Tour + Optional Valley of Fallen

13.Toledo & Escorial Full-Day Tour + Optional Valley of Fallen

★★★★★★★★★★4.0 · 73 reviews · from $110

Review of the 10.5-hour Madrid tour to Toledo and El Escorial, with Habsburg royal rooms, El Greco, and an optional Valley of the Fallen visit.

“Since it was combined - Escorial y Valle de los Caídos plus Toledo - it was really too much for one day. Nevertheless, both the Tour Company Juliá and our solendid guides - Vanesa (very laconic, up-to-the-pount but open to discussions and questions so sincerely and Nacho who provides the most interesting details and knows how to guide into the cultural domain with hints, historic anecdotes, legends and key concepts that the visitor should know - they all made my day! Thank you so much!!! P.S. We are driving back to Madrid! I do recommend these tours!Read more”

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Escorial & Valley and Segovia from Madrid - El Escorial, royal power in stone
El Escorial Tours, Segovia Day Trips, Tour Reviews

Escorial & Valley and Segovia from Madrid

14.Escorial & Valley and Segovia from Madrid

★★★★★★★★★★4.0 · 34 reviews · 11 hours (approx.) · from $106

Review of the 11-hour Madrid tour to El Escorial, Valley of the Fallen, and Segovia, with practical advice on value, timing, guides, and walking.

“No me gusto pesima agencia pesimos guias y todo en corredera por terminar nos saltamos muchas salas del escorial”

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El Escorial, Valley & Segovia day tour from Madrid - The Valley of the Fallen: powerful, complicated, and brief
El Escorial Tours, Segovia Day Trips, Tour Reviews, Tours

El Escorial, Valley & Segovia day tour from Madrid

15.El Escorial, Valley & Segovia day tour from Madrid

★★★★★★★★★★3.5 · 32 reviews · 11 hours (approx.) · from $107

Visit El Escorial, the Valley of the Fallen, and Segovia on an 11-hour coach tour from Madrid, with guided visits and monument entry included.

“The visits were good, although we would have preferred more time in Segovia but the bus we used the whole day was old and the A/C was not working, please VPT tours you know better, imagine this trip in summer, time to modernize your fleet!”

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