Parador De La Granja

La Granja was chosen as a destination purely for the gardens, built by Philip V at the turn of the 18th century and influenced by Versailles. There is also a palace attached to the gardens, La Granja de San Ildefonso, but that was closed on Mondays. We were staying at the Parador which was about 10 minutes walk from the palace and gardens. We only had standard rooms rather than upgrades but they were fabulous - large rooms with spacious bathrooms, a good sized desk, excellent wifi, plenty of sockets and plenty of storage. They did lack a kettle though, which was frustrating as I am usually up around 6AM and like to star the day off with a drink before breakfast. They were very good value too. I'd say English was a bit limited at the hotel with most staff having about by level of Spanish although some were fluent in English but there were no issues and we were always able to work out what each other was saying. We used the cafe twice in the Parador and the service was excellent each time as well as the coffee and cakes. There didn't seem to be many places open to eat on a Monday evening so we decided to eat in the hotel later, even though the restaurant didn't open until 20:30! We had a fabulous dinner at the Parador, pork shank for Mum, veal tenderloin for Deb and I with what we thought was a vegetable side dish but was actually a soup! Vegetables do seem a rarity in Spanish restaurants. Mum was so stuffed she just had a coffee for dessert, which she struggled to finish, I had a Sergovian cake and Deb had berries marinated in lime and a carrot ice cream. The breakfast the next morning (a €21 option) was excellent with a wide variety of cooked and buffet options in a lovely setting. A lovely way to start the day.

First time in these Paradores, and pleasantly surprised. A completely renovated hotel. It is incredibly beautiful, we had a standard room that fully met our expectations. Spacious rooms with all amenities. Breakfast and dinner are exceptionally well prepared and there is a choice for everyone's taste. The staff is very friendly and helpful, also in English. Within walking distance you can reach the beautiful royal palace with its beautiful gardens. The old part of the city is within walking distance of the hotel and it is recommended to take a walk through the picturesque old part in the evening. There is always a nice atmosphere with many eateries and bars. A small downside is that the swimming pool was not yet open in mid-May. Free hotel parking is nearby

I had a bad experience at the parador. The air conditioning in my room didn’t work. I tried getting help from the reception who assured me that someone would come fix it. I returned multiple times and was assured multiple times but no one came, so I had to sleep through the night with no air conditioning. The next morning at reception I was told that there is no technicians that can come as the AC is ‘monitored remotely’. The reasonable thing would have been to move me to a room where the AC works, but no one did anything to remediate the situation.