Virginia Gomez Madrid

Madrid

Updated Thursday, March 28, 2024-00:02

A popular train departs from the

old Delicias station

every spring and fall, whose ticket allows its occupants to travel in time and space. In

wooden cars from the 1920s

, rattling along a historic road and with some friendly travel companions on board, after an hour of walking you cross the Aranjuez station. It is the popular

Strawberry Train

, the oldest of the historic ones in Madrid, and this season it arrives with something new to blow out the candles of a round figure:

40 years of uninterrupted service

.

Recalling the route of the first railway in the Community of Madrid, which was built in 1851 at the request of

Isabel II

to link the capital with the Royal Palace of Aranjuez, on

May 27, 1984

this classic train left Madrid for the first time. Since then, thousands of travelers have lived the experience, which invites you to discover on a day trip the

Royal Site of Aranjuez

, declared a World Heritage Cultural Landscape by UNESCO.

The trip reproduces the way our ancestors traveled. Accompanied by a group of

actors who recreate the history of the railway

and narrate the historical events linked to the Royal Site of Aranjuez, users travel accommodated in a train with a century of history, made up of wooden cars with balconies, unique in Spain, which They made routes to the coast and, after their

retirement

, were

the protagonists of Western films

; by metal carriages used for 2nd class in the middle of the last century; and vans where throughout their history they have been transported from agricultural products to fish, feed, wood or livestock.

Two actresses on the train. STRAWBERRY TRAIN

Next Saturday, it will get underway again to start its

40th season

, which this year comes with a

new route

in which you can visit (April 27 and May 11 and 25), the historic orchards of Aranjuez, the Center of Interpretation of the Huerta de Aranjuez and the historic gardens of Parterre and the Island.

On spring

weekends

it will make a total of 26 trips (until June 30) and, after the break for the summer, it will resume its route in autumn

,

also on Saturdays and Sundays, with another 12 trips (from October 5 to on November 10).

The train departs around ten in the morning from the Madrid Railway Museum, located in the historic Delicias station, where it returns around 7:30 p.m. You can choose

different tourist routes

to complete the trip on the historic train, although it is also possible to purchase only the round trip (

Natural Strawberries

).

Actresses in the Royal Site of Aranjuez.TRAIN OF THE STRAWBERRY

The

Fresas con nata

option offers a tour on the

Chiquitrén

- the Aranjuez tourist train - and a guided tour of the historic gardens of Parterre and the Island; Friars

del Tajo

, proposes a tour of the river on the tourist boat and also a visit to the gardens; and

Fresas Reales

, includes entry to the Royal Palace of Aranjuez and the historic garden of the Prince, as well as the

Museum of the Royal Falúas

.

The

Cycling Strawberries

route gives the opportunity to take a

tour on electric bicycles

through the orchards and groves of Aranjuez and guided walking tours through the historic gardens on specific dates (April 21, May 12 and 26); and

Fresas con Música

unites the architectural and natural heritage of Aranjuez with special performances of the

XXX Aranjuez Early Music Festival

(the dates, in autumn, have yet to be defined).

Delivering strawberries on board. STRAWBERRY TRAIN

It is also possible to combine some of these options:

Nata del Tajo

that mixes the center of Aranjuez in the Chiquitrén with the

boat tour of the Tajo

;

Nata Real

, which links the Chiquitrén with a detailed visit to the Royal Palace; and

Tajo Real

, which combines the river trip along the Tagus with a guided tour of the Royal Palace.

To complete the experience, the return train invites strawberries.