16 Essentials: what and do in Almagro (Ciudad Real) in 1 day

Almagro It is one of the most beautiful and pleasant towns in Spain.

Discuss Almagro is to talk about theater and travel to the 17th century to discover its famous Corral de Comedias, which has been preserved intact since those times.

In summer the Classical Theater Festival, recognized worldwide, but there are many more things to discover strolling through its old town, just 20 kilometers from Ciudad Real.

The ideal is to spend a night in this Historical Artistic Ensemble to see it calmly and enjoy the dramatized visit to the Corral de Comedias in the afternoon, but the essentials can be seen in one day, everything is very close.

Among the obligatory places we recommend the National Theater Museum, unique in Spain and the Bobbin Lace Museum, which are together with the eggplants and its curious seasoning, the highlight of this town in La Mancha, Don Quixote Route.

The experience, yes, is different at each time of the year, even if the places are the same, because Almagro It is always innovating to be more attractive.

If you have more time on this trip, you can complete it in the surroundings of Almagro visiting the Daimiel Tables, a national park 35 kilometers away, Puerto Lápice or Ruidera lagoons, which are an hour away.

What is essential to see and do in Almagro

Almagro is one of the most touristic areas of Castilla la Mancha, and if you want to see their main places of interest, it is best to take a bond which gives you access to almost all of them.

Buy the Almagro tourist voucher

El price of the Almagro tourist voucher with a visit to the Corral de Comedias it is 13 euros, for the general fee, and 7 euros if you only want to see three of the public spaces.

Be careful with the schedules because some visits can only be made in the afternoon.

You can purchase it at Comedy Corral or Tourist Office located in the 21 San Agustín street, in the Contemporary Art Space, where you can also hire a guided tour of Almagro, essential if you want to know more stories and legends that only experts can convey to you.

Almagro Main Square

La Plaza Mayor is the heart of Almagro, with a rectangular, elongated and irregular plant.

Its charm and originality lies in its two galleries of Tuscan style arcades with 81 columns.

Its glass windows with frames of a very characteristic green color stand out.

Numerous fairs and even bullfights have been held here, and now it is a unique meeting point ideal for having a coffee or eating on its terraces.

Visit the Almagro Comedy Corral

From the Plaza Mayor you access the Corral de Comedias, the main attraction and attraction of the town.

This , is currently the best preserved in the world, maintaining its ancient structure that is already more than 400 years old.

An original, rectangular space full of stories in which the International Classical Theater Festival.

It was built in 1625 by Leonardo of Oviedo from a remodeling of the old Mesón del Toro.

Its curiosities include its numerous wicker chairs and dark wooden beams.

It has two floors, and the second was reserved only for women, as relations between both sexes were not allowed; On its walls you will find a curious sign that says “women's casserole”, in reference to this exclusive corridor.

La lodging It is the arcade in front of the stage, where fruit and hosts, a drink of water, honey and spices.

On weekends you can enjoy a theatrical visit to the Corral de Comedias, With the followings schedules: on Fridays, from 18 p.m., and on Saturdays, from 13 p.m. to 18 p.m., with the price of 7 euros, depending on the rest of the visits you include.

Of course, the general voucher includes access to the show.

If you go in winter, dress warmly, because the Corral is an open space and is not air-conditioned.

Within the Plaza Mayor also rises to the west the Town hall, next to equestrian statue of Diego de Almagro and a quiet garden area.

Visit the National Theater Museum in the Maestral Palace

El National Theater Museum It is another of the jewels of Almagro.

You will find it when you leave the Plaza Mayor, to the right of the aforementioned statue, and is located in the Maestral Palaces of Calatrava, one of the historic buildings of the town, built in the mid-13th century.

Here we are surprised by a fantastic permanent exhibition which offers us a very special and illustrative tour of the theater history.

Three floors with books, manuscripts, paintings, costumes and numerous special effects to delve into this art in an ideal visit for acting fans and to discover this world for children.

The last floor reminds us how special effects were done in the theater, and how you had to use ingenuity and imagination to simulate the noise of the sea, rain or thunder.

In this area of ​​the museum everything can be touched.

Don't miss the entrance Spanish deck of cards from 1725 which was found intact in the Comedy Corral During the restoration works, it was apparently hidden because gambling was prohibited in those years.

This building is the only one that is not included in the general visit bonus, and the ticket price is 3 euros and the reduced one is 1,50 euros, although the Saturday afternoons and Sundays it is free.

Municipal Theater of Almagro

Red and white are the colors of the romantic façade of the Municipal Theater of Almagro, inaugurated in 1865 because the Comedy Corral.

It is a cozy horseshoe-shaped candy box to facilitate acoustics and vision from all angles.

During the first half of the 20th century it was used as a cinema, and became one of the cultural centers of Almagro where various plays and concerts were performed.

It can currently be visited and is one of the most emblematic settings in the world. Almagro Festival.

In this charming space you will feel like an audience and an actor at the same time.

This visit allows you to sit in any of its 224 seats, distributed over three floors, go up to the boxes and, the most fun, to the stage itself to see the theater from another perspective and experience what it must be like to look at the audience.

You will find it in the 20 San Agustín street, with visiting hours from Tuesday to Saturday, from 10 a.m. to 14 p.m., and from 18 p.m. to 21 p.m., and on Sundays, from 11 a.m. to 14 p.m.

Church of San Agustín in Almagro

La Church of San Agustín It is one of the most representative buildings of the baroque in Ciudad Realdeclared A Cultural 1993 since.

It is not a typical church as its dome, its chapels and its cross plan are decorated with numerous frescoes.

During your visit you can climb the tower and the choir, although it is a bit dizzying, and on many occasions the National Theater Museum uses the ground floor for temporary exhibitions.

Plaza de Santo Domingo in Almagro

La Santo Domingo square It is the other center of Almagro, although it is not as charming as the Plaza Mayor.

Here we can find many other buildings of architectural interest, such as the Palace of the Marquises of Torremejía or the House of the Chaplain of the Bernardas.

Palace of the Fúcares in Almagro

El Palace of the Fucares It is the current headquarters of the Popular University of Almagro and is used for theatrical performances in the summer.

Una renaissance palace house from the 16th century that has had different uses throughout its history as a school or lace factory.

Convent of the Assumption of Calatrava in Almagro

El Convent of the Assumption of Calatrava It was also built in the 16th century, and you will find it next to the bus station on the Ejido de Calatrava street.

At first it was conceived to make a large hospital, but the idea was rejected very late in the work, because there were already too many in the area.

For half a century it was used as a warehouse for wheat and wine; The first nuns inhabited it until 1815 and it was occupied by the Dominicans in 1903.

Su cloister is a gem of the spanish renaissance, although its staircase has a typically gothic tracery.

Hermitage of San Juan in Almagro

Another of the beautiful corners of Almagro is the Ermita de San Juan, although its simple exterior is deceiving, and does not do justice to the surprising interior.

It is a church with a single central nave in which its Mudejar wooden ceiling, and which in the 18th century was expanded with a chapel dedicated to Our Lady of Remedies.

La Admission is free, and in summer up to 400 seats are installed outside for theater performances.

San Juan Hospital-Adolfo Marsillach Theater

It is currently the headquarters of the National Classical Theater Company, but during its history it had different uses, such as as a winery in the 19th century after the Disentailment of Mendizábal.

The sky is the ceiling of this Adolfo Marsillach Theater, which covers a large outdoor space with capacity for more than 600 people, and you will find it in the 21 San Agustín street.

Silo Viewpoint in Almagro

If you want to have one more complete vision of Almagro, from a bird's eye view, the ideal is to access the Silo Viewpoint, a high point to admire its roofs and layouts from another perspective.

The streets perpendicular to the Plaza Mayor offer a different and charming vision, this is the case of the Noble Quarter and Knights Quarter.

But getting lost in Almagro is undoubtedly the best way to discover its many charms in the old town, dotted with churches, historic facades, convents and old palaces.

Almagro National Parador

Even if you are not going to stay overnight, you can also visit the Almagro National Parador, located in the former Franciscan convent of Santa Catalina, full of charm to have a snack in its bar or take a walk through its historic halls.

Some rooms such as the cloister and the refectory are still preserved from the old convent.

Festivals in Almagro

Almagro It has different festive celebrations depending on the calendar date.

The night of January 16 to 17, in the Night of San Anton, hundreds of bonfires are lit in its streets to burn everything old.

El Carnival in Almagro It is famous for its parades, and March is the busiest time with the arrival of the campaign. Classic Theater for Students, which brings together more than 20.000 students.

After eastern and its processions, preparations begin for the International Theater Festival July, in which theatrical performances continue until late into the night.

In August they play festivities, and the town is also full, and throughout the summer the historic buildings show different Temporary exhibitions which are updated every year.

Autumn is the quietest time to go visit Almagro, with fewer tourists and time in favor.

Bobbin lace in Almagro

El Bobbin lace is traditional crafts from Almagro.

In the Plaza Mayor you will find their most emblematic store, where they give you a practical demonstration of this work that dates back to the end of the 16th century, but is now almost only practiced by the local elders.

If you want to know more about lace, you have the Museum of Lace and Blonde in the Villar alley, which only opens in the mornings.

What to eat in Almagro: typical gastronomy

The eggplants It is one of the typical foods of Almagro, but not the only one in this area, where the most requested, especially in winter, are the crumbs, the porridge, Castilian soup, Duels and losses, or the ratatouille, without forgetting the Manchego cheeses.

For those with a sweet tooth, the most popular Calatrava bread or the La Mancha sponge cake.