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Garden of the Island

Aranjuez, Las Vegas, Madrid

1 Villages · 6 Monuments · 3 Nature · 2 Activities · 1 Curiosities · 3 Historical milestones · 2 Food and drink

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Garden of the Island

Nature · Aranjuez, Las Vegas, Madrid

The jardín de la Isla is a historic garden north of the Palacio Real de Aranjuez, on an artificial island of about 25 hectares between the río Tajo and an artificial arm or canal, and it is one of the principal works of Spanish Renaissance garden design, together with the Casa de Campo in Madrid. Promoted by Philip II as a representation of paradise, it was laid out by Juan Bautista de Toledo from 1561, with works that continued until 1564 and were carried on by Juan de Herrera, who arranged its fountains in 1582; the water that fed them came from the Mar de Ontígola reservoir. The garden is entered by several bridges dating from the 18th and 19th centuries. It has been a Bien de Interés Cultural (Spain's highest level of heritage protection) since 1931 and has formed part of the Cultural Landscape of Aranjuez, a World Heritage Site, since 2001.

Photo: Assdl (Wikimedia Commons) (CC BY-SA 3.0)

What to see and do in Aranjuez