CERCEDILLA is an alpine-looking village and an excellent base for summer walking; it is much frequented by madrilenos at weekends. Accommodation is limited to the Hostal El Aribel , and two youth hostels up on the Dehesas road: Villa Castora and, 2km up the road, Las Dehesas . Further up still, you'll find a helpful information booth (daily 10am-6pm; tel 918 522 213). There are several eating places in town: Los Frutales on the Carretera de las Dehesas does good croquetas and judias con perdiz (partridge and beans), the train station has a restaurant on the first floor or you could try the restaurant at the Hostal El Aribel .

From Cercedilla, you can embark on a wonderful little train ride to the Puerto de Navacerrada , the most important pass in the mountains and the heart of the ski area , or a little further on to Cotos where a number of well-maintained walks around the Parque Natural de Peñalara begin. The train runs hourly over weekends and holidays and passes through the parque natural , an extension of the upper Manzanares basin: watch out for roe deer and wild boar. For the more energetic there is a very pleasant five-hour round-trip walk along the pine-fringed Calzada Romana (old Roman road) up to the Puerto de la Fuenfría (1796m) with its striking views down into Segovia province.

From Madrid to Cercedilla, there are over twenty trains a day (6am-11pm from Atocha, calling at Chamartín, and nine daily going on to Segovia) and buses leaving every half-hour from the Intercambiador de Autobuses de Moncloa.