Toledo

Visit in April-May or September-October, when daytime temperatures are mild (18-25°C) and comfortable for walking the old town's hills. Summer (July-August) regularly hits 35-40°C, brutal on the exposed stone streets. If your visit falls during Holy Week (Semana Santa) or Corpus Christi (a major Toledo procession over flower-petal carpets, late May or June), expect the old town to be packed and book cathedral/Alcázar tickets well in advance.

• Alcázar de Toledo — the hilltop fortress-museum overlooking the city and the Tagus gorge
• Catedral Primada de Toledo — one of Spain's grandest Gothic cathedrals
• Mezquita del Cristo de la Luz — a beautifully preserved 10th-century mosque from Toledo's Islamic era
• Sinagoga del Tránsito and the Sephardic Museum — the heart of the old Jewish quarter
• Puente de San Martín and the Mirador del Valle — the classic panoramic view of the walled city above the Tagus river

Toledo is most often a day trip, so many visitors stay in Madrid and simply ride the train down. If you do want a night in Toledo, book inside the walled Casco Histórico for the medieval atmosphere after the tour buses leave — the Parador de Toledo, just outside the walls, is famous for its cathedral-and-Alcázar view but requires a taxi or car to reach. Families who want easier luggage access and parking often pick hotels near the train station or the newer town below the hill, a short bus or taxi ride from the old town gates.

The old town is steep, cobbled, and largely stair-stepped — comfortable walking shoes are essential, and strollers or wheelchairs will struggle on some lanes (a public escalator system, the "mecanoscala," connects the lower parking areas to the old town and helps). Book Alcázar and cathedral tickets online in advance in high season to skip queues. Toledo's old town has an active bar and club scene on weekend nights (venues around the centre stay open past 2-3am), so if you're travelling with family and are noise-sensitive, ask for lodging a street or two away from the nightlife cluster. As in any dense tourist centre, watch your bag and phone around Zocodover square and other crowded pinch points.

1-2 days

Suggested plan:

1. Day 1: Arrive by morning train from Madrid; walk the old town loop — Zocodover square, the Alcázar, the cathedral — then into La Judería for the Sinagoga del Tránsito and the Sephardic Museum; finish at the Mezquita del Cristo de la Luz before an evening train back (or an overnight stay in the old town).
2. Day 2 (if staying overnight): A slower morning without the day-trip crowds — the Mirador del Valle for the panoramic view, the Puente de San Martín, browsing the old town's damasquinado (gold-inlay) craft shops, then a halal or Middle Eastern lunch before heading back to Madrid.