Cuelgamuros Valley

The place is very relaxing and quiet. A good place to reminisce everything that has happened in our lives. Recommendable to visit.

If you're into historical and cathedral style architecture, then this place is a must-see. From rolling into the front gate and the drive up to the base of the cross on the mountain was an awe-inspiring experience. Definitely go inside the mountain, which boasts giant angel statutes as you walk through a large iron gate, long grand style internal hallways with beautiful art, that lead into a large dome chapel surrounded by gigantic statutes deep in the mountain. This place gives you a sense of seclusion and peace that'll forever leave an impact after visiting.

Keeping aside all the political and ethical aspects and history with Franco associated with the monument, just the monument by itself is breathtakingly beautiful. The cross is gigantic and the view from the place is beautiful. The Basilica is massive and marvellous, but we were told that we weren't allowed to take pictures inside.

An absolute must see. Rich in history and architecture. Be prepared to walk steps up and down. Everything well preserved. FYI No pictures on the inside allowed.

One of the most beautiful places in Spain!! High recommend the the visit. The basilica and the abadia are open to de public but the HUGE cruz on the mountain is "closed". Very secluded and not many people visiting. One big problem, no one speaks a bit of English. Still Recommend the visit!!

What to write? This place is both tragic and a tribute to engineering. Franco claimed that the monument was meant to be a "national act of atonement" and reconciliation.It served as the burial place of Franco's remains from his death in November 1975 until his exhumation on 24 October 2019, as a result of efforts to remove all public veneration of his dictatorship, and following a long and controversial legal process.

The monument precinct covers over 3,360 acres (13.6 km2) of Mediterranean woodlands and granite boulders on the Sierra de Guadarrama hills, more than 3,000 feet (910 m) above sea level and includes a basilica, a Benedictine abbey, a guest house, the Valley, and the Juanelos — four cylindrical monoliths dating from the 16th century. The most prominent feature of the monument is the towering 150-metre-high (500 ft) Christian cross, the tallest such cross in the world, erected over a granite outcrop 150 metres over the basilica esplanade and visible from over 20 miles (32 km) away. Work started in 1940 and took over eighteen years to complete, with the monument being officially inaugurated on 1 April 1959. According to the official ledger, the cost of the construction totalled 1,159 million pesetas, funded through national lottery draws and donations. Some of the labourers were prisoners who traded their labour for a reduction in time served.

This scale of this monument is incredible. Once you enter, there is a long cavernous hallway (pictured) with the Church located directly beneath the cross located on the top of the mountain. Again, the sheer immense size of this is breathtaking. It's a little out of the way, but definitely worth a visit if you are in the area.

Just a magnificent sight with the entrance to the basilica and the huge cross on the hill behind it. The scale and the grandeur just takes your breath away. The basilica is carve out drink the bedrock and extenda deep in where it is directly under the cross. Unfortunately, no photos are allowed, so just enjoy and take it all in.

A creepy visit to the cathedral.
You can feel the suffering of the thousands of prisoners of war who built the cathedral with their own hands and died on the spot.

26 euro for enter

Fantastic place to visit. Must see if you are near Madrid. Really awesome experience

Breathtaking building because of its history and because of the construction itself. There is a parking space right at the bottom of it, panoramic vies from the base of the building of the whole valley, nice hike up to the cross and beautiful interiors with fresco paintings and gigantic angel statues. Im agnostic so not into the religious side of it and nevertheless the feeling walking in hit me like a rock. Impressive

Incredible monument up on top of the mountain. The cross is huge and the insight is very special. The interior is different than of the known spanish style of churches and monuments etc so I was really surprised.

Extremely fascinating place. Eerie history of the Spanish fascist dictatorship. The government is trying their best to contextualise the monument.

Very impressive! But check the weather before you go; during our visit it was so foggy we couldn't see the biggest cross in the world...

Great place to visit with the family.

A must visit in Madrid. It's an extremely impressive place. Would recommend getting the direct bus from el escorial to get here

It was a breath-taking, fascinating, a bit terrifying and stunning experience. I see why people don't want this to be a cultural place, but we have to remember and learn from history!

An impressive cathedral carved into the rock, with a special atmosphere. Bigger than St Peter's Basilica in Rome. It was interesting to hear and see that the Church did not allow it to be bigger than St Peter's, so a section of the square was cut off and that was the only section allowed by the Vatican, and therefore the only one consecrated as a basilica. An unmissable sight. You will remember it forever.

This place was breathtaking and well worth the visit. The monumental scale cannot be appreciated in the photos. The views of the mountains are phenomenal and there is a peaceful atmosphere both inside and outside the basilica. If you are visiting Madrid for at least a couple of days then the train journey to the Valley of the Fallen and El Escorial are essential sight-seeing visits.

Such a beautiful and well kept place. The church is stunning as well (too bad we cannot take pics). The angel at the entrance is super cool!!! Too bad the entrance to the cross was closed due to maintenance...