What's a good 3-day itinerary for Segovia?

Segovia sits on a narrow limestone ridge between the Eresma and Clamores rivers, roughly 90 km northwest of Madrid. The old city runs about 1.5 km east to west, from the Aqueduct at Plaza del Azoguejo to the Alcázar's prow at the western tip. You can walk the whole ridge in 40 minutes without stopping, which means three days here lets you move slowly and look at things. The AVE high-speed train from Madrid Chamartín takes 28 minutes and drops you at Segovia-Guiomar station, about 5 km from the Aqueduct. A local bus or taxi (around €8-10) covers that gap. Worth noting, Segovia sits at about 1,000 metres elevation. Even in June, mornings feel cool, maybe 12-14°C, and the afternoon sun on the granite gets fierce by 2 PM.

The city's signature dish is cochinillo asado, suckling pig roasted in a wood-fired oven until the skin cracks like thin ceramic. Mesón de Cándido on Plaza del Azoguejo has served it since 1786 and still carves it tableside with the edge of a plate. A whole ritual. José María on Calle Cronista Lecea is the local favorite, less theatrical but the pork tends to be better. Expect to pay €25-28 per person for cochinillo at either spot. If pig isn't your thing, judiones de La Granja are the other local staple, fat white butter beans stewed with chorizo and morcilla. You'll find them on nearly every menu from October through April. Ponche segoviano, a layered marzipan-and-cream cake, is the dessert to try. Limón y Menta on Calle Isabel la Católica sells it by the slice for about €4.

The Eresma valley walk on Day 2 is the part most visitors skip, and it's the best half-day in Segovia. You drop down from the Alcázar's northern side on a steep path that smells like wild thyme and dry pine. The Monastery of Santa María del Parral, founded in 1447, sits in the valley with a Gothic cloister the tour buses never reach. La Vera Cruz church across the river is a 12-sided Romanesque chapel from the early 1200s. The interior is dim and cool, with worn stone steps spiraling to a tiny second-floor chamber. Mind you, both sites close for a long midday break, typically 1:30 PM to 4 PM, so time your visit for the morning. The walk back up to the old city through Puerta de Santiago takes about 20 minutes and will remind your legs that Segovia is built on a cliff.

La Granja de San Ildefonso, 11 km southeast of Segovia, was built starting in 1721 as Philip V's answer to Versailles. The palace rooms are fine but not the main draw. The gardens are the point, 146 hectares of clipped hedges, statues, and 26 monumental fountains that still run on their original 18th-century gravity-fed system. The fountains tend to operate on Wednesdays, Saturdays, and Sundays from late May through September, with scheduled runs around 5:30 PM. On non-fountain days the grounds are quieter but still worth the bus ride. The L-1 bus from Segovia's bus station takes about 25 minutes and costs around €2.50. If you still have energy, the Royal Palace of Riofrío is another 12 km south through oak forest. It's half-empty, which is part of its appeal. Fallow deer roam the grounds, and you'll hear their hooves clicking on the stone paths before you spot them through the trees.