Windmills in Consuegra in Toledo, Castilla-La Mancha

In a certain village in La Mancha you can set out on the route described in Don Quixote

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Miguel de Cervantes wrote what is perhaps one of the best-known works of literature in the world. Follow in the footsteps of Don Quixote de la Mancha, the book’s tragicomic hero, and immerse yourself in this passionate tale of adventures. You’ll discover the wonderful landscapes of Castilla-La Mancha. The best way to follow this route is by car. So, when are you going to start writing your own story?

Setting out from Toledo , head towards Consuegra. Along the way you’ll see those famous windmills, guilty of making Don Quixote believe that they were giants he had to fight. Nearby is El Toboso, where Dulcinea, the great love of his life, once lived. You can even visit the Casa-Museo de Dulcinea, a museum that is a recreation of a 16th century mansion, a caserón manchego typical of this region. From Villanueva de los Infantes you’ll continue on to Ossa de Montiel and the nearby Lagunas de Ruidera, and the Cave of Montesinos - the setting for some of the adventures of the famous hidalgo. From there you can go up into the hills that delimit the region where at one point in the book Don Quixote stops to mediate and rest. 

Panoramic view of the Lagunas de Ruidera in Ciudad Real, Castilla-La Mancha

Cervantes was imprisoned in the Cueva de Medrano, in Argamasilla de Alba. Legend has it that this could be the place where the writer breathed life into the adventures and misadventures of this emblematic character. You can either choose to continue on, or to end your route in Ciudad Real , where you can visit the Don Quixote Museum, and take a look at the lovely little town of Almagro with its impressive main square.  Other places on the must visit list are Alcalá de Henares - where Miguel de Cervantes was born - and Madrid , the city where he wrote other works and where he is said to be buried, in the Church and Convent of the nuns of the Trinitarias Descalzas order. 

Figures of Sancho Panza and Don Quixote in front of the house where Miguel de Cervantes was born, in Alcalá de Henares, Region of Madrid
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