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The monastery of El Escorial, its dome and towers rising over the red roofs of the town, with the Sierra de Guadarrama’s wooded slopes behind

Wedding photographers in El Escorial

A royal monastery that still marries couples in its basilica on Fridays and Saturdays, under the pine slopes of the Sierra de Guadarrama, 47 km from Madrid.

See all 7 photographersWhen to marry here

San Lorenzo de El Escorial grew up around the monastery Philip II built between 1563 and 1584: palace, church, royal pantheon, convent, college and library in one vast granite block, a UNESCO World Heritage site since 1984. It sits at about 1,030 metres on the south-eastern slope of the Sierra de Guadarrama, with Mount Abantos rising behind it to 1,753 metres. The town and the lower village, El Escorial proper, are two separate municipalities, which matters when you book.

Few places in Spain let you book a royal basilica on a form: the monastery’s community publishes its wedding calendar and a reservation page for dates up to 2028. For civil weddings the town hall will marry you in the council chamber or at a licensed estate or restaurant in the municipality, so a day here can run from a formal church to the pine woods. Dinner can be on one of those estates, and at this height the evenings are cool, even in June.

Photographers

7 photographers in Madrid

They shoot everywhere in Madrid — in El Escorial too. Their whole weddings are on their pages.

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Ceremonies

Where couples marry in El Escorial

  1. The Basilica of the monastery

    Catholic weddings in the Basilica of the Real Monasterio, on Fridays at 17:30 and 19:00 and on Saturdays at 11:30, 13:00 and 17:00, with rare exceptions. You reserve on the monastery’s form and have 15 days to pay a deposit; the booked names then show on its calendar within two or three days. Its published fee covers the ceremony, the lighting, an organist and the high altar’s flowers, but not a choir or a soprano.

  2. The council chamber

    Civil weddings from Monday to Saturday, in the Salón de Plenos of the Casa Consistorial, conducted by a councillor. €155.25 if one of you was born in the town or has been registered there for at least a year, €415.96 if not (the council’s page, updated 11 February 2026).

  3. A licensed estate or restaurant

    The council will also marry you at a restaurant or estate with the right licence within the municipality, with 40% added to the fee. Ask the estate first whether it holds that licence, then the mayor’s office (918 903 644, ext. 102) for dates. An estate in another municipality, such as El Escorial below, is a matter for that council.

Clipped box gardens below the long pale granite walls and rows of windows of the monastery of El Escorial, its dome against a blue sky
The wide paved Lonja of El Escorial under a deep blue sky, the monastery’s wall on one side, long stone buildings ahead and the mountains under a band of cloud

Portraits

Where to take your portraits

Through the year

When to marry in El Escorial

The nearest AEMET station at this height is Colmenar Viejo (1,004 m, normals 1982–2010), about 30 km away on the same side of the Sierra: average highs of 26.0 °C in June and 24.3 °C in September, with rain on about four days in each, and lows near 14 °C; May is 20.0 °C with rain on eight days, July 30.0 °C, October 17.4 °C with rain on seven days. That is about two degrees cooler than Madrid’s Retiro in June and July. The Romería de la Virgen de Gracia fills the La Herrería woods on the second Sunday of September, San Lorenzo’s festivities come around 10 August, and Holy Week is another busy date.

Madrid, month by month

  1. January: Quieter
  2. February: Quieter
  3. March: Quieter
  4. April: Good with planning
  5. May: Best
  6. June: Best
  7. July: Good with planning
  8. August: Good with planning
  9. September: Best
  10. October: Best
  11. November: Quieter
  12. December: Quieter

Practical

Good to know before the day

  • Getting there

    By car 45–50 minutes from central Madrid, on the A-6 to exit 47 and then the M-600. Buses 661 and 664 leave from Moncloa; the 664 takes the A-6’s bus lane. Cercanías line C-8a reaches El Escorial’s station from Atocha, Sol and Chamartín, at the bottom of the hill: shuttle buses climb from there to the old town.

  • The basilica’s office

    The monastery’s priest sees couples in the basilica’s sacristy on Saturdays from 18:45 to 19:45 and on Sundays and holidays from 11:00 to 13:00. Telephone 91 890 50 11. Come with your parish papers underway: the monastery’s pages don’t list them, so ask.

  • Civil paperwork

    The marriage file always starts at the Registro Civil, by appointment; then ask the mayor’s office for dates, pay, and apply online or at the Registro General on the Plaza de la Constitución. A request made less than 15 days ahead, for urgency, costs 50% more. Bring the file and the two witnesses’ documents before the ceremony.

  • Drones

    A drone over the town is an urban flight: a registered operator must notify the Ministry of the Interior at least five days ahead (Real Decreto 517/2024). Over the monastery, ask Patrimonio Nacional first.

  • The legal route

    A civil wedding needs one of you to live in Spain, where the marriage file is opened. A wedding in the basilica is Catholic, has civil effect and needs no Spanish residence, with the file prepared through your home parish. Most other couples from abroad marry at home and hold a symbolic ceremony here.

How to marry legally in Spain

Questions

Questions about marrying in El Escorial

Can we get married in the monastery of El Escorial?

Yes, in a Catholic ceremony in its basilica: Fridays at 17:30 or 19:00 and Saturdays at 11:30, 13:00 or 17:00. The monastery’s site has the calendar and a reservation form for dates up to 2028, and a booking needs a deposit within 15 days. Its parish paperwork isn’t published, so ask in the sacristy or by telephone.

How much does a civil wedding cost here?

San Lorenzo’s council charges €155.25 if one of you was born in the town or has been registered there for at least a year, and €415.96 otherwise; away from the town hall, within the municipality, 40% more (updated 11 February 2026). The Registro Civil’s own ceremony is free, on its dates.

Are El Escorial and San Lorenzo de El Escorial the same place?

No. San Lorenzo de El Escorial, “up top”, holds the monastery and has been its own municipality since 1836; El Escorial is the older one below, with the railway station and the Casita del Príncipe. Each has its own council and its own wedding fees, so check which one an estate belongs to.

Can we have professional photographs inside the monastery?

In the basilica during your ceremony, ask the sacristy what your photographer may do. In the visitor areas, Patrimonio Nacional’s published rule is for personal photos without flash, and we found none for professional shoots: ask it directly. Outside, the Lonja is open to everyone.

When is the best time to marry in El Escorial?

June and September: average highs of 24–26 °C and rain on about four days a month at the nearest comparable AEMET station, about two degrees cooler than Madrid. May and October are cooler and rainier, and the evenings are cool all year at this height, so plan on a layer.

Sources (18)
  1. monasteriodelescorial.com/bodas
  2. monasteriodelescorial.com/bodas/reserva
  3. monasteriodelescorial.com/bodas/otras-informaciones
  4. monasteriodelescorial.com/bodas/contacto-2
  5. tramites.aytosanlorenzo.es/matrimonios-civiles
  6. visitmadrid.es/donde-ir/madrural/sierra-guadarrama/san-lorenzo-escorial
  7. visitmadrid.es/silla-felipe-ii-mirador-historico-san-lorenzo-escorial
  8. sanlorenzoturismo.es
  9. es.wikipedia.org/wiki/San_Lorenzo_de_El_Escorial
  10. tickets.patrimonionacional.es/en/tickets/casita-del-principe-el-escorial
  11. patrimonionacional.es/actualidad/noticias/patrimonio-nacional-permite-hacer-fotografias-e…
  12. crtm.es/comunicacion/actualidad-del-servicio/avisos/18012024-cambios-en-el-plano-de-renfe…
  13. whc.unesco.org/en/list/318
  14. aemet.es/es/serviciosclimaticos/datosclimatologicos/valoresclimatologicos?l=3191E&k=mad
  15. aemet.es/es/serviciosclimaticos/datosclimatologicos/valoresclimatologicos?l=3195&k=mad
  16. boe.es/buscar/act.php?id=BOE-A-2024-11377
  17. boe.es/buscar/act.php?id=BOE-A-2011-12628
  18. gml.noaa.gov/grad/solcalc/calcdetails.html

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