Patones is an incredible mountain municipality that belongs to the Madrural territory of the Community of Madrid, and is located more specifically in the Jarama Valley of the Sierra Norte. It is made up of Patones de Arriba and Patones de Abajo.
You can start your visit in Patones de Abajo, visit the Museum of the geological classroom, located in a place of extraordinary geological value. Outside the museum, we can see a collection of rocks representative of the Sierra Norte. After the visit to the museum, Patones de Arriba awaits you after climbing the ecological path of El Barranco, a path of just 750 meters in which as we gain altitude we can enjoy a breathtaking landscape.
Patones de Arriba is one of the eleven Villas de Madrid, a group of unique destinations for the recognized value of its Cultural Heritage, which have managed to preserve their rural authenticity.
This small village, whose black slate architecture has earned it the status of Cultural Heritage, is located in a privileged enclave, surrounded by mountains and forests. Its steep and narrow streets, stone houses and slate roofs create a unique and special atmosphere.
Patones de Arriba is a perfect place to enjoy nature and tranquility and a rich mountain gastronomy in any of its delicious restaurants. It also offers a wide variety of tourist activities, such as hiking, cycling, climbing or fishing.
Patones, a truly town-like flavour
Patones has not changed; we have. Patones is praised for its genuineness, ancient charm, rural atmosphere and the fact that bring you to a time long forgotten as well as, ultimately, for its true town-like flavour. The Villa de Patones offers a lot with very little, because it manages to transport the visitor to a past time with the only argument of simplicity. Patones is just the way it’s always been. That's its great worth. Even more so if we intend to track back our steps through history and nature, after the Upper Paleolithic. Patones is made of slate and its “black architecture” is well-known. It also has a unique history, since back in the 17th century the people of Patones chose their own “king” among them and, as legend has it, Patones was unaffected by the French occupation for it is hidden in the mountains.
What about the natural environment that surrounds it? Two rivers, the Lozoya and the Jarama, flow through its town area; therefore, Patones is surrounded by lush nature, with slate mountains and pools of crystalline water where you can find otters, frogs, or birds like the common kingfisher or the dipper. Griffon vultures and peregrine falcons usually fly up high over us. All of this is bathed in a light that allows us to capture the magic of the atmosphere in each photograph we take.
The ethnographic and geological value of Patones and its scenery is priceless. Walking down Patones is like attending a history lesson and taking a field trip into its surrounding area, a practical workshop in natural science.

Photo: Aerial view of Patones

Photo: Fountain

Photo: Streets of Patones

Photo: Canal de Jarama, Lozoya and El Atazar

Photo: Archaeological site of Dehesa de la Oliva
Tips for visiting Patones
Patones is a storytelling heaven: every stone, every fireplace, every door has a tale to tell. In Patones de arriba, the Tourism Office is located in the old San José Church, in El Llano square. It is undoubtedly the right place to start our journey through Patones ancestral history, which begins during the Stone Age, when the first settlers chose the Reguerillo Cave to protect themselves from the weather and fauna, until today.
Social meeting points: from the church to the washing place, opposite the tavern
Places where no secret is kept
From the land, the nourishment: threshing floors, cattle sheds and arenas
A way of life which refuses to disappear
Places to rest and to enjoy family life
Ethnographic pieces kept alive
Further exploring in our common past
A melting pot serving as a landmark
Pioneering hydraulic works
Gigantic projects to guarantee water supply
Much more at the Tourism Office
Visit us and we’ll tell you all you need to know

Tourism Office of Patones
If you’re looking for plans, routes, restaurants or accommodation, come over to the tourism office in Patones. There you’ll find dozens of suggestions. It’s located in the Los Llanos square in Patones de Arriba (you have to leave your car outside the town).
- Address: Plaza del Llano, 1
- Web: http://turismo.patones.net
The villas invite you to disconnect
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