Cervantes House Museum in Valladolid

Miguel de Cervantes · 1547-1616 · Valladolid

Visit the house in Valladolid where Cervantes was living when the first part of Don Quixote went on sale, with its rooms recreated as they were in his day.

Schedule

Tuesday to Saturday, 9:30 to 15:00 · Thursday and Friday also 17:00 to 20:00 · Sundays and public holidays, 10:00 to 15:00

Admission

€3 · €1.50 concession · free on Sundays

Address

Calle del Rastro, s/n, 47001 Valladolid

Visits

Self-guided · groups of 8 or more must book

The house

Cervantes's years in Valladolid

Did you know that the first part of Don Quixote went on sale in Valladolid? Miguel de Cervantes was living at the time in this house in the old Rastro Nuevo de los Carneros, where he had settled in 1604, following the royal court, which had moved to Valladolid and made it the capital of the kingdom.

He shared the main floor of the house with his sisters Andrea and Magdalena, his daughter Isabel, his niece Constanza and a maid, and in those years Quevedo and Góngora were in the city too. This is where he was writing the prologue and the poems that open the first part of Don Quixote, which was a success from the very start.

It was a crime that made it possible to find the house centuries later. In June 1605 a gentleman, Gaspar de Ezpeleta, was fatally wounded beside the house; Cervantes and his neighbours came to his aid, and he ended up detained along with them until the incident was cleared up. In the late 18th century the file on that case turned up, and thanks to Cervantes's statement the house could be identified. In 1948 it became a museum.

The museum's front garden. Photo: Zarateman (CC0).

What you'll see on the visit

The garden and the courtyard

The visit starts in a Spanish garden that shuts out the bustle of the city. In the courtyard, reliefs of Don Quixote and a bust of the Hispanist Archer Huntington recall the history of the museum.

The library

It was founded in 1916 as the Biblioteca Popular y Cervantina, with books from the Marquis de la Vega-Inclán and duplicate copies from the National Library.

The upstairs rooms

They're furnished as they were in Cervantes's time. There are two rooms for receiving visitors, the recibimiento and the estrado, two main bedrooms, the aposento and the alcoba, a smaller alcove, a dining room and a kitchen where the servants also slept.

Additional information

How the house was saved

The house is one of five that Juan de las Navas built in 1601 and, despite centuries of alterations, it keeps its entire structure. By the early 20th century it was in ruins: the Marquis de la Vega-Inclán alerted King Alfonso XIII, who bought it in 1912, while the Hispanist Archer Huntington bought the houses next door to create a library and a museum. Its present appearance is the one the Marquis gave it, and in 2005, for the fourth centenary of Don Quixote, the museum's displays were renewed.

If you want to follow in Cervantes's footsteps, in Alcalá de Henares you can visit the Cervantes Birthplace Museum.

Plan your visit

Only 10 people are allowed upstairs at a time. Groups of 8 or more must book at least 15 days in advance.

Book a visit

Additional information

Free admission, with proof, for under-18s, over-65s, pensioners, unemployed people and students up to the age of 25
Combined ticket with the National Museum of Sculpture for €5, valid for five days
Photos are allowed, without flash or tripod
Because of the nature of the building, it isn't accessible to people with physical disabilities and may be difficult for those with reduced mobility
There's a portable hearing loop at the ticket office for hearing aids and implants
Only guide and assistance dogs are allowed

Opening hours and closures

Tuesday to Saturday: from 9:30 to 15:00
Thursday and Friday afternoons: from 17:00 to 20:00
Sundays and public holidays: from 10:00 to 15:00
Last entry 10 minutes before closing
Closed every Monday, 1 and 6 January, 1 May, one local holiday and 24, 25 and 31 December

https://www.cultura.gob.es/museocasacervantes/informacion/horario.html

See opening times and prices

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