Eduma Sierra de Madrid Summer Camp in Guadarrama

The camp occupies a countryside residence set in pine woodland a short distance outside the town of Guadarrama, in the mountain range that rises north-west of Madrid. The altitude keeps summer evenings noticeably cooler than in the city, and the setting gives the programme its shape: forest paths, a reservoir within excursion distance, an equestrian club nearby, and enough open ground on site for sports courts, a meadow and a supervised swimming pool. Children and teenagers from six to fifteen are accepted, and the camp divides them into four age bands. The youngest group is built around close supervision, stories and dressing-up. The eight-to-nine band moves towards directed games and first steps in independence. The ten-to-twelve group takes on team challenges and higher-energy activity, while the oldest participants focus on group relationships and get activities scaled to their age, including an overnight bivouac under the stars in the camp pine wood. The programme is activity-based rather than academic and runs in Spanish. A typical day mixes outdoor sports — introductory fencing with foam sabres, archery, Canadian hockey and open-air games — with craft and cooking workshops, board games and pool time. Evenings bring night games, themed days and film sessions. Three guided excursions sit alongside the on-site programme: canoeing on a nearby reservoir combined with a walk along a signposted mountain path and a visit to a historic village, a riding route at a local equestrian club where participants also learn about the care of the horses, and a forest trail through the woods of the Sierra de Guadarrama. Which of the excursions a participant joins depends on the session booked. Accommodation is in shared rooms of four beds, organised by floor and by age group, with a dining room and several activity rooms indoors. The residence runs its own kitchen and serves full board with an afternoon snack, adapting menus to medical requirements such as lactose or gluten intolerance; the provider works with the regional coeliac association on gluten-free catering. Friends can be placed in the same room when families flag it at the time of booking. The camp fee covers accommodation and meals, the coordinator and leader team on site around the clock, activity materials, transport and entry for every excursion, basic accident and civil liability cover, a first-aid kit and a support vehicle. A coach service between Madrid and the camp is offered as a paid option on the arrival and departure days, with a single journey available instead of the return trip, and cancellation cover can be added at the time of booking. The organiser has been running youth camps and activities in Spain since the mid-nineteen-seventies, belongs to the Spanish national association of camp and activity companies and is an examination centre for a British English-language board. Group sizes are kept small, mobile phones are collected and handed back during set call times, and families are given contact numbers and a camp blog to follow while their child is away.