The city of Granada is truly one of the treasures of traveling through Spain so make sure to add it to the Spanish itinerary you are creating! Granada’s Arabic influence, Spanish charm, historical sites and scenic landscape draw tons of tourists every year. If you are visiting Andalusia, the southern state of Spain, there are many fantastic cities to visit that are also filled with lots of history and culture, such as Seville and Cadiz, just to name a few, but you will definitely want to add Granada to your list of must visit Spanish cities. Granada has an abundance of historical sites and neighborhoods to visit and activities to keep you busy for multiple days.
The Moors ruled over Andalusia for years so their presence is still visible today and can be felt throughout the city with the Arabic culture, Islamic architecture and multiple mosques converted into churches scattered throughout the Albaicín. Granada sits at the foot of the Sierra Nevada mountain range in the south eastern part of Spain, which is a picturesque region with miles of olive groves sprawling over the hillsides and foothills of the Sierra Nevada Mountains. From the Alhambra, a Moorish palace with courtyards and gardens to the old Moorish city, the Albaicín, which hasn’t changed too much from the Medieval times in which it was built, to the cave dwellings of the historic gypsy neighborhood, well known for its flamenco shows, there is an abundance of things to do in Granada. The following are 13 places to visit within or around Granada if you happen to be in this southern Spanish city.
The Alhambra
This fantastic Spanish treasures is difficult to describe in so few words, but the Alhambra is a fort, a palace, a museum and a summer retreat with fountains and beautiful gardens from another time in history and all in one magnificent place. During its heyday, it was ruled and controlled by multiple religious rulers including Muslims and Christians. For some time it was ruled by the Emirate of Granada in the final centuries of Andalucia’s Muslim control and eventually became the Catholic Monarchs royal court. It served many purposes and now perched high above the city center of Granada as a UNESCO World Heritage site it has become not only Granada and Andalusias’ biggest tourist attraction, but it’s one of the most visited locations in the entire country of Spain. With two million visitors per year you could say it’s the crown jewel of Granada and no visit to the city is complete until you have visited it.
The Generalife
The Generalife was built and became one of the Alhambra’s Summer Palaces because of its gorgeous gardens that provided a cooling atmosphere for the sultans during the extremely hot summers of southern Andalusia. Many of the fountains and bodies of water within the Generalife are surrounded by flower beds and Moorish arches everywhere you look. The reflections of the architecture and flowers within the water adds to the peacefulness of the palace. The Generalife’s external walkways provide a stunning view of the Albaicín, the old Arabic neighborhood along the other side of the River Darro.
The Albaicín
No visit to the south of Spain is complete until you have visited one of Andalusia’s most unique neighborhoods, the charming Albaicín, located in the city of Granada, across the Darro River from the Alhambra fortress and palace. Even though the Albaicín is located within the city of Granada, it feels like a totally different world due to the strong Muslim influence over the centuries.. The Albaicín is Granada’s oldest neighborhood and is the former Arabic quarter. This compact network of whitewashed houses and winding cobblestone streets is Granada’s bohemian and artistic center filled with art, live music and beautiful squares that are just calling out to be explored. The best way to get to know this lovely and iconic neighborhood is to get lost and just explore on foot. Even though the Muslims were expelled during the reconquest and their mosques became churches, this neighborhood on the hillside became a UNESCO World Heritage site because this neighborhood is the old Moorish barrio of the city. As narrow cobblestone roads weave through whitewashed houses, quaint plazas and charming courtyards, there is also plenty of Arabic tea shops and hookah bars, along with shopping and many dining options to explore throughout your day long visit.
A Flamenco Show in Sacromonte
Another traditional neighborhood in Granada is Sacromonte. It’s actually considered to be part of the Albaicín, along the north eastern side of that neighborhood, but many people have considered it to be the city’s gypsy community after the Spanish Reconquest. The neighborhood was initially built by the Arabs and they literally built into the hillside with people’s homes dug out from the mountain into small caves. These caves were generally lived in by gypsies and travelers and is now more diverse with many artists moving into the neighborhood. Within the community you will see that every cave house is completely different based on the rock face they had to dig through to construct the house cave. Throughout the community, there are cactuses everywhere, which helps to showcase the arid region of southern Spain. These cave houses are spectacular to see, but the true treasure is what usually takes place within these caves and that is the traditional flamenco dancing. Flamenco is as synonymous with Spain as bullfights and therefore this traditional Spanish dance can be found anywhere within the country, but Granada is where the art form is said to have been created and the tradition been kept alive and well throughout history. Even though you can see a flamenco show anywhere in Spain, experiencing a flamenco show inside one of the small caves within the Sacromonte neighborhood of Granada is a cultural experience that is simply one of the true treasures of traveling within Spain. These caves in Sacromonte that are specifically used for flamenco shows are actually called Zambras and can be found in almost every direction you look. You will also find restaurants and bars housed within the caves of Sacromonte and along Camino del Sacromonte, which is this neighborhood’s main thoroughfare.
Plaza de San Nicolás
One of the first places most people visit within the Albaicín or even the city of Granada is Mirador San Nicolás, as it is the most popular square within the Albaicín to view the Alhambra. The panoramic views of the mighty fortress are a sight to behold from this square. Looking up from Mirador San Nicolás, you can see the majestic walls of the Alhambra on top of the cliff. This part of the palace and fortress complex is known as the Alcazaba, which is one of the oldest parts of the Alhambra as it is the outer wall. The fortress has the backdrop of the Sierra Nevada Mountains in the background that are just breathtaking to view in person. This square is also a great place to watch a sunset over the Alhambra. Even though the view of the Alhambra from Mirador San Nicolás is splendid to behold, no visit to the Albaicín is complete until you have seen this Moorish neighborhood in its entirety, looking down from the Alhambra palace itself. The Church of San Nicolás is also another great location within the Albaicín to enjoy the view of the Alhambra and the Generalife with the Sierra Nevada backdrop. I would also suggest visiting this plaza at night, not only to view the Alhambra lit up with lights, but to experience the atmosphere of the plaza, where many locals come to drink, dance, play music and hang out. Reaching the Plaza de San Nicolás might be tough for some travelers as it can be an uphill climb, so if that’s the case for you, then you might want to take a taxi there to explore. The plaza is open 24 hours a day and is free to explore and enjoy the beautiful vistas that hundreds of people have experienced throughout history.
Alcaiceria
The Alcaiceria during Moorish rule was the Great Bazaar of Granada, where merchants would sell their crafts and goods, including silks and spices. From a giant bazaar to a single passageway, the Alcaiceria is full of souvenir shops with postcards and flamenco dresses and has a wide variety of Moroccan and North African goods including leather bags and stained glass lamps as well as famous Moroccan tapestries. If you need to get souvenirs for family members and friends back home, this is the place in Granada to visit.
Granada Cathedral
Granada’s Cathedral is one of kind, not only because it’s Spain’s second largest cathedral, but it was a former mosque that was converted into a cathedral with multiple architectural highlights throughout history, from its foundations being built in the Gothic era, while its main structures are from the Renaissance era. The Royal Chapel of the Cathedral of Granada actually houses the tombs of King Ferdinand and Queen Isabella, the Spanish Royalty who were Spain’s rulers during the Reconquest of Spain.
Tapas
If you have never been to Spain, you might be unaware of tapas, a very Spanish food tradition. Tapas are small amounts of food that tend to accompany a drink that you may order, like beer or sangria. Tapas tend to be a part of everyday life in Andalusia, the southern state of Spain because this is where it originated at. The one main difference regarding tapas in Granada compared to the rest of the country is that tapas are free in Granada, where you will have to pay for them in other cities around Spain. Generally tapas are a complete surprise, because you don’t know exactly what type of food will come with the drink you order. For example, almost all tapas include some type of olives, which are famous in this part of Spain as there are olive groves all over the countryside. Tapas may also include anything from patatas bravas, panini sandwiches and deep fried calamari to jamon serrano, which is better known in English as cured ham. Jamon Serrano is so popular throughout Spain that you will see it in almost every bar and food market throughout the country. You will see multiple legs of dried and cured ham above the bar where you might be enjoying your tapa or in the food market and will be cut in very thin slices. In Granda from about 1pm to 4pm which is generally considered their siesta and again from around 9:00 pm to midnight you can visit any bar and order a glass of wine or a beer and enjoy a free tapa where occasionally you can even pick the tapa you want from a menu.
Sierra Nevada National Park
The Sierra Nevada National Park is also not to be missed since it is so close to Granada and actually forms the backdrop to the Alhambra when viewing it from the Albaicín. Mountain peak Mulhacén is located within this national park and is actually the highest peak on the Iberian Peninsula at 3,478 meters above sea level. The Sierra Nevada National Park is the largest national park in Spain and also includes the southernmost ski resort in Europe, called the Ski Station at Sierra Nevada, which has a season generally running from December to April. If you are an avid skier you will definitely want to make Granada your home base as you test out the slopes at Ski Station because it only takes about half an hour to get from downtown Granada to the Sierra Nevada Mountain range. On this short journey, you can watch the vegetation change from underbrush scrub to juniper bushes and as you get higher in elevation you will see olive trees and event oaks. Even if you don’t visit this part of Spain in the winter, you can still visit the Sierra Nevada Ski Resort in the summer when their chair lifts transport visitors to some of the national park’s highest mountains, including Veleta, the tallest peak after Mulhacen, where there are scenic hiking trails you can explore.
Carrera del Darro
After a full day of exploring the Albaicín, take a walk on the road that runs along the Darro River. This road is called the Carrera del Darro and is beneath the Albaicín district, where the outer walls of the Albaicín’s neighborhood once stood. It also happens to be beneath the Alhambra Fortress that sits on top of the mountain on the other side of this river. In some spots the street can be very small, just a few meters wide, and you will see lush greenery along the river banks and small stone bridges that cross the river. It’s so picturesque that you will see many artists painting beautiful scenes along the river. Many of the artists will be painting the renaissance buildings of the old city, which include the original stonework of these Moorish buildings. You can also make a quick stop to see the old Arab baths on your way back to downtown Granada.
Relax the Afternoon Away with a Siesta.
Many Spanish cities enjoy a relaxing siesta, but Granada takes its siestas very seriously, which is a good thing. Generally during the hours of 1:00 pm to 4:00 pm the majority of stores close for siesta, where most people return home for lunch and to sleep and escape from the heat of the afternoon sun. It’s so interesting to see a whole city almost completely go silent during the middle of the day. This is a great time to explore the city because the streets and alleyways are basically empty, which also makes it the perfect time to take pictures without tons of people in them. Enjoy relaxing in small plaza or square next to a water fountain.
Visit Parque Federico García Lorca
Parque Federico García Lorca is a city park located in the south eastern part of the city of Granada. The park itself is named after the Spanish poet Federico García Lorca. It’s a great place to escape the noise of the city, to exercise or even just to relax under the palm trees and smell the flowers during a siesta or evening stroll. The park is opened to the public during daylight hours.
Universidad de Granada Centro de Lenguas Modernas
If while traveling in Spain you want to practice and learn more in depth conversation skills in Spanish, then look no further than the Center for Modern Language at the University of Granada (Universidad de Granada Centro de Lenguas Modernas). They offer a large number of language classes in many languages as well as Spanish history, art, geography and culture classes. If you are planning to study abroad, this would be a fantastic place to do just that. I studied abroad at this institution for one semester and it was one of the best experiences of my college career. The school can be found in Granada in a beautiful building with colonial style architecture with an open courtyard that is surrounded by all the classrooms. It’s a fantastic place to learn the Spanish language as you will be immersed in the culture of southern Spain in a city filled with a decades of history.
Granada is a fantastic city to speed a few days exploring, but if you are itching to continue traveling, it’s located in close proximity to the Mediterranean coast. Some of the closest coastal cities are Malaga, Nerja and Marbella, which make for quick and easy day trips to the beach. From the Alhambra to the Albaicin and from the historic city center to the Sierra Nevada National Park, there are many wonderful places to visit and activities to keep you occupied and that’s just another reason this fantastic city is one of the Treasures of Traveling in southern Spain!
Check out the map below to see where Granada is located at!
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