Travel bug: Granada

If you are ever in Spain, you must visit Granada. Although not a typical destination for most people who prefer to visit bigger cities during their first time in Spain (like Madrid, Barcelona, Seville or San Sebastian). Granada provides access to skiing (Sierra Nevada), hiking (Alpujarras) and coastal towns (Salobreña, Almuñecar, Motril) most within 1 or 2 hour travel distance from the city center. It is also home for the University of Granada founded in 1531, with approximately 60000 students. Also the Centro de Lenguas Modernas - a language school offering Spanish classes for thousands of foreign students every year.








Start with a walk in El Albayzín. This is the Arab quarter and there are a lot of little tea shops called "teterías". You must try some of their specialty teas and pastries. Some of them have been there for a long time. The decor will remind you of a Moroccan baazar. The streets are narrow and most of them only pedestrian.

The road up to the Mirador de San Nicolás is a long and windy road although you can be smart and take one of the small buses that will drop you directly at the mirador. But if you like adventure, you should just try to get there yourself. It is fun to just walk around the winding narrow streets and get lost. I don't remember ever going up the same way twice. That's the beauty of it!

The best view of the Alhambra and popular spot for visitors. Go early in the morning to see the sunrise or later in the day for the sunset. It will be an unforgettable experience.



There are no words to describe the Alhambra and Generalife so I will just post some pictures which probably don't do justice to their intrinsic beauty.

I loved the reflection of The Partal in the water here (one of the palaces in the Alhambra) and currently the main picture selected for the blog.

Most people that go to Granada will certainly visit the Alhambra and if you try to buy tickets on the web they may not be available. I recommend trying to take a bus early in the morning and get tickets at the door since they usually keep some for people who arrive on foot. You can also try having your hotel book you tickets, specially if you are interested in a guided tour, but that could be fairly expensive.


View of the Alhambra from Paseo de los Tristes. Start in Plaza Nueva, continue through Carrera del Darro and you will find yourself at the Paseo de los Tristes. From there you can go up Cuesta del Chapíz and reach Mirador de San Nicolás. But it is fairly steep, so be prepared.
If you are interested in shopping, don't miss out on a walk by Calle de los Mesones and Plaza de Bibarrambla.
Also, make sure you visit the Cathedral, Jardines del Triunfo, Parque de García Lorca. But you must try to walk around and get lost as you take in the views of the city.

If you arrive by plane, there is a bus that leaves the airport about 15 to 20 minutes after arrival and will take you to the different locations in the city center. It will cost you less that 5 euros. It certainly beats 18 to 20 euros if you take a taxi. The same service operates from the city back to the airport. Make sure you ask the bus driver for a leaflet with this information.

Most bars will offer free small snacks known as "tapas" with your drink. Granada is one of the few cities in Spain that still does this. Sometimes you will be asked to select among different choices, in other places they will just bring something for you. It is definitely fun to bar hop and figure out where the best tapas are. Just a word of caution if you are vegetarian, you may not be lucky when it comes to getting free tapas as most of them will contain some sort of "meat product". But it is always fun to watch other people eat, right?