''Granada is like the beautiful, delicate land of our dreams; all those who see her, dream of visiting her again” - Chateaubriand.
It´s been a year since I visited Granada and I indeed dream of visiting it again. Have you never heard of Granada? It´s a city in Andalucía, the most southern province of Spain. It´s a Moorish, old city surrounded by the beautiful snowy mountain peaks of the Sierra Nevada. I went two days to Granada in 2018 and will give you tips on what to visit there.
What to expect in this article:
Day 1 - Alhambra!
Do you know what Granada is most known for? Exactly the Alhambra. This is a beautiful palace and fortress that is on the UNESCO World Heritage list.
So the first day in Granada, you have to spend all day on this site. I literally mean the whole day.
We arrived in Granada around 12 PM, went straight to the castle and stayed there until closing time (6 PM). There are so many things to see and take photos of. This truly is a wonder to see! I also love that you can see the Alhambra from many places in the city, because it´s situated on a hill.
If you went to Granada but missed the Alhambra, you truly missed something. It´s one of the most visited places in Spain actually.
After seeing this beauty, we had to go to our hotel to check in and of course,e we got lost. When we finally reached the hotel (Hostal Camino Real) they told us they were fully booked, while we made a booking. Luckily, they gave us another option, which was quite far, but the owner brought us there by car. Unfortunately, this hotel wasn´t in the center.
Day 2 - exploring Granada
The next day, start your day with breakfast and you can have it at Duran Barista. It´s a nice small cafe with a breakfast buffet, which we discovered on Tripadvisor. A tip: Make a reservation if that is possible, because it is very small.
After that, go strolling through the center of Granada.
Because this was our last day, we rushed towards our next destination, Mirador San Nicolás. From here, you have a stunning view over the Alhambra and the snowy mountain peaks of the Sierra Nevada. The viewpoint may be very crowded and touristic, but it is really worth it!
I really liked the walk from the breakfast place to the Mirador, because we were walking through little white streets and the whole way we could see the Alhambra getting more beautiful, so I recommend walking up to the viewpoint, because it´s really worth it.
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Arabic influences & Cathedral
After that, we went to the Bañuelo, which used to be a bath house for the Arabs. As I said, Granada is a Moorish city.
The bath house was pretty small (in 7 minutes we had seen all), so I do not know if I would recommend it on any other days than Sunday, because on Sunday it is free to visit.
Other Arabic influences you can also notice at the Alcaicería. This is a Moroccan bazaar where you can buy Arabic craftwork and also souvenirs.
After this, go to the cathedral of Granada. It is stunning to see from the inside and the outside. We were so lucky that both of our days in November were sunny! To celebrate the sun in Spain in November, we had ice cream on the stairs of the Cathedral. Life is good!
Don't forget to take a look at these articles:
Roadtripping in Andalucía (including the most beautiful town of Andalucía!)
Where to stay in Granada?
How to reach Granada
After this lovely ice cream, we had to leave Granada, noooo! We both did not want to leave.
Granada is 2,5 hours from Sevilla by car, which is pretty far. We booked our trips to and from Granada with BlaBlaCar. We, unfortunately, had to go back at 8. Besides that, we had to walk 30 minutes to the meeting point and also needed a place to eat something. So after the walk we ate at… Burger King.
Yeah, no tapas sadly. When you are in Granada, you have to try the tapas! We went to a random bar close to our hotel and even at this bar, the tapas were good. What I like as a stingy Dutchie is that in Granada you get a free tapas whenever you order a drink hihi.
More days in Granada?
Do you have more days to spend in Granada? Lucky you! There is so much more to visit in and outside this beautiful city. One of the coolest things you can do is go skiing in the Sierra Nevada. You will ski in the snow with a view over the beach in the distance. That sounds so absurd, I need to do this!
What are your experiences with Granada? What else should people do in Granada? Do you want to go back for a second time? Let me know on one of my socials!
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