Granada started off our week in southern Spain
If I were a native of southern Spain I would have felt insulted with the popular image associated with the area : tacky bars, rowdy hen/stag parties, cheap booze and lobster-red tourists toasting themselves on its packed beaches.
There’s so much more to southern Spain than beaches!
One of my most memorable trips was a week of plan-it-yourself tour around Granada, Seville, Cadiz, Cordoba and Malaga at the beginning of May 2015 with my travel buddy.
The trip started with a flight from Gatwick to Malaga and then a bus to Granada from the airport. The bus was very comfortable the 2 and 1/2 hour journey passed very quickly
Tickets could be brought on the bus but we were lucky to have got 2 of the few left. So it’s advisable to book beforehand, especially in the peak holiday season.
Where we stayed in Granada – Hotel Alixares
When I chose the hotel I knew that it was near Alhambra but I was still surprised to find that it’s about 100 metres from Alhambra car park! The taxi from the bus station cost only €10.
Our room on the fifth floor was comfortable. Apart from the vicinity to Alhambra, the dinners at the hotel were what I remembered most of our 2 nights ‘ stay.
There was nothing special about the food but the buffet dinner for €14 per person and a bottle of Cava for €12 were great prices for a 4* hotel!! The hotel was popular with tour groups. It did not bother us but it could be very crowded in the peak holiday season
Alhambra
Alhambra was our main reason for staying in Granada. It’s so popular that booking entry tickets online in advance is a MUST. https://tickets.alhambra-patronato.es/en/
Turning up on spec hoping to get in could be a waste of time. Being so near to the venue we were able to collect our tickets at the machine after dinner the night before our 12.30 slot the next day.
To be perfectly honest the eagerly anticipated tour did not excite me as it should. The whole structure was magnificent. The interiors and courtyards were beautiful though not dissimilar to Ben Youssef Mosque and other places in Marrakesh that I visited 2 years before. It was still well worth the visit.
The splendid views from the Alcazaba Fortess were amazing, especially that of the view of Sierra Nevada in the background
When we left Alhambra in the late afternoon there was still time to explore the city. We took the bus C3 from near the entrance and it took us to the heart of the city.
Granada Cathedral
Plaza Romanilla, also known as Plaza de las Palmeras
The amusing statue of a man and a donkey in the Square
Alcaiceria (The Great Bazaar) next to the cathedral square
Finally – Got the fridge magnet
