Granada: top attractions & road trip guide
Granada is the last Moorish stronghold of medieval Spain, set at the foot of the Sierra Nevada mountains and famed above all for the Alhambra, a hilltop palace and fortress complex regarded as one of the finest surviving examples of Islamic architecture in the world. The steep, whitewashed Albaicin quarter opposite it preserves the city's old Moorish street plan almost intact.
As the southeastern anchor of an Andalusian route, Granada rewards a slower pace: mountain roads climb quickly from the city into the Sierra Nevada, and the drive in from the coast or from Cordoba passes through varied terrain, from olive groves to increasingly alpine scenery near the city itself.
Top attractions
Alhambra
A hilltop palace and fortress complex combining Nasrid palaces, defensive towers, and the Generalife gardens, regarded as a pinnacle of Islamic architecture.
Albaicin
A hillside old Moorish quarter of steep cobbled lanes and whitewashed houses, with viewpoints looking directly across at the Alhambra.
Granada Cathedral
A Renaissance cathedral built after the Christian reconquest, adjoining the Royal Chapel where Ferdinand and Isabella are entombed.
Generalife
The former summer palace and gardens of the Nasrid rulers, laid out with terraced flowerbeds, fountains, and long reflecting pools.
Sacromonte
A hillside neighborhood historically associated with the Roma community, known for whitewashed cave dwellings and traditional flamenco performances.
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