If there was an award for one of the most beautiful places in Spain, the Alhambra in Granada would probably take home the gold.
A sprawling 14th century palace and fortress complex tucked away in the foothills of the Sierra Nevada mountains, a trip to southern Spain would be incomplete without a visit the the Alhambra. I’ve been making regular pilgrimages to Granada since I was 16 years old, and I knew this summer I couldn’t skip it.
Especially since I had all new gear from Canon Australia to play with. I still can’t believe the first time I visited I used disposable cameras! Man, that feels old just writing that! Agh!
(More about what gear I am shooting with here)
It’s fiendishly difficult to get tickets to the Alhambra, and the Spanish websites are pretty messy, so I decided to hop on a skip-the-lines tour with Viator instead and miss out on all the complications of doing it independently.
The last time I was in Granada was 2011 when I was teaching English in Córdoba. I went with a friend for a weekend in the spring and I have such good memories of spending a day wandering around the Alhambra. The wisteria was blooming and the whole complex smelled like flowers.
Spring in Spain is all kinds of glorious.
As you guys probably have already picked up on over the years, I am not a fan of crowds or popular tourist attractions. That being said, the Alhambra will always be a special place for me, even though it’s like the Vegas of Spain.
You have to wonder even though they have a specific number of tickets sold per day to keep the number of tourists down, that number must be in the millions.
That being said, I found that if I was patient and took my time and waited, I could often get the photos I was looking for without people in them.
For me, Andalucía (southern Spain) is one of the most fascinating spots because of it’s eclectic and culturally diverse history, and Granada being the prime example of it. The Alhambra is a relic of Spain’s amazing past when Spain was occupied by the moors.
For me, it feels like east-meets-west and it remains a legacy of a bygone age.
There are few places like it left in the world, especially Europe. You have to visit if you get the chance!
It also reminds me of my very first trip to Spain in high school and when I fell in love with this part of the world. I can remember skipping through the gardens in the hot summer, drinking liters of water trying to stay cool and sneakily dipping my toes into the fountains everywhere when the guides weren’t looking.
Who knew that moment would inspire years of traveling and living in Spain for me?
Here are some of my favorite snaps from my recent trip to the Alhambra in Spain with Viator! Enjoy!
Have you ever been to the Alhambra? Is Spain on your bucketlist? Do you have a favorite place that is touristy?
Many thanks to Viator for hosting me on this tour of the Alhambra, like always I’m keeping it real, all opinions are my own, like you can expect less from me!
About the author
love Graná as locals pronounce it, been there and also towns within the province as i’ve many family members from my grandmother’s side, she was born in the very well known neighbourhood El Albaicin where you can see La Alhambra beautifully….Granada is very important to us the whole family.
great that you like it Liz!
loved it!
Gorgeous photos as always, you are talented. Just wanted to say that I love your outfit and your camera bag – is that the Ona? I’d love you to do a ‘What’s in my bag” video sometime, so us aspiring travel bloggers can see your essentials.
Great idea!!
I love Spain and I’ve been to the Eastern part of the country many times but I’ve not yet been to the Alhambra. The photos look great though and I love the Moorish architecture.
My favourite touristy place is Hong Kong. Millions of people everywhere but it doesn’t deter me from visiting in the least. More breaks and a great sushi bar do the trick LOL!
OMG I loved Hong Kong!
I remember the day I visited Alhambra. I had been given a random weekend off from the family I was au pairing for and had a few hours to figure out what I was going to do. I headed off to Granada for the weekend and, while I had grand plans of all the things I was going to see while I was there, the fact that it was the end of July/beginning of August quickly squashed those plans. I wandered around Alhambra that Sunday, just wandering around and around and climbing windy, narrow steps and going in circles, guzzling down water in an effort to stay somewhat comfortable. I remember being amazed by the tile work. I just thought it was so beautiful and just how mind blowing it is that people built that and to stand up in one of the towers and see exactly how small I really am, in the grand scheme of things.
what a beautiful memory!