Winter Weekend in Granada
Liz Sutcliffe, formerly from Rough Guides, has decided to take the road to uncover all things eco, sustainable and local in the travel world. She has just returned from a month volunteering in the Sierra Nevada on an organic farm. She stopped over in Granada for a weekend and used our Tripbod Violeta to find out the best things to do for a winter weekend.
Arabian nights meet Spanish bohemia with a twist of University intellectual tradition – a unique blend and perhaps the reason that many who arrive in Granada with the sole intention of ticking the Alhambra off their list, soon find themselves booking an extra night or two to soak up more of the city’s inexplicable allure.
My trip to Granada was no different - crisp wintry days played out against a backdrop of autumnal foliage, just another example of the many competing forces at work year-round in Granada – a city, or more accurately large town – with an abundance of captivating faces.
Luckily, the freezing temperatures and travel lull meant the city was pretty much my playground, and with local Tripbod, Violeta, as my personal guide, I could navigate it expertly. From the labyrinths of the Albaicin to the cobbled streets of the University quarter, Violeta’s personalized itinerary left no corner unexplored and ensured I experienced the very best Granada has to offer.
Churros and hot chocolate, tick; the oldest tearoom in the city, tick; a visit to the final resting place of Ferdinand and Isabel, tick – in fact all the things I’d told Violeta I wanted to see and do, plus a few more insider-suggestions, were packaged neatly into a guided route that I could do at my own pace. For an avid traveller who loves nothing more than exploring new places on foot, it was perfect.
Of the many Xs dotting my city map, the star of the show was unsurprisingly still the Alhambra, a truly awe-inspiring wonder which deserves a place on everyone’s must-see list. Although travelling out of season, with an average daily intake of over 8,000 visitors, this was one sight I had to share, and after placing one foot inside the Nasrid Palaces, I soon understood why. Words cannot do the beauty of the ornate wood carvings, the elaborate mosaics and the sheer disbelief that man constructed such a thing, justice and I won’t try. Suffice to say that I’ve never uttered, ‘Wow!’ out loud so often before in such a short space of time.
Yet Granada’s delights stretch far beyond the walls of the Alhambra – wandering in the Albaicin evoked the era of times gone by and exploring Granada’s picturesque plazas, numerous churches and sampling its wealth of cuisine – from falafel to the fruit which bears the city’s name – was more than enough to fill a few very memorable days.
With a little help from Tripbod I managed to get under the city’s skin, and it certainly got under mine. It’s hard to put my finger on what it is that makes Granada so magical but maybe that’s the magic at work; it keeps you guessing.
Why not get in touch with Violeta and find out for yourself?
