Through the many years that we have traveled all over the world one thing we have learned is that it is a good idea to avoid the busy times of year when visiting popular places. Lucky for us, this is becoming easier as we get older because our kids are all grown and most of our work is behind us now.
We have noticed that there are a few factors that seem to affect how crowded a destination will be, depending on where it is. Many places are much less hectic when school is in session, so that can be a good time to visit, others might have big events or festivals that bring in big crowds, best to avoid those times, and often the weather can be a factor.
So when we started looking at places to go in Spain we had two things in mind, somewhere we had not been to before, and a place that we could visit during the off season and have a more relaxed and personal experience. The City of Granada meets both of those criteria, so let’s start making plans.
We mentioned weather, and that is definitely a factor for us, but it also depends on what we want to do. Winter is coming up, and we haven’t been skiing in a long time, so we maybe we should take a look at that. Wait, skiing in Spain? Yes!
It just so happens that the southern most ski area in Europe, Sierra Nevada, is less than an hour away from Granada. We are loving the idea of skiing while enjoying spectacular views of the Mediterranean Sea. Yes, the view sounds great, but this is also a world class ski mountain that has hosted the FIS Alpine World Ski Championships and several World Cup races.
As a bonus, if we do decide to go in the winter we can also visit Granada’s wonderful Christmas markets. And winter just might be the best time to visit Alhambra without the hectic crush of so many tourists.
Without a doubt, no trip to Granada is complete without seeing la Alhambra. This amazing palace that combines Islamic and Renaissance architecture offers a journey through Spain’s remarkable history. There is so much to see that this is definitely one of those places that we will be willing to spending a little extra to take a Private tour of la Alhambra.
We have found that we can learn so much more from an expert guide, and also see all sorts of incredible things that we would never have noticed if we had not had an knowledgeable professional to point them out. Plus, la Alhambra is huge, so we don’t want to risk wasting a bunch of our time getting lost and wandering aimlessly and then miss some important sections.
But while la Alhambra is by far Granada’s most famous attraction, it is most certainly not the only one. We know we don’t want to miss seeing the sunset from the Albaicín, so a stop at the Mirador de San Nicolás will absolutely be on our itinerary, if for no other reason than to decide if it truly is as claimed, “the most beautiful sunset in the world.”
If we choose to go a little later in the year, we have heard that it is a good idea to avoid Easter because things can get pretty packed around the holiday. So we think it might be best to wait until early in May so we can see all of the beautifully decorated crosses all around the city for the Dia de la Cruz on the third.
Through the summer it can get pretty hot, but there are often open-air concerts in La Alhambra, and we could always escape to the Mediterranean seaside at Almuñecar or Salobreña to cool off. Also, August is when many Europeans take their vacations so popular attractions can get pretty busy. This makes us feel like we might rather wait until the fall, perhaps in September for the famous Milnoff Flamenco Festival.
Or in late October and into November when jazz fills the air as Granada welcomes great musicians to town for the forty fifth year of Jazz en Granada.
As you can see, there is a lot to think about. Oh, I have an idea…
Maybe we should go to Granada more than once!
David & Veronica, GypsyNester.com
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