Castles · Tour

Alhambra Plus the Albaicín: El Bañuelo, Dar al-Horra, Horno de Oro

The Alhambra was not the only Nasrid palace in Granada. It is simply the one that survived intact. The rest are scattered through the Albaicín, behind ordinary doors, and this private tour visits both halves of the city. On the hill: the Alhambra with its palaces, gardens and fortress, plus the free-access buildings inside the walls. Across the ravine: the Albaicín, the old Arab quarter, with its narrow stepped streets and its balconies. The tour stops at El Bañuelo, the Arab baths that are among the oldest buildings in the city; at the Palacio de Dar al-Horra, the mansion where the mother of Boabdil lived; and at the Casa Morisca de Horno de Oro, a Moorish house of the same period. None of the three draws a queue, and together they show what the Nasrid city looked like at street level rather than at court. The Albaicín also has the view. Looking back across the valley, the Alhambra sits on its ridge exactly as it was meant to be seen, from the neighbourhood it governed. The group is private and takes up to nine travellers.