Granada, in southern Spain, is a beautiful city. I got to visit twice last year, and even better, as my sister and her boyfriend were based there I had two local guides whose interests were very closely aligned to my own. So there was a lot of eating, a lot of street art spotting, and a lot of exploring Granada’s fascinating history. Here’s five awesome things to do when you visit!
A Tapas Bar Crawl
Man, we ate well in Granada. The city is filled with great tapas bars, with smiling waiters and talented chefs. But don’t stop at just one… I highly recommend a tapas bar crawl! This way you can sample the specialty dishes of each place – maximising your belly’s potential is key.
Made to be shared – but you’ve got to be quick!
Now in two visits with foodies you can imagine we tried quite a few dishes – my favourites were these quail eggs on pork at Mercado, the carne e salsa (literally bread and meat in a tomato-based sauce, in the best melt-in-your-mouth way) at Los Toneles, and the fantastic vegetarian tapas at El Piano. And of course basically everything at the gorgeous Taberna La Tana, which tempted us to break the crawl and settle in for an evening.
A tapas crawl is also a great way to balance sight-seeing with nibbling. Visit the Cathedral – try some tapas. Wander to the beautiful Monastery de San Jerónimo – try some tapas. Soak up the sunshine at one of the parks – try some tapas. The perfect balance of culture and foodie fun!
Street Art Spotting 
I was blown away by Granada’s variety of street art, found all over the city. The best areas are Realejo and in the small streets to the north-east of the Camino de Ronda, but really you just need to keep your eyes open!
Explore the beautiful Alhambra
This one’s a no-brainer – it’s one of Spain’s most famous sights, after all. I recommend setting aside a day to really experience the true beauty of this huge historical site – I loved it so much I wrote a whole post about it, so check that out here!
Perambulate or Go Extreme
I definitely stuck to the perambulating on both my trips, as Granada has no shortage of beautiful parks to explore. From the river running along the narrow valley between the base of the Alhambra and the Albaicín, to the beautiful Parque Ferderico Garcia Lorca (where these wisteria bloom), to the weekend athlete’s paradise of running space and outdoor gyms along the Genil River to the south, there’s plenty to keep you entertained. But if you’re of a more extreme inclination, the mountains are calling – literally, you can see them from the city centre! Skiing in the Sierra Nevada is very popular, as is mountain biking in the summer – with those views, I can see why!
Get lost in the Albaicín (in a great way)
I came to Granada primed to love the Alhambra (and I did), and excited to gorge on delicious tapas (and I did!). But I was surprised in the best possible way by the Albaicín. Its small streets date back to Moorish times and wind over the hillside opposite the Alhambra, with colourful doorways and flowers cascading down the white-washed walls. We climbed up to the Mirador San Nicolas for the best view of the Alhambra, before losing ourselves in the narrow alleys again. Make sure you set aside some time to explore – it was definitely one of my favourite things I did in Granada!
Have you visited Granada? What was your favourite thing to do there?
For more Spanish sunshine in my other posts about our amazing road trip around Andalucia click here!
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