I had no idea how shockingly accurate my first Granada winter blog title, “Do Not Fall,” was until I able to finally spend one full hot-winded week there in height of summer.
I had brought the most practical shoes possible: New Balance Trail Running Shoes. I was sure they would be over-the-top for the trip, but I wanted to go for some jogs while I was there and couldn’t spare the space to pack another pair of walking shoes.
Even the Trail Runners were not enough!! Granted, I did not actually fall, but it was only a coincidence that my knees returned home unscathed.
Granada is for TREKKING. Do not be mistaken, I saw many a retired or out-of-shape tourist surviving from bus to bus and between taxis, but this is not how one really begins to see Granada.
Did I even really see it? I spent lazy hot afternoons offsetting the moody Hemingway novel I was reading with my bright and charming Andalusian studio.
No, I could not have seen it and understood all of the complicated chaos of Granada in just a week. But I could start to see and listen and appreciate.
Granada is huge. Yes, I walked a lot of it. But that’s because there was a lot of it to walk! There are so many different versions of this grand historical and vibrant city to experience.
This was a once-in-a-lifetime trip for me. I will never again devote an entire week to hiking all over Granada. Maybe a day, maybe a weekend, but this trip was special and I chose to switch between sweaty hikes, long siestas with no alarm set, and humid tapas bars.
I chose to push upward to the Miradores of the city, and these 6 ended up being the best!
6. Mirador de San Nicolás (morning)
No Granada Mirador list is complete without San Nicolás because it is rightly the most up-close view of the Alhambra palace. But it's only really nice super early in the morning when you can have some time to yourself and not have to share your photos with a thousand other tourists!
5. Mirador de San Cristóbal
This Mirador gave a nice overview of all of Granada and allows the viewer to see more of the city than just the Alhambra on the hill. There is also a very pretty church on the square and good restaurants surrounding.
4. Mirador Sacromonte
The charm of the Sacromonte is definitely in the climbing and discovering interesting spots around every new corner. It is a beautiful area where people still live in a much more traditional manner compared to those in the city below.
3. Mirador Museo-cuevas del Sacromonte
2. Mirador Placeta de Carvajales
Placeta Carvajales was by far the most fun to take pictures at and also one of the easiest to get to. I had it all to myself for a full thirty minutes, enjoying the scenery while eating my picnic lunch. This is a Mirador I will definitely return to the next time I go back to Granada.
1. Mirador San Víctor/Mirador de San Miguel Alto
This one makes the top of my list, both for the breathtaking heights and also for the high level of effort necessary to reach this lookout! It was absolutely worth it for me to get all the way up to the solitary chapel on the mountaintop and take in the vistas surrounded by wilderness. If you have the means and capability to make this hike, it is a very memorable experience and well-worth the intensity!
