The bustling heart — the streets around the grand cathedral and the Royal Chapel, full of shops, plazas, tapas bars, the Alcaicería silk-market lanes and the buzzing Bib-Rambla square. Central, lively and flat(ter), walkable to everything with the best tapas scene on the doorstep; the classic base for a first visit who wants convenience, buzz and the sights close by. The easy-going, well-connected centre of the city. Vibrant and handy.
A look around
What you’ll be living next to. Swipe through.
€90–150
typical per night in Spain
The sensible middle
Typical prices for Granada — neither steal nor splurge.
Where it sits
The circle is Centro & the Cathedral and roughly a 10-minute walk around it.
How far is everything?
From the middle of this area to the city's headline sights — pick your own on the city page and these become your list.
- Moorish teahouses (teterías)right here70 m
- Realejo & its street art8 min walk638 m
- Mirador de San Nicolás8 min walk676 m
- The Albaicín10 min walk835 m
- The Alhambra10 min walk869 m
- The Generalife Gardens14 min walk1.2 km
- Flamenco in Sacromonte17 min walk1.4 km
- Sacromonte caves & museum17 min walk1.4 km
On your doorstep
What you’re living next to if you stay here.
- 5.Free tapas & tapas bars — Granada keeps alive one of Spain's best traditions — free tapas with every drink. Order a beer or wine at a traditional bar and a plate of food arrives free, and keeps coming with each round, from jamón and cheese to fried fish, stews and tortilla. Bar-hopping the tapas trail (around Calle Navas, the Realejo and Elvira) for the price of a few drinks is delicious, sociable and superb value — the tastiest way to eat and drink in the city. An essential, only-in-Granada delight; go where the locals crowd. Utterly brilliant.
- 6.Granada Cathedral & Royal Chapel — Granada's grand Renaissance cathedral, a soaring, dazzling-white masterpiece begun after the Reconquista, adjoins the Royal Chapel (Capilla Real), the ornate mausoleum where the Catholic Monarchs Ferdinand and Isabella — who conquered Moorish Granada in 1492 — lie buried in magnificent marble tombs. Together they tell the story of the city's dramatic turning point. Admire the luminous cathedral interior and the royal tombs and treasures next door; a rich, central plunge into Granada's pivotal history. A grand, essential highlight in the heart of the city. Impressive and historic.
- 8.The Alcaicería & Moorish quarter — Wander the atmospheric Alcaicería — the restored old Moorish silk-market lanes near the cathedral, now a maze of narrow alleys packed with colourful stalls selling Moroccan-style lamps, ceramics, spices, teas, textiles and trinkets, evoking Granada's Islamic past. Nearby, Calle Calderería Nueva (the 'little Morocco' street) brims with teahouses, hookah bars and North African shops. Browse, haggle and soak up the exotic, Moorish-flavoured atmosphere; it's colourful, aromatic and evocative. A lovely, characterful stroll in the heart of the old city. Vivid and atmospheric.
- 10.The Cartuja Monastery — A dazzling baroque surprise on the city's edge — the Monasterio de la Cartuja, whose plain exterior hides an interior of jaw-dropping, over-the-top baroque exuberance: a sacristy of swirling marble and stucco often called the 'Christian Alhambra', dripping with gold, colour and astonishing decoration. A short trip from the centre, it's one of Spain's most spectacular baroque interiors and a striking contrast to the Moorish sights. Go for the sheer, dazzling excess of the sacristy and church. A remarkable, lesser-visited highlight. Breathtakingly ornate.
When are you staying?
Booking.com & Airbnb open searched to Centro & the Cathedral; flights via Google Flights.