Murallas del Albayzin
Murallas del Albayzin
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The area
Address
Neighborhood: Realejo - San Matias
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1,924 within 3 miles
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296 within 6 miles
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Most Recent: Reviews ordered by most recent publish date in descending order.
Detailed Reviews: Reviews ordered by recency and descriptiveness of user-identified themes such as wait time, length of visit, general tips, and location information.
4.0
134 reviews
Excellent
48
Very good
54
Average
31
Poor
0
Terrible
1
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Javier G
42 contributions
Oct 2024 • Friends
The Albaicín is the most authentic and picturesque neighborhood in Granada. Its narrow, cobbled and charming streets invite you to get lost and discover every corner. From the viewpoints, such as San Nicolas, the views of the Alhambra at sunset are simply magical. I sat there, watching the sun illuminate the red walls of the Alhambra and, behind, the Sierra Nevada mountains. If you visit Granada, you have to take the time to explore the Albaicín, without haste, to enjoy its unique atmosphere.
Automatically translated
Written December 19, 2024
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
Mairwen1
United Kingdom12,068 contributions
Feb 2020
With 3 nights in Granada, we had time to explore a little further beyond the Alhambra and the Cathedral. One of the best things we did was to walk up to the Mirador San Nicolas and continue through the Albayzin area.
There is no doubt that the view from the Mirador San Nicolas is an absolute highlight of any visit to the Albayzin but once you are there, it is definitely worth spending a bit more time and exploring further.
The city’s ancient city walls are well preserved in this area. As you walk through, you will see sections of the walls that protected the city since the 8th century.
A very good example is the Arco de las Pesas. This is the one of the original gateways and opens onto Plaza Larga, in the heart of the Albaycin. Most of what you see here was built in the 11th century during the Zirid dynasty when the Zirid kings reinforced the walls and added 12 new towers, including the one next to the Arco de las Pesas.
Passing through the keyhole shaped archway, felt a little like going through a gateway into the past.
It’s name (Gate of Weights) comes from the practice of hanging weights here. When merchants tried to cheat customers by using defective weights, they were confiscated and hung above the gate.
Intriguingly, the path through the gateway is kinked, in an L shape. Later, we learnt that this was an extra defensive measure. If invaders managed to get to this point, the L shape would slow them down and prevent them from simply flooding through the gate all at once.
The walls and towers are so well preserved here, that you really get a sense of just how substantial the walls were. With their height and thickness, they were pretty much impenetrable.
You can walk along stretches of the wall if you have more time but visiting this part is very easy. It is only 3 or so minutes walk from the lookout, Mirador San Nicolas and from Plaza Larga, you can easily explore the narrow streets of the Albayzin area.
There is no doubt that the view from the Mirador San Nicolas is an absolute highlight of any visit to the Albayzin but once you are there, it is definitely worth spending a bit more time and exploring further.
The city’s ancient city walls are well preserved in this area. As you walk through, you will see sections of the walls that protected the city since the 8th century.
A very good example is the Arco de las Pesas. This is the one of the original gateways and opens onto Plaza Larga, in the heart of the Albaycin. Most of what you see here was built in the 11th century during the Zirid dynasty when the Zirid kings reinforced the walls and added 12 new towers, including the one next to the Arco de las Pesas.
Passing through the keyhole shaped archway, felt a little like going through a gateway into the past.
It’s name (Gate of Weights) comes from the practice of hanging weights here. When merchants tried to cheat customers by using defective weights, they were confiscated and hung above the gate.
Intriguingly, the path through the gateway is kinked, in an L shape. Later, we learnt that this was an extra defensive measure. If invaders managed to get to this point, the L shape would slow them down and prevent them from simply flooding through the gate all at once.
The walls and towers are so well preserved here, that you really get a sense of just how substantial the walls were. With their height and thickness, they were pretty much impenetrable.
You can walk along stretches of the wall if you have more time but visiting this part is very easy. It is only 3 or so minutes walk from the lookout, Mirador San Nicolas and from Plaza Larga, you can easily explore the narrow streets of the Albayzin area.
Written January 20, 2021
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
Dimitris L
Sydney, Australia53,271 contributions
Jun 2019
We saw sections of walls, but there is a series of walls which cam also be seen from a distance, particularly from high view points from the Albayzin area. Walking these walls would take far too long. You can see the beauty of the city from some standard lookout points.
Written May 8, 2020
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
BobPraz
Toronto, Canada238 contributions
Mar 2015 • Solo
The Albaicin area actually has two main hills, and both preserve the only substantial stretches of the old Arab walls, from different eras: the wall on the southern hill, behind the Mirador de San Nicolas, is from the 11th century (Zirid dynasty), and the one on the next hill to the north, behind the Mirador de San Cristobal, is from the 13th-14th century (Nasrid dynasty). These walls are easily missed because they're only visible from the north, though the second wall does climb up and down the mountainside to the Mirador de San Miguel (above the Albaicin and across the valley from the Generalife), where it's prominently visible from the Alhambra. To see these Albaicin walls close-up it's useful to have a map or some time to explore. They can easily be visited on a walk in half a day or less.
Needless to say, the whole area and neighbourhood is beautiful, and exploring the walls is as much a good excuse to explore the Albaicin itself. If you're very interested in Granada's history, or if you have a couple of days or more in the city, then the walls are fun to find; but if you're only here for a day to see the Alhambra, then you won't have time for this.
Here's some further explanation on how to find the walls, if useful:
If you go north from the famous lookout (mirador) of San Nicolas, you'll almost certainly cross the first set of walls (i.e. the Zirid walls) as you go downhill. One obvious spot that's easy to stumble upon is the Puerta de las Pesas, a gate with a bent passage which leads to a beautiful square, Plaza Larga. This is at the eastern end of the wall. At the other (western) end of the wall there is another gate called Puerta de Monaita which beautifully overlooks the city and the plains below; it's northwest and downhill from the Dar al-Horra palace.
To reach the second set of walls, further away from the Alhambra but dating from Nasrid times (when the city had grown significantly), just go north and downhill to reach the Cuesta Alhacaba (a very beautiful street in the valley between both hills), then continue north and uphill again to the prominent hilltop church of San Cristobal, where there's another awesome lookout (mirador) with a view of both the Alhambra (partially) and the southern hill of the Albaicin and its walls. From here, follow the road downhill to the west, turning around a bend, and you will find the remains of another set of walls on your right. You'll reach a nice park that goes uphill along the remaining stretch of Nasrid walls. From the end of the park you can then head back south towards San Nicolas and the Alhambra, although there is another gate (Puerta de Fajalauza) to the east of here, but reached by a detour via Calle San Gregorio Alto.
Elsewhere, it's also worth noting Puerta de Elvira, a big gate at the northern end of Calle Elvira, close to downtown, which used to be the main entrance to the city and is easy to find (you can actually see it at one point from the Gran Via).
PS: There is a map specifically devoted to the Albaycin and Sacromonte that should be available at some of the historical sites in the Albaycin (like the ones included in the Doble de Oro ticket), and I found it to be by far the best guide and map to the neighbourhood.
Needless to say, the whole area and neighbourhood is beautiful, and exploring the walls is as much a good excuse to explore the Albaicin itself. If you're very interested in Granada's history, or if you have a couple of days or more in the city, then the walls are fun to find; but if you're only here for a day to see the Alhambra, then you won't have time for this.
Here's some further explanation on how to find the walls, if useful:
If you go north from the famous lookout (mirador) of San Nicolas, you'll almost certainly cross the first set of walls (i.e. the Zirid walls) as you go downhill. One obvious spot that's easy to stumble upon is the Puerta de las Pesas, a gate with a bent passage which leads to a beautiful square, Plaza Larga. This is at the eastern end of the wall. At the other (western) end of the wall there is another gate called Puerta de Monaita which beautifully overlooks the city and the plains below; it's northwest and downhill from the Dar al-Horra palace.
To reach the second set of walls, further away from the Alhambra but dating from Nasrid times (when the city had grown significantly), just go north and downhill to reach the Cuesta Alhacaba (a very beautiful street in the valley between both hills), then continue north and uphill again to the prominent hilltop church of San Cristobal, where there's another awesome lookout (mirador) with a view of both the Alhambra (partially) and the southern hill of the Albaicin and its walls. From here, follow the road downhill to the west, turning around a bend, and you will find the remains of another set of walls on your right. You'll reach a nice park that goes uphill along the remaining stretch of Nasrid walls. From the end of the park you can then head back south towards San Nicolas and the Alhambra, although there is another gate (Puerta de Fajalauza) to the east of here, but reached by a detour via Calle San Gregorio Alto.
Elsewhere, it's also worth noting Puerta de Elvira, a big gate at the northern end of Calle Elvira, close to downtown, which used to be the main entrance to the city and is easy to find (you can actually see it at one point from the Gran Via).
PS: There is a map specifically devoted to the Albaycin and Sacromonte that should be available at some of the historical sites in the Albaycin (like the ones included in the Doble de Oro ticket), and I found it to be by far the best guide and map to the neighbourhood.
Written June 30, 2015
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
Terry M
Hamilton, Canada4,921 contributions
Oct 2021
The Arab sector still has some of the walls and gates that once surrounded Granada, the oldest dating from the 8th century. I passed under the prominent Puerta Elvira and a version of the New Gate or Gate of Weights [where illegal scales of butchers were displayed].
Written November 3, 2021
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
Manuela L
Luxembourg City, Luxembourg6,596 contributions
Dec 2015 • Family
Often this old (more as 1000 years ) wall with her towers, and very good preserved, date of the Arabian period, is forgotten to visit, no, it's also a fortress to admire, if you are not to tired after the visit of The Alhambra.
Written November 14, 2016
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
greenmantis
34 contributions
Sep 2015
Just sit and watch, or walk and listen; yesterday and today in a seamless blend. Do not rush, take time.
Written August 21, 2016
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
Spiced_Olives
Wiesbaden, Hessen, Germany82 contributions
Mar 2015
The walls, the community, shops, incredible vistas, the small streets, the culture - they all still exude that unique medieval Moorish history that has fascinated me since I have read about Granada's history.
Written December 17, 2015
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
TravellerMan72
Oslo, Norway1,623 contributions
May 2019 • Couples
We stopped by when visiting Albayzin after a long walk. This is a part of Moorish hisotry in Granada. It's cozy to go there in cool days, sit and have a cup of coffee and appreciate the details.
Written May 22, 2019
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
Siggie2015
Des Moines, IA127 contributions
Mar 2019 • Solo
There are many great neighborhoods and things to see and do in Granada. To see and walk along these walls takes some time (and parts are steep). So many of these reviews of are the neighborhoods below the walls (Albicin and Sacromente); those areas are great! The walls themselves (for me) just nice.
Written April 5, 2019
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
I am actually considering the 13 hour day trip from seville that goes to the Alhambra. I am wondering if there is time after to walk around the nightborhood of albaicin that i read is great. Is it near the alhambra to wonder around after - or is it a bit away- not on foot? thanks
Written May 25, 2019
If I wanted to see something besides the Alhambra, I would go to the Royal Chapel and see the Sarcophagus of Ferdinand and Isabella, and the crypt below with their bodies. They funded Columbus’s discovery of America.
Written June 7, 2019
If I am taking the Alhambra tour... and we are given some free time after.. are we near the Albaicin neighborhood to walk around by ourselves?
Written May 25, 2019
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