The Albaicín, Granada: the Mirador de San Nicolás, the church tower, the Bañuelo and the viewpoints, with prices and hours

💡 The Short Version: The Albaicín is the old Muslim quarter across the Darro valley from the Alhambra, and it is World Heritage with the Alhambra. The Mirador de San Nicolás is free and always open. The church tower beside it is €3, open 11:00 to 12:30 and 17:00 to 19:00 in November and January to March. The Bañuelo (€2, free on Sundays) and Casa de Zafra (€3, free on Sundays, closed Mondays) are on the way up from the Carrera del Darro. The C31 and C32 minibuses reach Plaza San Nicolás. The streets are cobbled and steep. Prices are in euros. Or book a tour: the Albaicín and Sacromonte sunset walkad is from €15 and the walk with entry to the Museo Cuevasad from €30 (GetYourGuide).

What it costs and when it is open

Hours are the operators’ winter hours. What to book before you go to Granada has the closed days for the rest of the city.

The Bañuelo is also inside the €8.48 Andalusian monuments ticket and the Dobla de Oro tickets: see Alhambra tickets. The church shuts between 12:30 and 17:00.

The church of San Nicolás and its tower above the Albaicín. Photo: Jebulon, Wikimedia Commons, CC0.

Tours worth paying for

The Albaicín is a quarter of steep lanes, and the walking tours’ listings warn of hills and stairs. A guide adds the history and a route that does not backtrack. Prices are GetYourGuide’s lowest “from” prices, per person.

Albaicín and Sacromonte sunset walk

From €15 · 2 to 2.5 hours · 4.9 stars from 3,633 reviews

Granada: Albaicín and Sacromonte Guided Sunset Walking Tourad is run by Lolita’s Tours in English or Spanish, with a private option. It meets in Plaza Nueva, climbs to the San Nicolás viewpoint and goes on to Sacromonte. The start time follows the sunset. Cancel free up to 24 hours ahead.

Albaicín and Sacromonte walk with the Museo Cuevas

From €30 · 2.5 hours · 4.9 stars from 330 reviews

Granada: Albaicín-Sacromonte Walk with Museum of Caves Entryad is run by Lolita’s Tours with an official guide, and the price includes entry to the Museo Cuevas del Sacromonte, which is €6 on its own. It meets in Plaza Nueva, with a 15-minute bus ride up. Cancel free up to 24 hours ahead.

Albaicín and Sacromonte e-bike tour

From €45 · 2 hours · 4.8 stars from 1,047 reviews

Granada: Albaicin and Sacromonte E-Bike Tourad starts at Plaza de Cuchilleros, by Plaza Nueva, and stops at the Mirador de San Nicolás and the Sacromonte. It includes the bike and a helmet; riders must be at least 150 cm tall. Cancel free up to 24 hours ahead.

What to see

The Albaicín climbs the hill opposite the Alhambra, and UNESCO lists it with the Alhambra and the Generalife as one World Heritage Site. The stops below run uphill from Plaza Nueva. Allow half a day on foot, and more with the paid stops.

A cobbled lane in the Albaicín. Photo: LBM1948, Wikimedia Commons, CC BY-SA 4.0.

1. The Carrera del Darro and the Bañuelo. The street follows the river Darro below the Alhambra. The Bañuelo, an Arab bath, is dated to the 11th century or the 12th, depending on who is asked, and the Patronato calls it one of the best-preserved public Arab baths of the Peninsula. It is a monument, not a bath you can use: see Arab baths in Granada.
2. Casa de Zafra. A house of the 14th and 15th centuries with its original wall paintings and a view of the Alhambra. It is also the Albaicín visitor centre, with panels and screens that explain the quarter.
3. The lanes up to San Nicolás. The C31 minibus follows the quarter’s loop from Plaza Nueva, through the Carrera del Darro and the Cuesta del Chapiz to the Plaza San Nicolás.
4. The Mirador de San Nicolás. The square faces the Alhambra with the Sierra Nevada beyond it. The church beside it had its main works finished in 1525 and its tower in 1543, and the Archdiocese calls the tower, at about 40 metres, the highest viewpoint in the Albaicín.
5. Sacromonte. The quarter of cave houses continues over the hill: see Sacromonte.

The order that works: start on the Carrera del Darro with the Bañuelo and Casa de Zafra, climb to San Nicolás for the afternoon opening of the tower, and come down by the C31 or on foot. What to skip: nothing; on a Monday, Casa de Zafra is shut. The Albaicín walk sets this out as a numbered, mapped route of 2.8 km with the day-by-day opening times.

The Mirador de San Nicolás, with the Alhambra and the Sierra Nevada beyond. Photo: Paul Hermans, Wikimedia Commons, CC BY-SA 3.0.

The viewpoints

Practical information

• Getting there: the C31 is a circular minibus from Plaza Nueva with stops at the Bañuelo and Plaza San Nicolás, and its last bus leaves Plaza Nueva at 23:00 from Monday to Thursday and at 01:00 from Friday to Sunday. The C32 links the Albaicín with the Alhambra. Both take a city-bus ticket: see Granada public transport.
• The tourist train stops at the Mirador de San Cristóbal: see the hop-on hop-off train.
• Ground: the lanes are narrow, cobbled and steep, and the walking tours’ listings warn that they are not suitable for people with limited mobility.
• Church rules: silence and decorous dress, no food or drink, photos without flash; the interior is closed during services.
• The one thing that ruins a visit: arriving at San Nicolás between 12:30 and 17:00, when the church and tower are shut.

Sacromonte is the next hill, with the cave museum and the abbey. Flamenco in Granada compares the cave shows, and Granada walking tours compares the guided walks. Free things to do in Granada lists what costs nothing. The Alhambra is across the valley. For a bed in the quarter, see where to stay in Granada, and for dinner, where to eat in Granada.