The summer crowds in this jewel of Andalucia, making October an ideal month to visit Granada. Other Spanish cities exude class, but only Granada has so dramatic a setting in the foothills of the Sierra Nevada, topped by the gracious Alhambra. Granada's airport opened in , but was virtually ignored by airlines from Britain until this year.
Monarch 40 50 40; www. From other UK airports, Malaga is the obvious alternative; the bus journey from the Costa del Sol's main airport to Granada takes about two hours.
For most visitors the handiest stop is near the cathedral on the Gran Via, the main east-west road. However good your sense of direction, the tangle of streets and alleys in the older parts of Granada make getting lost fairly certain. The city's social hub is the Plaza Nueva , at the heart of the Old Town.
The main tourist office 00 34 ; www. North of here is the up-and-coming district of Albaicin, where Granada is rediscovering its North African heritage - there is even a newly opened Islamic Centre.
Facing Albaicin across the Rio Darro is the Alhambra: a forbidding fortress concealing palaces and gardens. You can, if you choose, stay within the Alhambra. The Parador de San Francisco has the best location in Granada, in the midst of the fortress 00 34 ; www.
