Granada: Hidden Highlights by Ben Cooper
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For a small city that sees more than its fair share of visitors, Granada actually manages to keep many of its highlights pretty closely under wraps. Concealed by the twists and turns of the Albaicin's alleyways and the crumbling nooks and crannies of the city's old Jewish quarter, the Realejo, are any number of tiny bars, intimate places to stay and breathtaking monasteries that aren't heaving with throngs of tourists.
And while few, if any, of the places mentioned below are exactly 'hidden' to the locals, for the average visitor with a couple of days to see the city, they'll almost certainly be well off the map.
Hidden Places to Stay in Granada
Carmen del Cobertizo (Calle Cobertizo de Santa Ines)
The carmen is the archetypical romantic bolthole in Granada: secreted away behind peeling whitewashed walls and tiny porthole windows lies an eye-catching house-patio-garden complex, at the heart of which generally sits a tinkling fountain. Tucked away down the merest crack of a street in the lower Albaicin, the Carmen del Cobertizo has an intimate, 'for those in the know' feel to it that's hard not to be seduced by. With just five rooms, it's not cheap, but it is rather exclusive.
The building has got one or two interesting original features, including an old Moorish aljibe (water deposit), and some fine columns; every surface and wall, meanwhile, is packed with knickknacks, assorted objets and artworks. Beyond the main central patio, the house opens out to a shady, tiered garden area dotted with fruit trees and (glory be!) a dipping pool to escape the scorching heat of a summer afternoon.
Carmen de la Alcubilla del Caracol (Calle Aire Alta, 12)
The upper reaches of the Realejo are a part of town into which even the most disorientated tourist rarely stumbles. It's a pleasingly knockabout neighbourhood with a few interesting palacetes gazing out across the city and on to the shimmering vega beyond. One of them – Carmen de la Alcubilla del Caracol – has got much more going for it than just a pretty view, though. Not in the same elevated price bracket as Carmen del Cobertizo, with just a handful of rooms individually turned out in the utmost good taste and a lovely little garden, it's still quite a find.
(See a selection of the best places to stay in Granada.)
Hidden Things to See in Granada
Cuesta de los Chinos
Despite being framed at its higher reaches by a dramatic arch, the Cuesta de los Chinos is almost always overlooked by the bus trips that pour in through the main entrance of the Alhambra. Which means that most of the time the path snaking down besides babbling waterways and the fortress's intriguing outer fortifications are almost entirely left up to you – with only the odd dog-walker or strolling couple for company. At the last bend (before the path dips down onto the Paseo de los Tristes), on good days you get a glorious view of the Albaicin, a dazzling white smudge in the sunlight, its green cypresses reaching upwards towards the brightest of blue skies.
Monasterio de San Jeronimo (Rector Lopez Argueta 9)
A renaissance monastery built in the early 16th century by the Catholic Kings (and designed largely by Diego de Siloe), the Monasterio de San Jeronimo is on few visitors' itineraries. Consequently, from the moment you cross the threshold and stroll around its large cloistered courtyard, you're struck by its rather solemn, forgotten about air. The highlight undoubtedly is the adjoining church: its gilded altarpiece and a central nave covered in faded, sepia frescoes lean inwards, creating the effect of having stumbled into a forest clearing in autumn.
Granada Secreta y Subterranea (Tickets available from the Plaza de Trinidad)
'Granada Secreta y Subterranea' is a series of guided tours set up by the Granada tourist office and led by artists and writers that explores several hidden aspects of the city. One takes you behind the (otherwise closed) doors of the carmenes of the Albaicin; another includes a tour of the city’s disused gold mines. The most popular, though, mines the secrets of the passage-riddled ground around the Alhambra and the Fundacion Rodriguez-Acosta. And for such an ancient city, secrets there are obviously plenty...
Hidden Places to Eat & Drink in Granada
La Trastienda (Plaza de Cuchilleros, 11)
To suggest that a bar within spitting distance of the well-touristed Plaza Nueva is in any way 'hidden' would seem, on first inspection, a little absurd. But La Trastienda hides its true colours well. At the front of a tiny, ten-a-penny sort of shop, a lady smokes and chats to her friends. So far, so everyday. Slip round the back of the counter, though (something that few uninformed visitors would dare to do), and a brilliant little tapas bar opens up, as if by magic, before you. Compact and low-ceilinged with gorgeous tile-lined walls, it has a slightly clandestine, Spanish speak-easy air to it. Oh, and the selection of wines, cold meats and cheeses is top-class, too.
El Eshavira (Postigo de la Cuna, 2)
Again, El Eshavira's 'hidden' credentials would seem to suffer a little from its proximity to the noisy, bustling Calle Elvira. But, really, unless you knew precisely what you're likely to find at the end of it, you'd never set foot down the reeking alleyway. As a result, very few people stumble upon the place. But what do you find, should you venture down it? A proper, smoky music bar that, with excellent live performances most nights, is an absolute must for flamenco or jazz fans.
La Higuera (Calle Horno de Hoyo)
On a searingly hot afternoon, you might get the odd tourist stumbling, slightly dazedly, off Calle Panaderos into La Higuera; but during the evening it's generally the resident Albaicineros who have the run of the place. Tapas are pretty rustic, but the atmosphere in the vine-festooned garden is lively, and inside, the bar often exhibits works from local artists and photographers on the walls. Well worth the climb up into the high Albaicin, anyway.
Carmen de la Victoria (Cuesta del Chapiz, 9)
It seems surprising that a restaurant with one of the finest views of the Alhambra should be so rarely visited. And when you add a garden crisscrossed with vibrant green vines and echoing to the sound of cooling water features, it becomes downright inexplicable. If it feels a little like a private members' club, that's because it is. Sort of. It belongs to the University of Granada, and if you manage to secure a (very decent) meal or a drink on the terrace you'll most likely be surrounded by academics admiring the view and not quite being able to believe their luck.
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