Alhambra by cruise ship excursion

That's a lot of travel in one day.
I'd opt to stay in Malaga, which has a lovely old centre with typical bars and restuarants, the Picasso Museum plus other art galleries, a Roman amphitheatre, a hilltop Alcazaba and a motor museum.

We visited Alhambra on our own and we were renting an apartment a short distance from the palace/fortress. We had a great tour guide, however it was about a 4 hour tour. Lots of steps to climb and not something my wife could do today being mobility challenged. It is a very popular tourist stop and one that is well worth seeing.

It is about 80 miles from Malaga to Alhambra, and it would be almost a 2 hour bus ride as the roads going that direction are not easily driven. I would think it would be difficult to make that trip and be back on ship by 5:00 p.m.

First, no, I have not used a cruise ship excursion, but I have spent time in Spain, and have visited the Alhambra.

Do they take care of ticketing? that would be the big question. In order to see the main part, the Nasrid Palaces, you need a ticket for a specific day and time. The palaces take an hour at least to go through, 90 minutes better, 2 hours if you are really into it. That does not include any of the other sights there. The Alhambra is located away from the city center, atop a ridge, there are buses that run there, but given your time constraint, a taxi may be wise, both ways.

To get tickets, you would need to know exactly when you would get to Granada, allow some time to get to the Alhambra, and buy tickets online, hoping everything works out.

Your time element is tight, but can be done.

I have not done this but it would be rather difficult to enjoy the Alhambra with such a limited time. Especially because you have to make your own way to/from the Alhambra from an unknown drop off point, which could eat up even more time. Tickets for the venue are timed and if you miss your 30 minute time slot you are completely out of luck.

If the cruise offers an Alhambra specific excursion that would be better as it's on them to get you back to the ship on time. If they don't, there may be private options that would suit your needs. I suggest checking the Cruise Critic section for your specific cruiseline and route and see if others have suggestions.

We did the Alhambra on a cruise excursion where it took 1 1/2 hours to get there and we had about 4 hours to see the site.
It wasn't a problem, we were advised on where to what we wanted.
Malaga is good, but the Alhambra beats the heck out of ANYTHING in Malaga.

If this is your one shot at seeing the Alhambra, I think it's a no-brainer. If you're likely to visit Spain in the future, it's probably nice to visit with a full day to wander the interior and exterior plus head across town to view from one of the overlooks of the Alhambra. Also, if you are a regular cruiser, and would hit the Mediterranean and Spain again, finding a cruise that does an overnight in Malaga would also alleviate the worry of missing the bus/ship.

But, as @geovagriffith mentions, it's definitely doable, it's definitely worth it, and, additionally, by being a cruise excursion, the ship won't leave if you make it to the bus for the trip back (the Granada-Malaga drive is subject to traffic and road conditions), and you'll have a full busload (or multiple busloads) with you on that excursion - up wandering the Alhambra and the city center- and unlikely to be the last straggler back to the bus (but there is always one last one so don't be it!).

Here is a video from a cruise blogger about how her excursion to the Alhambra went. I hope it helps.
https://youtu.be/6v-sn8QeLs0?si=X43VrEcvisVNkKBA

The excursion bus takes about 1 1/2 hours

Where did this estimate come from? It looks to be ~90 miles. I think 2 hours is a better estimate for travel time

comes back 3-4 hours later.

Which is it?

How far away is the drop off point?

Does the excursion include the timed entry ticket?

Not sure I would enjoy the visit if I were having to constantly watch the clock so I didn't miss the bus back to the boat.

What’s your stress level tolerance? Is it doable? Yes, with caveats. Is it the best option? Probably not.

Your transportation time is two hours and getting from drop off point up to the Alhambra 30 minutes - ideally. You have to make your timed-ticket window, or you’re out of luck. Allowing time for delays in order to guarantee you make your window will deduct time from your visit. On the upside, if all goes well, you will be able to see at least some of the compound. It can be done, but on the downside, the quality of the day is questionable.

Perhaps another option would be to skip the cruise-provided bus and book a small tour with a pickup at and delivery to the port, tickets included, with a guide. That minimizes your transportation time, makes sure you make your window with your included ticket, and minimizes your wandering around time by having a guide. But, with this option, you still have the stress of getting back in time for a 6 pm departure. The companies doing this kind of tours run them like clock-work. They know the consequences of not getting you back to the port on time, so I don't think that's a huge factor, but it is a factor. (By the way, what’s the port after Malaga? Either way, factor into your stress level how you would get to the ship’s next port of call.)

I did the small group private tour because I knew it would be my one shot at seeing the Alhambra, and while it wasn’t great, it was better than nothing. If you’ve got a low tolerance for considerable stress, I’d suggest you stay in Malaga. It’s not the Alhambra, but there are several sites worth seeing in Malaga (Picasso museum, the hilltop Alcazaba (kind of a like-item substitute, though decidedly less spectacular) and, and there are some Roman ruins as well. And, you’ll have time for tapas and still make it back to the ship on time.

We were on NCL in 2018. They initially did not gave an excursion that included the Alhambra but fortunately added on about 5 days before Malaga.

I would check with Shore Excursions Group to see what they offer. They have a return to ship guarantee.