Alhambra General visit reservations assistance

'there's nowhere on the ticketmaster purchase page that specifies a timed entry after 11:30am.'
Your confusion is confusing me :-)
There are certainly twentysome entry times for the Palacios Nazaríes per day and certainly after 1130 hours.

There are day entry session times of morning or afternoon. As you progress to purchase after indicating morning or afternoon you specify which half hour time slot for the Palacios Nazaríes.

Ok yeah I suppose I'm so confused by it all that it could be confusing to others.
I'm basically just trying to get advice on when is the best time to make a general daytime visit to the grounds to get the most out of a visit.
As I mentioned... another poster suggested that choosing just after 11:30am was best because of the way the restrictions are.
Supposedly a morning visit around this time affords a visitor the ability to spend the most time without a cutoff.
I'm really just looking for some instructions on how and when to make a reservation for this second daytime visit and if anybody with experience with this could suggest the best time to go (maybe a time during the day when there are less tours being held, better light, etc.)
I'm open to any and all suggestions...this would be for a visit on Saturday in early May.
Thank you in advance.

On your general daytime visit, would you be visiting Nasrid again, or just visiting the gardens/complex without entering the Nasarid Palace.

If you want Nasrid again, yes, I'd advise an earlier time. Maybe 9-10-11? Somewhere in there, then you have to be at the Nasarid Palace* at your appointed time to see it. Then you have all other parts of the morning (until 2, I think but confirm the exact time) to see everything else you want. So if your Nasarid appt is at 11, you can get to the Alhambra earlier and see other things before as well as after. Just be done by 2. I'm not 100% sure where you can and can't enter after 2, so just aim to be done.

If you want the rest of the complex but are done seeing the Nasrid, just buy a ticket for the rest of the palace (called Alhambra Gardens, Generalife and the Alcazaba at Alhambra y Generalife on the website). You specific morning (anytime between 8:30AM and 2PM) or afternoon. I'd advise morning, go in the morning and be done anytime before 2. There's no timed entry, all you need to decide is AM or PM.

Yes, it was me.

I know it sounds complicated before you've actually been there and done it. The grounds are open to all, from morning until afternoon closing time. Three (I think) of the building complexes within the grounds can be seen only with a ticket. Of those 3, the only one with a time-limit entry is the Nasrid. You must enter within 30 minutes of your ticketed time.

The timed entries are divided into morning and afternoon sessions. With an afternoon visit, you can only enter the ticketed buildings after 2.00 p.m. With a morning visit, you can enter until 2.00 p.m. Except for this quirky time (or loophole may be a better word) between 11.30 and 1.30. If your entry is then, you may visit the other ticketed areas either any time before the Nasrid or any time after it.

Choose a morning visit, then a time for the Nasrid Palaces. If your Nasrid entry is in the "morning" from 11.30 onward, you then have the whole day to spend. Come as early as you like, stay as late as you like.

You cannot bring large bags, backpacks, etc., into the Nasrid Palaces. There is a nearby building that has storage lockers (and bathrooms and vending machines). You should get there in time to store any bags and get in line to enter the Nasrid. People start lining up even more than 30 minutes ahead. I don't think it matter much whether you're at the beginning or the end of the line. Once you are inside, you can stay as long as you want. Though there is a one-way route through the buildings, you can stop along the way anywhere and you can backtrack.

When you go in the evening, don't take bulky bags or packs with you - the storage facility will probably be closed. You can take normal-sized bags and a bottle of water is a good idea, especially in warm weather.

Pay attention to the opening times of the various buildings on the grounds. I missed the museum because I didn't realize it closed earlier than the other places.

Hello Chani!
Yes thank you for clarifying again.
I was able to just purchase a daytime visit ticket with an entry time of 1pm.
Just concerned now that it's going to be too crowded and the earlier daylight might be too much for good photos.
Why I was thinking a later afternoon visit might've been better.
Either way I was able to score one ticket within the loophole you have recommended!

I don't know what the problem with morning times might be, other than perhaps there are none available on the day you want? As Mira noted, you have to be at the Nasrid Palace at your time, not the entry to the Alhambra grounds. Don't make the mistake I made and wait at the entry and then have to sprint through the grounds to make your time. I found an early morning time to work well, it was noticeably more crowded later in the morning.

I think the light will be pretty bright all day. Maybe you'll have some clouds. Remember, Spain, though west of the Prime Meridian, is on Central European time - so sunset is very late and the sun is at its highest around 2 p.m. You might get better photos first thing in the morning. The gardens will be more pleasant in the cooler hours, and fewer people. You can visit the Generalife then.

I got some great photos of the Nasrid Palaces in the evening visit. Parts of it have indirect lighting so you should get some good ones even at midday. There aren't that many people in the evening. There's a crowd at the start, but if you backtrack a few minutes later, you should find some rooms that have few, if any, people. The detail is intricate and varied, take lots of close-ups too.