Parador De Granada

We didn't stay at the Granada Parador but it does look lovely.

We considered staying there, when we visited Granada, but it was too expensive, so we stayed in the city center near Plaza Nueva.

I'd think it would be a nice place to stay in, however, I don't think there are restaurants in the vicinity, other than the Parador itself, so you'll need to take Minibus to the Albaicín or to the city center every time you want to eat.

If you decide to stay at the Parador, make sure you go to the Albaicín one afternoon in order to view the beautiful Alhambra at sunset!

Enjoy your time in Spain!

We stayed there, and we LOVED it!! The location is incredible, and we enjoyed being able to return to our room to drop off jackets or refresh while we toured The Alahambra and The Generalife.

It is expensive, but I watched carefully and was ultimately able to find a senior discount (can't remember what they call it...maybe Sunset special or Golden special or something like that). When I first made my reservation at the end of the year, the special was not there. When I inquired (email), I was told that the special would likely appear once the new calendar year was posted. It was posted later (as the staff advised it might be), so I emailed and they kindly changed my reservation to the discounted rate when I requested such.

Our room was lovely ... we opted for the older part of the hotel, and we had a small French balcony that faced the gardens. It was fun when we toured the gardens to look over toward the Parador, find our room and photograph the balcony from afar. It was very quiet, and very peaceful in the evenings.

We took a cab from the airport to the Parador (they allow cars to drop off/pick up guests), and then we took the local shuttle bus when we went into town one afternoon/evening.

We stayed two nights, and a full buffet/special order breakfast was included. Service was fabulous. Front desk and housekeeping were gracious and helpful, too. We also dined at the patio restaurant for lunch/dinner.

Highly recommend, especially if you can snag a special. We were there in early March a few years ago, and I really would not have wanted bigger crowds in Spain. But, I understand it becomes quite packed with really long lines at sites into spring/summer/fall. Timing is everything.

Thank you all for the wonderful feedback.
It will help us so much with our decision.
To those who took the minibus into town, how long was it and did it run often?

www.parador.es/en is the official paradors site. You can get everything you need to know on it. The Granada parador is pricey. If you're over 55 there are special rates (Golden Days) and if you join the Friends of Paradors program (free) you get a free drink upon arrival. Also, you get free breakfast with your first reservation. Our our recent trip to Spain in May we stayed almost exclusively at Paradors and they were all excellent.

We stayed at hotel America (no frills hotel) next the the parador on our trip in 2014 and took the bus into town. It's a short walk to the bus stop and the ride is about 10 minutes. It drops you off in the center of the city, a block from the Cathedral.

On our first night there we walked to a nearby restaurant, Jardines Alberto,. It was about a 10-15 minute walk from the parador. Our second night there we took the bus into town and ate downtown.

I have not stayed there but it is beautiful - I've been to the restaurant and the terrace. The price and the distance from town stopped me from staying but it is quite tempting. If you do I'm sure you will love it

The minibus bw the Alhambra and town - C3 runs pretty often. This site says every 8 minutes until close to midnight. I would have guessed a little less frequent, but it's reasonable
http://www.lovegranada.com/transport/alhambra-buses/#

Note that you can walk if you want the exercise - it's maybe a mile to plaza nueva, I've done it many times. It's uphill going from town to the Alhambra, obviously. It's steep but good exercise to counterbalance all the ham and wine!