Generalife Gardens
You start where the Nasrid sultans came to rest. The Generalife was their country villa on the slope of the Cerro del Sol, just outside the Alhambra walls, conceived as a place where ornamental gardens, orchards and buildings blend into one another. It was a retreat and a working farm at the same time: in the Middle Ages the estate had at least four orchards, and the vizier Ibn al-Yayyab called the residence the Royal House of Happiness.
Look for the heart of the complex: two pavilions, one to the north and one to the south, joined by a courtyard with a channel of water running its length. Both pavilions have been heavily reworked, so read them as a building that grew over centuries rather than a frozen medieval scene. Its oldest decoration points to the late 13th century and Muhammad II, the second Nasrid sultan, who reigned until 1302; later sultans kept adding and changing.
When it was built, the Generalife lay outside Muslim Granada and had no direct connection to the Alhambra. Its main approach was a path up a ravine from the Darro river, today's Cuesta de los Chinos. Since 1984 it has been a UNESCO World Heritage Site together with the palace.
Come first thing in the morning, as soon as the gates open. The Alhambra General ticket includes the gardens; if you only want the Generalife, there is a separate garden ticket. From here it is 610 m, about 8 minutes, to the Alhambra itself.
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