TampaNana

i will arrive in Granada around 10 on 21 December and leave the morning of 23 December.

With shorter daylight hours in December I want to plan my visit to the Alhambra carefully. Would it be better to visit in the afternoon and evening on Monday the 21st or morning of Tuesday the 22nd? If I go In the afternoon will there be an additional fee for evening? How much of the site can be visited at night? Will the gardens be worth visiting or will they be dormant in winter?

Thank you.

dutyfree

We are going to be there around then too-will be interested in any responses.Do you think that we still need to buy tickets ahead of time at this time of the year?

kja

Personally, I would go with day (starting in the morning if possible -- better to have too much time than too little!), followed by an evening visit to the Nasrid Palace. During the day, you can visit the entire Alhambra, but you will probably do so with MANY others, so be prepared for crowds. FWIW, the audio guide met my needs. In the evening, you can visit only the magnificent Nasrid Palace, but you will do so with just a few others. When I was there, everyone who was there spoke very, very quietly, and I found it absolutely magical!

Do be aware that advance reservations for the Alhambra are critical.

Enjoy!

Jeff801

We visited in November a few years ago.There were small crowds, and in many rooms there were only the two of us. But, we spent the entire day in showers and drizzle which made the experience very different and likely reduced the crowds. We spent the entire day, with a break for a wonderful lunch, including hot soup, at the Parador inside the grounds. Start early and expect to lose the light no later than 16:30.

ribeirasacra

Shortest day of the year. Expect long shadows, the palace will be lit up when darker. Makes for a different atmosphere.
Here are the times of daylight.
http://www.timeanddate.com/sun/spain...h=12&year=2015

Alec

Evening visit available only on Friday and Saturday, and you are going from Monday to Wednesday.
Get the earliest morning ticket for 22nd December at 0830 or 0900 to make the most of your daylight hours. Just make sure you enter the ticketed areas by 2.00 pm. There are still plenty (100+) of tickets available for Nasrid Palaces entry at 0830 or 0900 on 22nd.

Pegontheroad

I visited the Alhambra in January 2000. There were no crowds. Maybe it will be different on your dates, but it was very pleasant at that time.

Robert2533

You can expect it to be on the chilly side in late December, with the sun setting at 5:00 pm on the 22th, giving you 9-1/2 hours of daylight. The shadows will be long by mid-afternoon in the city, but since the Alhambra sits at a higher elevation (over 700 meters), you should be able to enjoy the setting sun.

The following is an observation from Explore Granada:
"Unlike every other city in Andalucia, there is a chance it will snow in Granada! I have experienced snow in November, December, January and February, but that is not to say in October or March it won't happen. In the Sierra Nevada it will snow as early as September and expect to see the highest peaks with snow up to 9 months out of the year."