Alahambra - visit with kids
 

Hello,

I am planning to visit the Alahambra in June with my three kids (7, 9 and 11). We will be staying in Granada so that we can take in the night tour as well.
1. Do you recommend we book a tour or are the audioguides sufficient?
2. What time should we select for visiting Nasrid palaces? Earliest time slot? We are early risers and I would rather miss the rush with the kids (realizing that it is always going to be busy)
Thanks

I recommend the early time slot because it will give you all day to visit the Alhambra, and it will also be cooler. I think if you choose a later time slot to visit the Nasrid Palace, but go to the Alhambra early to visit the gardens, etc., you will constantly be looking at your watch.

In September, we had 9:30AM tickets for the Nasrid Palace. We were told to arrive 30 to 60 minutes early. I think we got there around 8:30am. This gave us time to buy the audio guides and wander around the Charles Palace and take photos. After we visited the Nasrid Palace, we had a picnic lunch; then we slowly walked to the Generalife Gardens. Then we walked back towards the Alcazaba. We were thirsty and hungry, so we decided to stop at the cafe at Hotel America for drinks and snacks before going to the Alcazaba. We didn't leave the Alhambra until 4:30PM. We also returned for the night tour, which is magical and well worth it. There are fewer people, so it is quiet and you can hear the running water. The lighting also highlights the beautiful and intricate ceilings.

I don't think you need a tour. We found the audio guides to be sufficient.

I am not big on guided tours, but kids might enjoy interacting more with a person for a guide.

I'd go with audioguides so you can walk around at your own pace.

((H))

I have to admit that I hated the audio guide. And then the battery died on me midway through and I hated it even more. �� But you know your kids best. They may not want a guide at all. If you go with a tour guide, I’d splurge for a private one and attempt to find one that can cater to children.

As for both a day and night visit, again I think it depends on your kids’ interest level. We were not able to schedule a night visit, but I would have enjoyed it for sure.

I would get an early start if for no other reason than the heat.

If you can schedule it, I suggest doing the night tour first. I think the magic is better as the first visit.
Also, do the daytime visit earliest. June will be hot, so doing first, allows you to see the rest at your own pace without having to wait around for a later Nasrid visit.

I thought the audioguides sufficient, but then, I read a LOT before visiting a place.

I would book the earliest time you can for the Nasrid Palace, perhaps ½ hour after the grounds open. You should have time to get there with the first slot, too, but why worry about getting there if you can give yourselves a bit of latitude?

I’m glad you plan on the evening visit as well as the daytime one. I recommend going AFTER your day visit. For me, it meant that I already knew what I was seeing (so I wasn’t trying to get information about that) and I could really focus on how it seemed different in the differing light. I found it absolutely magical! JMO. Also, the evening visit is, IME, best if experienced in a hushed environment; you might want to talk about that with your children in advance.

Hope that helps!

BTW, since I went, I believe there's also an evening visit of the Generalife. If so, you might want to book that, too.

Thank you all for your input. I think I will use the audioguides and save the money since most seemed to like it. The general consensus seems to be to book the early morning visit to Nasrid palaces which I will do.
Thanks again for everything.