We are spending a week in Granada at the end of May and we are thinking about taking a day trip or two out of the city. Would it be better to hire a car for those days or could we use public transport to visit the mountains and/or the coast? Usually when on holiday we hire a car for the entire week but decided to follow the general advice not to have one in Granada; especially since we cannot park near our accommodation just off the Plaza Nueva.
Any suggestions for particularly scenic drives or destinations would be very welcome too.

Spiral

Look at www.turgranada.es and pick out which excursions you think you'll want to do.

You may find enough to do where a bus gets you there, there is much more to the city and province than the Alhambra and the Albaicín.

Also check the bus company www.transportesrober.com/ then click on plano de lineas, it goes to outlying suburbs and hills where you have great views while you walk around.

Also see www.vivagranada.com/

If the websites and a further Google search for each local and regional destination doesn't reveal a public transport solution, go to a travel agency on arrival to ascertain that driving your own car is the only way. Then, if it's worth it to you, rent one for a day or so. There are 23 companies listed: http://tinyurl.com/9z9uge

I suggest Nerja on the coast for 2 days.

I may suggest Priego de Cordoba, 80km to the northwest, 80min. Or Las Alpujarras, south of Granada, especially the town of Capileira.

Thanks for the suggestions and especial thanks to DalaiLama for the websites. I shall spend a happy few hours working out what are our favourites.
Happy New Year and happy travels.
Spiral

Other potential daytrips doable by public transportation:

Solbrena/Almenucar
Jaen
Antequera

I'd also second the recommendation for Priego de Cordoba. I've never visited there but it is supposed to be lovely.

Ronda is a possibility but it's over 2 hours one way and a bit much for a day trip.

The road south from Granada to the coast (Motril) goes precisely to Salobreña, touristic overdeveloped but very nice old town and castle. I would not bother continuing to Almuñecar (watch spellings!). The detour to Alpujarras is along this road.
Priego is indeed a beautiful and not very much visited town, it has an impressive fountain (well, two fountains) a street full of small scale 19th century palaces (calle del Rio), several baroque churches and a well preserved jewish quarters (judería) of whitewashed narrow streets with balconies full of pots.

My suggestion is drive a rental car, early in the morning, to Ubeda and Baeza:
http://www.spain.info/TourSpain/Repo...ts?language=EN

bookmarking - thanks everyone

We spent a week in Granada one April, and went to Capileira by bus one day and Ronda by train another. Can recommend both.

Hola

What about a day at Cordoba? There is the Mezquita of course but the Jewish quarter is well worth taking in. There is a patio festival in May but it looks like you may be travelling there after that date - http://www.andalucia.com/cities/cordoba/patios.htm.

This link may be useful for day trips - http://granadainfo.com/distances.htm

Thanks for starting this, Spiral - I'll be in Spain in late March/April this is most helpful.

Nerja on the coast about 2 hours. We did a daytrip from there to Granada and I remember it as quite scenic at least on the coastline. And in Nerja you can have lunch at the famous Burriana beachside restaurant Ayo's for paella cooked on an open fire - 5 Euros all you can eat. And of course have a swim. We were there in late May 2007 and the water was already warm.

When in Nerja, it's only a few kms to Frigiliana, a nice White Village in the lower mountains, but still near the coast.

bookmarking

Since you are only going to be in Granada for a week, why not enjoy Granada? We spent five days there last spring and it wasn't enough time to see everything and actually enjoy the time to the fullest. Simply put, there is a lot more to Granada then the Alhambra.

Another day trips which come to my mind could be:

Leave Granada on A44 (southbound)towards Motril/ the Coast.
Half way to Motril, go East on A348 and A4132, parallel to the Sierra's range, through the Alpujarras.
Go North again on A337 via Pto de la Ragua until you hit A92.
Go West until you are back in Granada.
Most of this trip will be mountain driving through the Alpujarras, on small roads (esp. A4132 and A337), but is quite rewarding re. sights along the road.
Sample the famous jamón in Trevélez, for example.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Alpujarras

Eastern Andalucía is usually a bit off the beaten path (compared with Granada, Sevilla, the resorts near Málaga, etc.) but has one of the most stunning landscapes, IMO -- and usually only IMO

From Granada, go East on A92 towards Almería until you get to Tabernas (excellent 4-lane motorway all the way). There you will hit the Desert of Tabernas, a rugged landscape that is Europe's only "official" desert region, and has been the backdrop for hundreds of Western movies. If you get there, you know why. It's probably as close as you can get in Europe to sceneries that resemble Arizona or New Mexico. Further East (from Tabernas on N340, and backroads via Níjar) , you will get to the natural park of Cabo de Gata with almost untouched beaches, which had been the highlight of my last trip.
This would be a pretty long day trip, but not very exhausting since the way to the area and back to Granada would be non-exhausting good motorways.
But you really have to have a like for that kind of landscapes. Many people simply find it boring.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tabernas_Desert
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cabo_De_Gata

By the way, when looking for potential destinations, I usually check Google Maps with the photo option switched on. That way I get to see other people's pictures taken in that area, which often offer a more unbiased perspective than the official PR material of tourist informations.

Once again thanks to everyone who has replied.
Cowboy - especial thanks for your suggestions since my main reason for asking this question is that that my husband is inclined to get "buildinged out" and develop an intense need to see natural beauty rather than any towns or other man-made objects. The trip to the desert might be just his cup of tea!