Spain Easter 2017 - advice needed
 

Just starting to put together a trip for next April which will start in Spain. I would ideally like to arrive in Granada on Good Friday due to logistics of flying from Hawaii. My plan is to stay in Granada, departing the following Wednesday.
My initial questions are as follows. Will it be challenging to find sites, shops, restaurants open during this time? Will Granada be exceptionally crowded at this time? After leaving Granada, would like to stay in Seville for 6 nights. Same questions as this is right after Easter.

Holy Week (Sancta Semana)will occur while you're in Spain...suggest you base in Sevilla for a colorful, meaningful Holy Week. Crowds? You ain't seen nuthin like it.

(see pics below)

https://photos.google.com/share/AF1Q...53d3RTUjctTU13 try this

Semana Santa/Holy week is massive in all of Andalucía, crowds and processions almost 24/7 for the whole week, fiesta and devotion hand in hand, restaurants and bars are jam packed. Could be a fabulous experience if you know what to expect, and on Good Friday things starts to cool down, relatively laid-back Saturday before the grand finale on Easter Sunday. http://www.andalucia.com/festival/easter/home.htm

Sevilla will be taking a rest when you visit right after Semana Santa, building up the the huge Feria de Abril spring fair. You'll the be in Sevilla the short time in between the two major events of the year: http://www.andalucia.com/festival/seville-feria.htm

Tower – thanks for sharing your pictures which are truly beautiful. Crowds are not my thing, if avoidable, so I will stick with the original idea for staring my Spain adventure in Granada.

Kimhe, I understand Easter weekend will still be busy, but perhaps less so than in Seville. I did not see anything on the Alhambra website to indicate closure on Easter. Do you think Easter Sunday will be busier than any other Sunday? I can also book for Monday, but I would like to make a visit during the day and also at night on two separate days, if possible. Always enjoy your posts and have benefited from reading them for many years.

Will post additional questions closer to departure.

Very, very busy in Granada, less so than in Sevilla, but in general you can expect crowds everywhere in Granada also. Holy Week is HUGE in all of Andalucía, even in the tiniest village But perhaps Alhambra might be a bit calmer than usual, the big thing in town is definitely not Alhambra on Easter Sunday. But then again, hordes of people flock to Sevilla, Granada, Málaga etc. etc. for Semana Santa, and I might be wrong, many of them might find their way up to Alhambra after some intensive days of religious partying ;-)

Here's the Granada Semana Santa 2016 promo. It starts: "There is one week every year when Granada transforms": https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=esr1-FNNpzA

We were in Seville during the SS a few years ago ...it was so crowded that the best way to see the
processions was on TV!

I enjoyed the lovely city much more on a second visit (at a different time.)

Understand your point danon, but nothing beats experiencing the Semana Santa up front. Andalucía at its finest and in full blossom. Here Diana Navarro sings a saeta from a balcony over the Márquez de Larios street in Málaga: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=u0HHdxt5_kY

Sevilla has what is considered the largest Semana Santa celebration, but most of it happens at night, from the early evening into the early morning hours, as long as it's not raining. Granada's SS celebration is as vibrant, but simply on a smaller scale, as is Málaga's, which again, takes place beginnig in the early evening hours until late morning. We've also experienced SS in Úbeda, Ronda, Burgos and Samaniego (Rioja Alavesa), and enjoyed each one.

As far as the question goes, everything is open, but restaurants will be crowded. maybe a little more then usual.

Yes, it will be very crowded, but it is probable one of the most beautiful moments of the year to visit the city, and all Andalucia. I encourage you to go