Granada in 5 Days on a Budget (With Daily Costs)

Five days in Granada: the Alhambra, Sacromonte, and three slower days to actually live in the city

Five days moves past the highlight reel: the same Nasrid Palaces slot and Sacromonte flamenco evening from the shorter plans, then three additional days built around markets, gardens, and neighborhoods a 2 or 3-day trip has no room for. This is still a city-only plan; Sierra Nevada, the Alpujarras, and Cordoba live in the Granada as a base guide , not here. Coming from the 3-day plan ? Days 1 through 3 are identical; days 4 and 5 are what the extra time buys. The 6-day and 7-day plans build further still.

Day Focus Rough spend (per person)
Day 1 Alhambra grounds and Nasrid Palaces, Albaicin, Mirador sunset, tapas EUR 40-60
Day 2 Royal Chapel, Sacromonte by day, cave flamenco show EUR 45-70
Day 3 Realejo, Corral del Carbon, Carrera del Darro, second tapas crawl EUR 20-35
Day 4 Mercado San Agustin, Casa-Museo Lorca, Carmen de los Martires EUR 15-70
Day 5 Palacio de Dar al-Horra, Alcaiceria, farewell tapas EUR 15-30

Book these before you go:

Day 1: The Alhambra and the Albaicin

Walk the free stretch of the Alhambra grounds, the Puerta de la Justicia entrance and the Palace of Charles V, ahead of the timed Nasrid Palaces slot; budget three to four hours for the complex. Spend the afternoon in the Albaicin’s whitewashed lanes and close the day at the Mirador San Nicolas for the sunset over the Alhambra, then a free-tapa dinner on Calle Elvira or Calle Navas.

Day 2: The Royal Chapel and Sacromonte

The Royal Chapel (Capilla Real), about EUR 5-7 (capillarealgranada.com has current hours), holds Ferdinand and Isabella, who took the city in 1492. Spend the afternoon in Sacromonte’s cave lanes and book the evening’s zambra flamenco show, about EUR 26-33, then close with a second free-tapa round near Plaza Nueva.

Day 3: The Realejo and a second tapa crawl

The Realejo, the old Jewish quarter around Campo del Principe, is quieter and more local than the Albaicin. The Corral del Carbon, a free 14th-century Nasrid grain exchange, sits on the way back toward the centre. Spend the afternoon on the Carrera del Darro, then run a second tapa crawl through Plaza Bib-Rambla and the streets around it in the evening.

Day 4: Markets, Lorca, and a quiet garden

Morning goes to the Mercado San Agustin, Granada’s covered produce market, good for a cheap breakfast and a look at what actually goes into the local kitchen. From there, the Casa-Museo Federico Garcia Lorca, the poet’s family summer house in the Huerta de San Vicente, charges a small entry fee and takes under an hour. Spend the afternoon in the Carmen de los Martires gardens, free, a genuine break from the crowds elsewhere in the city. The Hammam Al Andalus bathhouse, from about EUR 52, is the one real splurge worth considering for the evening if the budget has room; otherwise a quiet dinner away from the tourist core does the job.

Day 5: Dar al-Horra, the Alcaiceria, and a farewell tapa crawl

The Palacio de Dar al-Horra, a small 15th-century Nasrid palace in the upper Albaicin, charges a modest fee most days and is free on Sundays; pair it with a quieter, daytime pass through the Albaicin lanes, a different light than the sunset crowd of day one. In the afternoon, the Alcaiceria, the old silk market street rebuilt after a fire in the 19th century, is the place for ceramics and leather without a car needed to get there. Close the trip with a farewell tapa crawl in Plaza Bib-Rambla, the most central of Granada’s tapas squares.

Is 5 days enough time for Granada?

Five days covers the city thoroughly, both must-book items, a full second wind of neighborhoods, and still leaves the day trips untouched. Anyone wanting Sierra Nevada or Cordoba folded in needs the Granada as a base guide and its own itineraries instead.

How much does 5 days in Granada actually cost?

Figure EUR 150-260 a person across five days, depending mostly on whether the Hammam splurge on day four happens. Drop that and day four falls to roughly EUR 15-25, since the market, the Lorca house, and the gardens all run cheap to free.

Nothing past day three sells out in advance; book the Nasrid Palaces slot and the flamenco show first, then decide the rest after landing. General trip planning is at turismo.granada.org .