The Generalife gardens above the Alhambra

What it is

The Generalife was the country estate of the Nasrid sultans, the last Muslim rulers of Granada, built in the thirteenth and fourteenth centuries on the hill beside the Alhambra. It was a place to escape the palace in summer. At its heart is the Patio de la Acequia, a long courtyard with a narrow water channel down the middle and arching jets on each side, bordered with roses, myrtle hedges and orange trees. The sound of water is everywhere, including a staircase with water running down its handrails. The planting has changed over the centuries, but the idea of the garden as shade, scent and water has not.

Before you go

• Tickets to the Alhambra sell out well ahead. Book weeks in advance in spring.
• May has the roses and the mildest weather. July and August are very hot by noon.
• Allow three hours for the whole monument, and wear shoes with grip for the cobbles.

The flowers you will see

RoseWoody perennial plants with showy, often fragrant flowers in many coloursJasmineA group of fragrant shrubs and vines with white or yellow star-shaped flowersOleanderA showy, evergreen shrub with clusters of pink, white or red flowersWisteriaWoody climbing vines with long, fragrant flower clusters

Also part of it, and being written: Myrtus communis.

Read more

GeneralifeHistoric hillside gardens and palace beside the Alhambra in Granada

More in Spain

🇪🇸 Plasencia · Mar to AprCherry blossom in the Jerte valleyA mountain valley in Extremadura where terraces of cherry orchards flower white together for about ten days in early spring. 🇪🇸 Barcelona · All yearThe flower kiosks of La RamblaA stretch of Barcelona's central promenade lined with flower kiosks since the nineteenth century, busiest on 23 April. 🇪🇸 Córdoba · MayThe patios of Córdoba in MayFor two weeks each May, families in Córdoba's old quarters open their flower-filled courtyards to anyone who walks in.