Alhambra Viking Excursion from Malaga port

[CCWineLover]

New thread, borrowing from a thread drift on another thread . . .

There is a lot of interest in the tours from Malaga to the Alhambra in Grenada, Spain.  Especially ones that Viking offers.

It appears, from previous comments and experiences, that in the past there had been tight restrictions on buses going to Alhambra that a cruise ship could have - such as just one, thus making it a very difficult ticket to get.  However, it now appears that things have loosened up a bit.

 

We did the Alhambra Viking Excursion last May when on the Trade Routes Cruise.  There were SIX Viking buses that went up to the Alhambra.  At roughly 40 apiece I figure there were 240 slots.  So no one should ever give up if they want to go!  We met several people who only got their reservations while on board.   So you are right, the restrictions must have been lifted somewhat.

It was indeed a bucket list experience.  And, the late lunch we had at a Michelin restaurant was beyond good - much better than we expected!!  We were still full when we got back to the ship, not long ahead of sailing.  Needless to say we had a late (8;30?) dinner that night.  It was a pretty amazing day.

Hopefully others can relate their experiences with the Viking Alhambra excursions!

 

[SJD117]

Thanks for the recommendation, Kent! We booked this excursion for late October — almost 40 years to the day since our first and only visit to the Alhambra.

 

Our booking experience comports with yours. We snagged two of the last 10 available tickets. The Viking rep told us that “about 200” were originally available. So your estimate of 240 is right on the money.

 

 

Edited Wednesday at 12:11 AM by SJD117

[Peregrina651]

There is a plaque on one of the walls of the Alhambra grounds. It used to be at eye level and easy to see but excavations over the last 50 years now have it flying way over our heads and impossible to see (or so it was the last time I went looking for it). It says:

 

Dale limosna, mujer,

que no hay en la vida nada

como la pena de ser

ciego en Granada

 

Roughly translated: Give alms, women, because there is nothing in life more painful than to be a blindman in Granada.

 

Enjoy your visit!

 

 

Edited Wednesday at 12:17 AM by Peregrina651

[lackcreativity]

We visited the Alhambra on a land based tour of Spain, and it remains one of the highlights of all the places we have ever seen. I still wonder about the many areas of the complex that we did not get to visit. Do all visitors see the same areas, or are there varied admission tickets? 

[Peregrina651]

I haven't been since the pandemic, so things may have changed ‐‐ and they certainly have since I first visited in college. These days, you need a ticket to get into the grounds and a timed ticket to get into the palace and the Generalife gardens; we used to walk up there on a Sunday afternoon just to hang out. It was free in those days and we could go anywhere we wanted. You can still wander the grounds and explore; it's an all day adventure and there is a lot to see.

 

I haven't been in there on a guided tour so I can't comment on what the tours do and do not see these days but I imagine that the focus is on the Nazari Palace.

 

 

[lackcreativity]

1 hour ago, Peregrina651 said:

 we used to walk up there on a Sunday afternoon just to hang out. It was free in those days and we could go anywhere we wanted. You can still wander the grounds and explore; it's an all day adventure and there is a lot to see.

 

Oh that sounds like heaven! 

[MamaFej]

Due to points redemptions, we are ending a two month trip with 5 nights in Madrid. We are considering a quick flight to and from Granada one day to visit the Alhambra. 

 

Do those of you with experience recommend doing it on our own, or should we try to find a guide, perhaps seeing more attractions in the city?

 

Thanks to anyone who might have advice.

[sleepybobo]

Did the price of the Viking excursion include lunch at the Michellin star restaurant? How much was the excursion? 

[LindaS272]

We just booked it for Oct.—$229 pp. Pretty sure lunch would be included unless stated otherwise (it isn’t). But it might not always include a Michelin-starred restaurant.

[Peregrina651]

If Viking arranges the lunch then it is included in the price.

 

BTW, I looked at the menu and marked it down for our next visit to Granada. It's not cheap but in the range of what I would pay for a splurge meal.

Edited Thursday at 12:11 AM by Peregrina651

[sleepybobo]

A lunch at Michelin-starred restaurant is at least $150 pp in NYC. $229 pp including lunch is a bargain. Our dollars can indeed go further in Spain. 

[Peregrina651]

4 hours ago, MamaFej said:

Due to points redemptions, we are ending a two month trip with 5 nights in Madrid. We are considering a quick flight to and from Granada one day to visit the Alhambra. 

 

Do those of you with experience recommend doing it on our own, or should we try to find a guide, perhaps seeing more attractions in the city?

 

Thanks to anyone who might have advice.

 

Make a list of everything you want to see in Madrid (imho, organize it by neighborhoods/sites that are close together and then choose one neighborhood for each day). Now, look at your list and decide if you are willing to give up one of these days for a day trip to Granada (or Segovia or Toledo, which are two of my favorite day trips from Madrid). Email me if you want to chat more.

[CCWineLover]

1 hour ago, LindaS272 said:

We just booked it for Oct.—$229 pp. Pretty sure lunch would be included unless stated otherwise (it isn’t). But it might not always include a Michelin-starred restaurant.

Linda - I just went back and looked.  Ours was $229 in May.

As I said it was a long day.  At the port talk review of excursions the night before the excursion director indicated that you might want to have a good breakfast as the very good lunch would be at the end after leaving the Alhambra.  (The restaurant was about a couple miles down the road).  I went back and looked at the time stamp on my pictures - and found our lunch meal was served beginning at 3:00 PM and we left at 4:00 PM.   Best keep some snacks with you if you need to eat something during the day!  At least we were warned (nice!)   The buses got back to the pier in Malaga at 6:00 PM and the ship left at 6:30 PM  (again from picture time stamps).  Hope that helps folks.

[LindaS272]

13 minutes ago, CCWineLover said:

Linda - I just went back and looked.  Ours was $229 in May.

As I said it was a long day.  At the port talk review of excursions the night before the excursion director indicated that you might want to have a good breakfast as the very good lunch would be at the end after leaving the Alhambra.  (The restaurant was about a couple miles down the road).  I went back and looked at the time stamp on my pictures - and found our lunch meal was served beginning at 3:00 PM and we left at 4:00 PM.   Best keep some snacks with you if you need to eat something during the day!  At least we were warned (nice!)   The buses got back to the pier in Malaga at 6:00 PM and the ship left at 6:30 PM  (again from picture time stamps).  Hope that helps folks.

Absolutely helps, Kent, thanks. Will definitely need to load up heavily on food (for both of us!).

 

On that first trip to Spain in 1984, we had such stress just getting to our first night in Toledo that we didn’t eat a Spanish dinner for a week—being that dinner was usually at 9:30 pm and we were so jet lagged we went to bed at 5:30! Long story about getting to the airport late flying out of Anchorage, barely making our connex in London to Spain. Anyway—always have trouble with the meal times in southern Europe generally!

[JDincalif]

On 9/25/2024 at 12:19 PM, MamaFej said:

Due to points redemptions, we are ending a two month trip with 5 nights in Madrid. We are considering a quick flight to and from Granada one day to visit the Alhambra. 

 

Do those of you with experience recommend doing it on our own, or should we try to find a guide, perhaps seeing more attractions in the city?

 

Thanks to anyone who might have advice.

In our experience and opinion, for a short visit to Granada the Alhambra is best done with a guide or through a tour company. Visiting the vast Alhambra isn't a "buy one-ticket to see it all" encounter. An experienced guide or tour company can help you determine what you most want to see, expedite the ticket purchase process (which does require submitting a copy of your passport), arrange the timing to make the most of your visit and provide historical and aesthetic commentary to enrich your understanding and appreciation.

 

[MamaFej]

Thank you, @Peregrina651 and @JDincalif! Although we've visited Spain together a few times, PapaFej has never been to Madrid, and I haven't been there since 1983, while on a high school summer exchange program (most of my four weeks was spent in León). 

 

Our Spain time will be the last five days of a 60 day, three continent trip early next year, and we have much to plan. 

 

We will heed the advice from both of you, and we truly appreciate it!

[bookbabe]

I’ll be the oddball here and admit that DH and I were underwhelmed with the Alhambra.  Did it on Trade Routes in March 2024.  Tour was okay, but the site itself is primarily a 19th century restoration of a 15th century reconstruction of the original 11th century Moorish architecture.  Very little original is seen on the Viking excursion, don’t know if a different focus is present on private excursions.  And it was crowded, even off season.  Long lines of people slowly shuffling through the various rooms of the palace.  It was a one and done for us.

[millybess]

28 minutes ago, bookbabe said:

I’ll be the oddball here and admit that DH and I were underwhelmed with the Alhambra.  Did it on Trade Routes in March 2024.  Tour was okay, but the site itself is primarily a 19th century restoration of a 15th century reconstruction of the original 11th century Moorish architecture.  Very little original is seen on the Viking excursion, don’t know if a different focus is present on private excursions.  And it was crowded, even off season.  Long lines of people slowly shuffling through the various rooms of the palace.  It was a one and done for us.

That's interesting.  Viking has two tours to Alhambra.  One is during the day (9 hours) and one is at dusk (7 hours).  The dusk visit is labeled  "Privileged Access" and it's a small group.  The description includes: "As the Nasrid Palaces close their doors to visitors, Viking guests will be welcomed behind them on a Privileged Access visit".  

[bookbabe]

9 minutes ago, millybess said:

That's interesting.  Viking has two tours to Alhambra.  One is during the day (9 hours) and one is at dusk (7 hours).  The dusk visit is labeled  "Privileged Access" and it's a small group.  The description includes: "As the Nasrid Palaces close their doors to visitors, Viking guests will be welcomed behind them on a Privileged Access visit".  

The daytime one was the only Alhambra option on our Trade Routes cruise.

[SJD117]

47 minutes ago, bookbabe said:

I’ll be the oddball here and admit that DH and I were underwhelmed with the Alhambra.  Did it on Trade Routes in March 2024.  Tour was okay, but the site itself is primarily a 19th century restoration of a 15th century reconstruction of the original 11th century Moorish architecture.  Very little original is seen on the Viking excursion, don’t know if a different focus is present on private excursions.  And it was crowded, even off season.  Long lines of people slowly shuffling through the various rooms of the palace.  It was a one and done for us.

To each his or her own. We first visited the Alhambra in November 1984 — and we’ll be back next month, almost 40 years to the day since that first trip.

 

 

Edited yesterday at 06:26 PM by SJD117

[OneSixtyToOne]

Some people be like…

[Redtravel]

The Alhambra is not to be missed. It is beautiful. If Viking sells out, find a tour company that will take you there. You need a guided tour.