Andalucia: Moors and More in Granada and Cordoba

Flight with British Airways from London to Malaga. Coach transfer to the city centre for a group dinner together and the first of three nights in Granada, staying at the Villa Oniria.

A day on foot in Granada will take us through the Alcaicería, past the Moorish Baths and the 14th century Moorish caravanserai of the Corral del Carbón to the cathedral and the Chapel Royal. This is the lavishly embellished mausoleum of the Catholic monarchs Ferdinand II of Aragon and Isabella I of Castille begun in 1504. The Chapel’s sacristy and museum house panel paintings by Rogier van der Weyden and Botticelli as well as the monarchs’ personal jewels and ornaments. The afternoon will be spent at La Cartuja monastery, a foundation of Ferdinand and Isabella featuring a dazzling stucco interior followed by a walk through the winding streets of the medieval Albayazin district, rich in Moorish architecture. Dinner included tonight.

We leave by coach for a morning visit to the Alhambra. The unrivalled palace complex of intricately ornamented buildings, encircled by thickly forested mountains, was described by Moorish poets as "a pearl set in emeralds". We take a leisurely walk through the Generalife Gardens, the former rural residence of the emirs who ruled Andalucía in the 13th and 14th centuries and today one of the oldest surviving Moorish gardens. After lunch at the historic parador located within the gardens of the Alhambra, there will be free time for exploring Granada and dining independently.

By coach to Almedinilla, a dreamy white town that rises from a sea of olive trees. We visit the Villa Romano El Ruedo, one of the largest Roman villas on the Iberian Peninsula. The splendour of the magnificent residence was supported by the production of olive oil, wine, and cereals elsewhere on the estate and remnants of both villa and agricultural industry are impressively preserved. Coach transfer to Priego de Córdoba, Andalucia’s ‘Baroque Jewel’, where the many splendid Baroque churches will be our focus. Continue to Córdoba, arriving at our 4-star hotel in the early evening, for the first of 3 nights. Some time to settle in will be followed by a group dinner.

Morning walk through the internal flower-planted patios and the atmospheric alleys of the Jewish Quarter to Córdoba’s gem, the Mezquita, a splendid Renaissance Cathedral encased within a sprawling arcaded Mosque complex – one of the greatest and most impressive works of Muslim architecture, built in 784 on the ruins of a Visigothic church. In the afternoon, an independent lunch is followed by a private visit to the Palacio de Viana. Structured around twelve beautiful, plant-filled courtyards, the rooms of this 14th century palace are filled with fabulous collections of pottery, artwork, furniture, and ornamental tiles. An evening talk with Sue is followed by independent dining.

The Alcázar de los Reyes Cristianos was one of the main residences of Ferdinand of Aragon and Isabella, who converted much of the older Arab complex into torture and interrogation chambers of the Inquisition.  After a stroll through the Alcázar gardens, we drive by coach a few kilometres west of Córdoba to Medina Azahara where we explore the ruins of the Moorish Palace complex, which dates to 936, and visit the museum. We return to Córdoba where the rest of the afternoon is free for independent lunch and exploration but reconvene for a group dinner.

Coach to Malaga stopping at Antequera, where we have a walking tour of the monumental quarter. Our visits include the municipal museum housed in an 18th century palace and the prehistoric dolmens on the outskirts of town. After an independent lunch, coach transfer to airport for our return flight.