One of the most enchanting things to do in Granada is to get lost in the hillside neighborhood of the Albaicín, a UNESCO-listed World Heritage Site. The Albaicín, Granada's historic Arab quarter, was once surrounded by defensive walls, and its picturesque little lanes and whitewashed houses still reveal the atmospheric Moorish character.
From Puerta Nueva (Puerta de los Estandartes), a well-preserved stretch of the town's old ramparts runs west to the Puerta Monaita. The best view of the walls is from the Cuesta de la Alhacaba, near the ninth-century Puerta de Elvira, once the town's principal gate. Many places in the Albaicín offer stunning outlooks onto the Alhambra Palace, which is separated from the Albaicín by the dramatic gorge of the Río Darro.
The most spectacular of these is from the Mirador of San Nicolas, the terrace in front of the 16th-century Church of San Nicolas at the heart of the Albaicín quarter. This frequently painted panorama captures the Alhambra Palace and the Sierra Nevada Mountains.
Not far from San Nicholas, the Church of San Salvador was built on the site of an earlier mosque and is noteworthy for its Mudéjar style (Christian architecture influenced by Islamic design). Another fabulous view of the Alhambra that is popular with tourists is from the Carrera del Darro, one of the oldest streets in Granada, which runs along the north side of the Río Darro.