Our take

The most-reviewed day trip to the Granada Alpujarra (320 ratings, 4.7 / 5). It picks you up at your hotel, takes you to the Poqueira Gorge (Pampaneira, Bubión, Capileira — the three most photogenic white villages in the Alpujarra) and returns at the end of the day. The transport rating (4.8) and the guide rating (4.9) are high; the value-for-money rating (4.5) is slightly lower — possibly because of the optional lunch, which some travellers criticise for the lack of clarity on price. It's a perfect excursion to complement the Alhambra: do the Alhambra one day and the Alpujarra another, and you've covered urban Granada plus rural Granada in just a few hours of driving. The villages sit at 1,300-1,500 m and preserve the Arab-Berber architecture of flat roofs and white chimneys — unique in Spain. Pampaneira in particular is where you stop the longest: local crafts, Trevélez ham (at 1,200 m, the highest-cured ham in Europe), shops of regional products. Bring cash if you're going to eat at an Alpujarra restaurant — many don't accept cards in small villages. And closed shoes for the steep cobbled streets. If you have only one excursion available in Granada and want to get out of the centre, this or the Sierra Nevada safari are the two best options — the Alpujarra is more cultural, Sierra Nevada more natural.