Most of Spain charges for tapas these days. Granada did not get the memo, and thank goodness for that. Order a beer, a wine or a soft drink in most bars here and a plate of food arrives with it, free, no questions asked. Order a second and you usually get something different. It is one of the great traditions of Andalusian life, and for the careful traveller it is also dinner.
How the custom actually works
The rule of thumb: one drink, one tapa, and the kitchen decides what you get. The first round might be olives and a slice of tortilla; the next, a small plate of paella, some jamón, or a mini hamburger. The more you drink, the more elaborate the tapas tend to become. You rarely choose — part of the fun is the surprise — though many bars will steer you if you ask about the day's options.
Where to go
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Calle Navas, a pedestrian street near Plaza del Carmen, is wall-to-wall tapas bars and the easiest place to start. For something more local, Campo del Príncipe has a handful of bars around a sloping square, while the Realejo, the old Jewish quarter, hides some of the best kitchens in town. Up in the Albaicín the views come free with the food, and along Calle Calderería the teterías serve Moorish-style mint tea if you need a break from the wine.
A few tips
Go where the locals go and eat at the bar rather than a table — the free tapas often only come with bar service. Granada eats late, so the bars fill up from around nine. And do not over-order food: half the skill is letting the tapas stack up as the night goes on.
Getting to Granada
Granada sits inland at the foot of the Sierra Nevada. The city has its own small airport (GRX), but many visitors fly into Málaga (AGP), around ninety minutes away by road, for the wider choice of flights. Either way, a private transfer takes you straight to your hotel in the old centre, where the streets are too narrow and steep to want to be dragging a suitcase around. Book a transfer to Granada or explore our private transfers in Granada.
