The Nasrid Palaces slot

How does the Nasrid Palaces time slot work?

You choose a half-hour slot when you buy the ticket, and you can go into the palaces only at that time. The Patronato lets in at most 300 people per half hour.

The slot is printed on the ticket as a start time, say 10:30. The rest of the monument has no time limit on the day. The ticket shop puts it in four words: the palaces have "horario propio", their own schedule.

Inside, the route runs one way: the Mexuar, the Comares Palace with the Court of the Myrtles and the Hall of the Ambassadors, the Palace of the Lions, then the Lindaraja corridor and out into the Partal gardens. Once you leave, you cannot go back in. Most people spend 45 minutes to an hour inside, and nobody hurries you along.

What happens if you are late for the Nasrid Palaces?

You lose the right to visit the palaces. The Patronato is clear on it, and the rest of your ticket, the Alcazaba, the Partal and the Generalife, stays valid.

The official FAQ says that missing the slot means the "loss of the right to visit this space". Staff at the palace gate check the time on every ticket. There is no rebooking and no refund, since official tickets can't be changed.

The usual reasons people miss it: they arrive at the main entrance at their slot time, forgetting the walk; they queue at the wrong gate; or they are still in the Generalife. All three are avoidable.

How early should you arrive for your slot?

Be in the queue at the palace entrance 15 to 20 minutes before your time, and allow another 15 to 20 minutes to walk there from the main entrance.

The main entrance pavilion is at the Generalife end of the site; the palace entrance is next to the Charles V Palace at the other end. Walking between them takes about 15 minutes at an easy pace. Coming up from town on foot via the Cuesta de Gomérez and the Puerta de la Justicia, you reach the palace area directly, which is the route alhambradegranada.org recommends for ticket holders.

A guest on the audio-guide ticket put it well: "Arrive earlier than you think in order to get oriented and get to your timed entry of Nasrid Palace." The site is bigger than it looks on the map.

Which Nasrid Palaces time slot is best?

The 08:30 slot, if you can get it: the palaces are at their emptiest and the light comes low through the courtyards. In summer, late afternoon is the next best.

• 08:30: first in, quietest rooms, cool air. You then have the whole day for the Alcazaba and the Generalife.
• Mid-morning to early afternoon: the busiest hours, with tour groups stacked up in the Court of the Lions. In July and August, also the hottest walk to the Generalife afterwards.
• Late afternoon: the crowds thin. Guests on the NHUE tour report a 5 p.m. start as cooler and less busy in early October.
• Last slots of the day: do the Generalife and the Alcazaba first, as the Patronato itself advises, since they close at the same hour as the palaces.

Daytime closing is 20:00 from 1 April to 14 October and 18:00 from 15 October to 31 March. In winter, a 16:30 slot leaves you very little daylight for anything else.

How do you plan the Alcazaba and the Generalife around the slot?

Work backwards from the slot time: the Alcazaba sits next to the palaces, the Generalife at the far end. Visit the far end when you have the most time.

Three plans that work, each about three hours on the hill:

The Alcazaba reopened on 23 September 2026 on an adapted route after the August earthquakes, and some towers stay closed; our earthquake update has the latest. Each of the four spaces can be entered only once, so finish one before starting the next.

Do you need your passport for the Nasrid Palaces?

Yes. Alhambra tickets are named and personal, and staff check the original passport or ID card against the ticket at the entrance and again at the palaces.

The Patronato calls its tickets nominative, personal and non-transferable. A photo of the passport on your phone is not the original, and staff can refuse it.

A guest on the audio-guide ticket summed up the day: "Your passport is scanned more often than your ticket." If the name on the ticket is wrong, it can be corrected until the day before, as long as the ticket has not been printed.

Can you take a bag into the Nasrid Palaces?

Small bags, yes. Backpacks and bags larger than 40 by 40 cm are not allowed, and there is free storage at two points in the monument.

The official FAQ lets smaller backpacks in if you wear them on your front. Leave suitcases at your hotel; the two storage points are for day bags. Water is fine, and you will want it in summer.

Wear real shoes. The NHUE tour's guests mention many stairs without handrails, and the paths between the Generalife and the palaces are gravel and old stone.

How do guided tours handle the slot?

They book it for you and start the tour around it, which is the main thing you pay for. Resold tickets may assign the slot at random in busy periods.

The NHUE small-group tour, the premium tour in groups of 10 and the private tour set the tour start time by the palace slot the operator holds, and the guide walks you into the palaces on time. The ticket with audio guide works differently: in busy periods the operator says the Patronato assigns the palace time, it comes with the confirmation, and the tickets can arrive as late as 8 hours before the visit.

Our pick: if you can only find tickets through a reseller, the audio ticket is fine for a flexible day. If your day is fixed, take a tour with a guaranteed time. Our tickets guide has every official price, and the sold-out guide the fallback options.

Your Nasrid Palaces slot booked for you, a guide with headsets and the Alcazaba and the Generalife in three hours. Non-refundable once booked.

★ 4.7 · 3 hours · from $67

Explore the small-group tour with the Nasrid Palaces → Tour details

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