|
 Day 1: Arrival in Cordova
Arrive in good time so as to visit the famous "Mezquita" (Grand Mosque). Later, a walk through the old Jewish quarter to see its beautiful patios and have tapas in its inns. Finally you may like to experience an authentic flamenco show to get you ready for a journey which has only just begun.
Day 2: Cordova to Priego, 22 miles (35km)
From Cordova you go to Baena by bus. After breakfast in Baena, you set out towards Luque, and from there on quiet county roads to Fuente Aljama. Riding through mountains, you pass the villages of Zagrilla Alta and Zagrilla Baja to arrive in Priego.
 Day 3: Priego to Zuheros, 34 miles (55km)
From Priego you are making for Carcabuey on an old disused road. Heading along a little country road past the village of Algar, you then climb to the Gaena mountain pass. From there you have a long and pronounced descent to the splendid town of Cabra. You take the "Vía Verde" (old reconditioned railway line), in gentle ascent to the romantic village of Zuheros.
Day 4: Zuheros to Alcalá la Real/Fuente del Rey, 38 miles (60km)
Today you bid farewell to the Subbetica mountains, to immerse yourselves in the countryside of Jaén, riding along the comfortable "Vía Verde" (old railway line). After passing the station in Alcaudete, you continue uphill, and the more bumpy trails and imposing watchtowers above remind you that you are entering Nasrid territory. You encounter the majestic "La Mota" fortress defending the town of Alcalá.
Day 5: Alcalá la Real to Tózar, 22 miles (35km)
After visiting the La Mota fortress, with its thick castle walls, imposing towers and the old cathedral built by the reconquering Christians within its confines, you head out of Alcalá la Real over its fertile plain, (and adjacent villages of Fuente del Rey and Santa Ana), riding between fields of cereal crops which are full of poppies in springtime. Once passed Casillas de Mures, the landscape changes and you head towards Tózar, just before the final bastion of the Nazrid kingdom. This village awaits you in the distance beneath the watchful eye of its imposing castle.
Day 6: Tózar to Granada, 36 miles (58km) 
After climbing to Moclín you will enjoy the great views of the Sierra Nevada during the large descent to Olivares. Soon the beautiful plain comes into sight, its arrival announced by the last watchtower you will see, opposite the "tres Juanes" hermitage. Sierra Nevada forms an impressive backdrop. You now approach Granada, and have the option of entering the city from the North, taking a longer route through the foothills of the Alfaguara mountains.
Day 7: Rest day in Granada
Today you explore the city and the amazing Alhambra: This Palace/Fortress and residence of the Nasrid Sultans will awake your affection for the city. Delightful little corners, palaces and gardens abound in its old neighbourhoods, along with a multitude of tapas bars, restaurants and wine houses... All this will bring you to love a city that is as full of life as it is of history and poetry.
Day 8: Departure from Granada
Time to leave and make your way home. |
Freedom Holiday
This is a journey and an experience that bring together two of the most
emblematic cities of ancient al-Andalus: Cordova, home to the ruling Caliphs, philosophers, astronomers, mathematicians and doctors who illuminated the Middle
Ages with knowledge, centuries ahead of the European Renaissance: Granada, whose
mighty kingdom cultivated the sciences above all and where formal refinement and
architectural decoration reached levels unmatched in any society of its time.