Low Emission Zone and Parking

If you’re coming to Granada by car, there are two things worth getting clear before you set off: the city’s low emission zone (ZBE) and the bollards that control access to neighbourhoods such as the Albayzín and the Sacromonte, where Cueva de Lindaraja is. They’re two separate systems, each with its own rules.

What the low emission zone is

Like other Spanish cities, Granada has a low emission zone to cut pollution and traffic. Inside it, entry for some vehicles is restricted according to two criteria:

• The car’s DGT environmental badge (CERO, ECO, C or B, or no badge at all).
• Where the vehicle is registered, because the rules aren’t the same for Granada residents as for cars coming from elsewhere.

Enforcement is by cameras that read number plates, so there are no barriers: if you drive in without permission, the fine arrives by post later. This includes hire cars and foreign vehicles.

The Sacromonte is inside the ZBE. As we explain in arriving by car, only vehicles with a C, B, ECO or CERO badge may enter the neighbourhood. Even so, the rules are being extended in phases and have exceptions, so check the current rules on the Granada City Council mobility website before your trip, especially if your car has no badge or is registered outside Spain.

The Albayzín and Sacromonte bollards

On top of the ZBE, vehicle access to the Albayzín and the Sacromonte is controlled by bollards: posts that rise and fall and only let non-residents in during certain time slots. Even if your car meets the ZBE rules, you’ll have to stick to those hours.

To reach the house you must enter through the bollards on Calle Pagés, within the permitted hours. Once inside, you can leave whenever you like. You’ll find the timetable and the right route in our guide to arriving by car.

Where to park

There are no car parks inside the Sacromonte. You can park on the street, on Camino del Sacromonte from number 105 onwards, always in the white-line areas. Yellow lines, solid or dashed, and driveways are off limits and cars do get towed. At weekends it’s harder to find a space.

If you’d rather use a public car park, these are the two we recommend:

• Parking San Cristóbal, in the Albayzín. It’s the closest: from there it’s a few minutes’ walk to the house, about 1 km.
• APK2 Triunfo car park, on Avenida de la Constitución, open 24 hours. The pedestrian exit comes out on Plaza del Triunfo, very close to a C34 stop, which drops you next to the house.

You’ll find the links and approximate prices in arriving by car. There are other car parks in the centre, but they’re harder to reach and more expensive.

Our advice: leave the car

Granada is a small city and much of the historic centre is closed to traffic or has limited access. Driving around the centre is slow and parking is hard. The easiest thing is to park the car when you arrive and get around on foot and by public transport:

• The C34 runs along Camino del Sacromonte and links it with Plaza Nueva and the centre. The «Camino del Sacromonte 89» stop is 40 metres from the house.
• Minibuses also go up to the Alhambra and the Albayzín. We cover them in Alhambra and Albayzín minibuses.
• On foot, the Albayzín is about 10 minutes from the house and the Cathedral about 20.

If you’d rather keep things simple, you can also come without a car: see getting here and the rest of getting around Granada. And if you only need a car for a day trip, it may be worth hiring one just for that day.