No, not Laputa, sadly. Instead, we will go high into the mountains of the Sierra Nevada to see the white villages of La Alpujarra. This section of Andalusia is still a hidden gem and you’ll find that this is a destination you won’t want to share with others. The drive up gives you Spanish “Sound of Music” feels and there are handfuls of lookout points along the way.
Pampaneira was our first official stop, one we knew was the main tourist site. Most tour buses stop here because the town is a lot bigger than the others and most aesthetically pleasing. There were many cafes and restaurants, as well as the famous chocolate shop, Abuela ili. Expect to run into multiple cats sunbathing on the corner of buildings or quietly observing humans!
Our tour guide for the day! 
The streams in the middle of walkways are one of the most photographed items in the village. They do make for a great photo op! It creates the feeling of the perfect quaint village and the water has been said to have healing properties. There are many local vendors, ranging from homemade jams and marmalade to throws and rugs.
Our next stop was the second highest village. This was the one that most people don’t really stop at but the quiet and stillness of this village gave you the sensation of actually being able to settle down there. (If my memory is correct, this is village Pitres.)
One last jump to the last village, Trevélez. Probably one of the more exciting villages in my opinion because if there is a landing strip for Laputa, it may as well be here. It was supposed to snow and lots of clouds were rolling in so it felt like we were in a cloud heaven. I don’t think I’ve been so close to actually touching a cloud.
I would definitely recommend this tour to get out of the city and see other faces of Spain. The whole tour spanned maybe 8 hours, including pick up and drop off. (I’ll add details below!) It wasn’t tiring at all and there was time for our own wandering in all of the villages. The tour included a lunch option which was nice because when could you ever have Iberian ham at the top of a snowing mountain?
Because of the small group, we were able to pick out what we wanted to do (photography and wander around) rather go to the tourist traps. La Alpujarra was most certainly one of the highlights of my trip to Spain. As a mountain person, it felt like I was at home for those 8 hours.
If you need any more persuading, this is definitely one of the trips that you can squeeze in when you’ve seen all of Granada. I was recommended Nerja and Frigiliana, the beach option to contrast with Alpujarra’s mountain option. Nerja and Frigiliana were booked through so I ended up with the mountains and not a second do I regret it. You can learn a lot of history from the tour guide and experience what it’s like to be a local. The villages are small and we were given a walk through for each one, even with our time restraint.
Let me finish off with some final pictures before the links for the tours!
One of the best smelling bakeries in the area
I went with the GetYourGuide website and here are the websites for the:
La Alpujarras: https://www.getyourguide.com/granada-l207/la-alpujarra-day-trip-from-granada-t41379/
Nerja and Frigiliana: https://www.getyourguide.com/granada-l207/day-tour-to-frigiliana-nerja-from-granada-t153579/
Baking Traveller 