They are reached by the Lions' Staircase, named after the two small glazed earthenware figures that crown its gateway, all from the 19th century. After climbing its steep steps you reach the 19th-century Upper Gardens of the Generalife.
These gardens, laid out on several terraces, complete the palace area of the Generalife, framing it at its highest point. That is why they enjoy one of the best orientations and views of the whole estate.
Small fountains with jets among the hedged flowerbeds, some beautiful magnolias, fragrant shrubs and a careful alternation of evergreen and deciduous trees make these gardens, sheltered from the cold north winds, a small and romantic botanical garden worthy of the best European humanist tradition.
A walk through this area once again shows the contrast, always present in the Alhambra, between the two worlds found here, the medieval and the Renaissance, both filtered through a nostalgic Romanticism that can perhaps be felt here more than anywhere else in the Generalife.
The best way to experience it is to climb to the highest part of the gardens by a Muslim staircase and come down through a clearly European stepped pergola.
