PORTILLO’S ANDALUCIA: NOW SHOWING ON CHANNEL 5

PORTILLO’S ANDALUCIA: NOW SHOWING ON CHANNEL 5

Former politician and passionate traveller, Michael Portillo, spent three months criss-crossing Andalucia for his new TV programme, Portillo’s Andalucia, showing on Channel 5 this month. Beginning his trip in Granada and ending in Carmona, Portillo took a journey through this historic province, home to ancient traditions, mesmerising Moorish architecture and diverse cuisine. From flamenco to the Alhambra, and from gazpacho to seafood, the cultural diversity of the region is spectacular. Portillo, who is half Spanish, spends much of the year in Carmona, and calls it his ‘second home’.

In Episode One, Portillo stays at Parador de Granada, one of the most popular hotels in Spain’s state-run network of historic and cultural properties located in some of the most beautiful settings on the Iberian peninsula. Parador de Granada gives travellers a chance to stay for a night amidst La Alhambra and its gardens and fountains that evoke its blended Arabic and Christian past. It occupies the site of a Christian monastery as well as the ancient Arab bathhouses of the palace.

Andalucía is home to eight UNESCO World Heritage Sites. In 2024, some of these most iconic sites will celebrate their 40-year anniversary, with notable commemorations planned to mark and recognise the occasion. Among them can be found the iconic Alhambra, Albaicín, the Generalife Garden in Granada, and the Great Mosque of Cordoba, which all earned their place on the World Heritage List in 1984.