Dimitris Kouimtsidis
THE Alhambra has introduced a new measure for ticket sales.
From March 1, 70% of tickets will be made available only for public purchase via the official website, the contact centre, or in person at the kiosk.
The attraction – which was recently ranked number 11 most popular European destination – allows only a certain amount of visitors every day.
This means that tickets need to be bought well in advance and last minute tourists go to extreme lengths to get one.
The Grenadino monument attracts 2.7 million visitors each year, making it Spain’s most visited attraction.
At the moment, 49% of tickets go to travel agencies, with only 29% being available to the general public.
This system has its flaws as sometimes these agencies reserve the tickets three months before possible use and do not have to confirm or pay for them until three days before, meaning that if they don’t sell them, the tickets may go unused.
In addition, they would also sell the tickets at an inflated price to third parties, who would then sell them on for even more.
This resulted in times where thousands of tickets would go unused as people wouldn’t pay the increased prices.
