We stayed at a beautiful boutique hotel called El Ladrón de Agua (“The Water Thief”). It has maybe 15 rooms, and I think we saw one other couple the whole four days we were there. It’s in a great location, with views of the Alhambra at the top of a hill. It’s on a cobblestone road next to a creek with ancient bridges. It was our favorite stay in Spain. Also, you should go to the nearby and dreamlike Arab baths. Opt for a massage and personal bath if you want to feel quite possibly more pampered than you ever have.

Edit: the rooms at the hotel don’t have numbers; they’re named after lines of poems by Federico de Lorca. I believe the building is several hundred years old, a former mansion. It’s pretty modernized and updated, though. One nice touch I remember is complimentary sherry in the library each evening (ooh la la!). I just looked up the prices, and they’re damned reasonable (by US standards, anyway, and for what you get) but of course your budget might vary, and the rates might fluctuate seasonally.

Also saw an amazing, authentic, intimate flamenco show in a cave. Don’t remember much about how you might find it, but it’s run by an older formerly-very-famous flamenco Queen. We found it by asking our excellent concierge.