Alicante is a port city on the coast on Costa Blanca.  It has a population of about 340,000.

Alicante is usually described in two words – beaches and bars.  We think it has a whole lot more to see, as you will find in our blog here and our podcast.

Alicante is a very popular city where the Spanish people love to holiday.  There are lot or towns close by that are very popular for English speaking tourists.

Alicante has one of the most important ports for cruise ships in Spain.

It also has many transportation options as it has an airport, bus station and railway station in the city.

Accommodation in Alicante

The small apartment we had in Alicante was the worst accommodation that we have had in all the places we have been in Spain.  It was not as it was described, and it was in a very noisy plaza.  We had rain one night and all the power went out for 24 hours.  Not ideal.  The bathroom was a tiny room with a curtain for privacy. Again, not ideal.

Luckily, we travel with a small blue tooth speaker – so when either one of us wanted to use the bathroom and needed some privacy – we put on some Jimmy Barnes – at decent volume and the privacy issue was solved.  Thanks Jimmy.

In the end though, having a crappy apartment was a positive for us as we had to be out doing things everyday and we went on a couple of really amazing day trips.

Alicante Beach

The main beach in Alicante is Playa Postiguet which is almost 1km long and it is very close to the old town and part of the city.  It is a very popular beach for locals and Spanish tourists.

Right behind the beach is Santa Barbara Castle and fort which is on top of Mount Benacantil. Pretty nice view from the beach.

Alicante Promenade

The promenade in Alicante – Esplanada Espana  - is the nicest promenade that we have seen, in all the places we have been in Spain.

It is a very wide palm-lined promenade which runs along the water.  The tiles on the walkway are in a wave pattern that is spectacular.

It is beautiful by day, but at night it is amazing.  The lights and the night markets with specialty stalls.  The stalls aren’t your usual cheap crap, they are artisan and boutique stalls with amazing handmade goods.

All the restaurants have tables on the promenade which is a favourite place for people to eat.

Mushroom Street

Mushroom Street (San Francisco Street) was built in 2013 to try and boost business for the local shops.

It is like a fairyland with a yellow brick road, toadstool houses, towering mushroom up to 3m high painted bright colours.  A fun street to explore.

Santa Barbara Castle

The castle and fort are located on top of Mount Benacantil at 166m high.  It is one of Spain’s largest medieval fortresses.

As you can imagine with being so high, right on the beach the views are outstanding.

You can go up a lift inside the mountain to the entrance.

It has three distinct areas.  The upper level La Torreta has mostly 14th century ancient remains.

The middle area has the most important buildings from the 16th century including the Salon Felipe II Hall.  There is a parade ground in this level as well.

The lower section is from the 18th century.

There is so much to walk around and see, ruins, buildings, the city walls and lookouts.  You can enjoy the views at the café and restaurant.

You can do a guided tour.

Museo de Fogueres (Bonfire Museum)

Les Fogueres de San Juan is the most famous festival in Alicante. 

People make more than 200 paper mache monuments/statues to be burnt on June 24 each year.

These 200 bonfire statues are placed all around the city.

The museum houses all the one that are saved from being burnt.  They are saved by popular vote based on beauty and stand out features – so basically the museum has all the best ones!

There are some fascinating fogueres – from little creatures, mermaids, life size characters, such as Charlie Chapman.  There is a full size wagon with animals and horses as well as some more abstract types of exhibitions.

The museum is the main part of the old town and is definitely worth and visit if you are in Alicante.

Tabarca Island

Tabarca Island is 11 nautical miles from Alicante.  There is boat that leaves most days from the port right near the city. 

The island is 1,800m long and 400m wide. 

Centuries ago it was a refuge for pirates until the 18th century when King Carlos III ordered it to be fortified with walls around the town which was inhabited with nearly 300 fishermen who were originally slaves.

Tabarca Island has lovely beaches, caves, fishing and museum.  You can stay overnight if you want to explore when the island is a little bit quieter.

We hired some chairs and umbrellas on the beach and snorkel gear and had a fabulous day.  The island also has some lovely restaurants and we enjoyed one of the yummiest paellas that we had had in Spain.

Altea

We took a train to this charming little white village and we were so happy we did!

Altea is called the Santorini of Spain.  It is the prettiest – by far – white village that we have seen anywhere in Spain. It is the heart of the Costa Blanca.

It sits on a hill just up from the railway station and beach area.  The white houses almost glow in the sunshine. 

There are narrow cobblestone streets that take you all around this pretty village.  You walk past the white houses with blue trimmings.  The balconies are full of bright coloured flowers.  There are even big fabric artworks hanging on the balconies. 

The streets all wind their way up to the highest point in Altea which is the bell tower on the Nuestra Senora del Consuelo Iglesia (Church of Our Lady Consuelo). The cathedral has two enormous blue – tile covered domes with white trim.

Out the front of the cathedral is the Plaza de la Iglesia (the church plaza).  There are cafes and restaurants in the plaza. 

From the plaza there is a view point where you have views past the snow-white buildings to the sparkling blue Mediterranean Ocean on the Costa Blanca in the front, and behind the bottle green mountains of the Sierra Bernia at over 1,100 metres.

The old town area is full of little boutique shops and galleries as well as cafes and restaurants.

Down at the beach area of Altea is a 2km promenade that is right on the beach and is full of very popular bars and restaurants.

Altea is somewhere we would go back to in a heartbeat.  It is still one of our favourite places in Spain (and we’ve been to over 50).

Plazas of Alicante

There are quite a few large plaza throughout the old town of Alicante that are full of restaurants and bars. Most of them have buskers playing.

The plazas are always busy and full of atmosphere.  The local waiters complete to get customers.  It’s all a bit of  light hearted fun, but was so good to watch the guys trying to get people’s attention, especially the pretty girls. 

We enjoyed the atmosphere of the plazas and got to know a few of the local people.  We gave a Koala Award to one the waiters and he was very happy with his little fluffy toy.

Favourite places to have a wine in Alicante.

Lyle’s favourite place to have a wine in Alicante was in the plaza watching the local waiters spruiking and having fun.

Leanne’s favourite place to have a glass of wine was in the plaza outside the cathedral at the top of Altea – the prettiest white village in Spain.

You can listen to the full episode of the podcast with heaps more stories here: