Alicante - An Ideal Touring Base
Bearing in mind that it is a gateway into the Costa Blanca, Alicante is an ideal touring base. Having a delightful melange of old and modern culture and traditions, Alicante is situated within the popular tourist area of the Costa Blanca. Visitors to Alicante will enjoy sunny, warm climate, some of the finest beaches Spain can offer as well as the most remarkable of Moorish architecture.
Found on the Spanish coastline between the resorts of Benidorm and Elche, Alicante city sits below its mountain top castle. The city and its surrounding areas are peppered with churches with the most photographed of them all being that of the Iglesia de Santa Maria. This is the city’s oldest church and was built between the fourteenth and sixteenth centuries with the church formerly being a mosque. The Cathedral of Saint Nicholas was constructed in the seventeenth century to honour Alicante’s patron saint and is therefore one of the most important buildings in this area.
Alicante has a great selection of monuments to satisfy sightseers and historians alike and can be found all around the area with columns and statues adding interest to a number of once boring locations. Offering a sharp eye across Alicante Bay, the Castillo de Santa Barbara is recognised as one of the biggest medieval fortresses throughout Europe. Easily accessed by car or by lift (elevator) from the Paseo Maritimo, the castle offers unsurpassed vistas of the picturesque local area. Apart from the wonders the Castillo offers to visitors, Alicante has further ancient treasures such as the nineteenth century bullring and the Provincial Gallery (formerly the Gavina Palace). All of the Alicante attractions are readily reached with the help of an Alicante Airport rental car. Online booking of your hire car will normally produce big savings as well as ensuring that your requested vehicle is guaranteed to be available upon your arrival at the airport.
Alicante is the perfect resort to come to enjoy life and the leading reason tourists return each year. With such a huge range of accomodation on offer, there are plenty of value for money Alicante hotels to suit every pocket and taste. The beaches here consist of wonderful golden sand and consist of both easy to get to as well as secluded bays ideal for private sunbathing. Drive over to Albufereta Beach where there is really good water sport capabilities. It is a quiet place that is relatively undiscovered by the majority of holidaymakers.
A perfect place for an evening stroll is provided by the Playa del Postiguet. You will be joined by local inhabitants along this enchanting sea view - it’s a perfect location for a romantic evening. Formerly known as the Port of Madrid, Alicante Harbour combines sailing with fishing and is the perfect place to visit to find the top fish restaurants around. The harbour offers an excellent venue for activity night and day. This is where visitors come to eat superbly fresh, delicious seafood, learn sailing and end the day with a bit of clubbing into the small hours.
Nobody enjoys to party as much as the inhabitants and visitors of Alicante! Here you will find a celebration of one type or another taking place throughout the year, no matter what time of the year you choose to visit. One of the more sedate of Costa Blanca festivals is the Easter Procession. Dressed in black and carrying candles, a model of Jesus is paraded on a cross around the streets. Every November, in order to honour the Patron Saint Crist del Bon Encert, each town has an individual fiesta. Expect shops to be closed all day, every day as the town closes down for this amazing combination of dancing, singing and firework displays. On a less religious note, one of the most famous local fiestas is that of the International Puppet Festival.