Alicante - The Perfect Touring Base
Oct 12th, 2008 by Peak District Cottages
Because it is a gateway to the Costa Blanca, Alicante is a perfect centre for touring. Offering a refreshing mixture of ancient and recent traditions and culture, Alicante is situated within the popular holiday area of the Costa Blanca. Alicante’s visitors will enjoy sunny, warm climate, a selection of the best beaches Spain has to 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 in the shadow of its mountain top castle. The city and its surrounding landscape are scattered with churches with the most recognised of them all being that of the Iglesia de Santa Maria. This is the city’s oldest church and was constructed between the fourteenth and sixteenth centuries with the church originally being a mosque. St Nicholas Cathedral in the city was constructed in the seventeenth century to honour the city’s patron saint and is therefore one of the most significant buildings in the region.
Alicante has lots of old buildings to please sightseers and historians alike and can be seen throughout the area with statues and columns making a feature of a number of once unexciting sites. Offering a keen eye across Alicante Bay, the Castillo de Santa Barbara is recognised as one of the largest medieval fortresses throughout Europe. Readily reached by car or by lift (elevator) from the Paseo Maritimo, the fortress has unrivalled vistas of the picturesque surrounding area. Apart from the excitement the Castillo offers to visitors, Alicante has further architectural gems such as the Provincial Gallery, formerly the Gavina Palace, as well as its 19th century bull-ring. The vast majority of the Alicante attractions are easily reached using a hire car from Alicante Airport. Arranging your car rental online would be expected to save you money together with guaranteeing that your requested vehicle is guaranteed to be available upon your arrival at the airport.
Alicante is the perfect place to come to enjoy life and the main reason visitors come back every year. With such a varied range of hotel rooms on offer, there’s a great selection of of value for money Alicante hotels to suit every taste and pocket. The beaches here consist of wonderful golden sand and offer a variety of both accessible as well as secluded bays ideal for private sunbathing. Head over to Albufereta Beach where you will find really good range of water sports. It is a peaceful spot that is relatively unspoilt by the tourist masses.
The Playa del Postiguet offers the ideal place for an after dinner stroll. You will be joined by the locals along this beautiful seaside walk - it’s a wonderful location for a romantic evening. Once the Port of Madrid, Alicante Harbour offers a combination of fishing and sailing and is the perfect place to visit to find the top fish restaurants around. Alicante harbour provides an excellent location for activity day and night. This is where visitors come to eat wonderfully fresh, delicious seafood, learn to sail and enjoy a bit of clubbing into the small hours.
Nobody enjoys a celebration as much as the locals and visitors of Alicante! Here you will discover a celebration of one type or another taking place throughout the year, no matter when you decide to visit. One of the more sombre of Costa Blanca festivals is the Easter Procession. Dressed in black and carrying lighted candles, an effigy of Jesus is paraded on a cross around the streets. Every November, in order to honour the Patron Saint Crist del Bon Encert, every town has an individual fiesta. Don’t be surprised to find that shops are closed all day, every day as the town closes down for this wonderful combination of dancing, singing and firework displays. On a less religious note, one of the most renowned local festivals is the International Puppet Festival.
