Alicante, city of light: download the official tourist guide

The Romans called it Lucentum, "city of light", and the name still fits: over 3,000 hours of sunshine a year, a mild Mediterranean climate and a medium-sized provincial capital that is the perfect starting point to explore the Costa Blanca. That is how the official tourist guide from Alicante's municipal tourism board introduces the city: 48 pages in Spanish and English, which you can download here.

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Alicante Tourist Guide

PDF · 48 pages · Spanish and English · 13.7 MB

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Published by: Patronato Municipal de Turismo y Playas de Alicante

From the castle to the Explanada

Santa Bárbara castle crowns Mount Benacantil, 166 metres above sea level. It is one of the largest medieval fortresses in Spain and the city's great viewpoint over the port and the bay; you can walk up or take the lift that starts by Postiguet beach. At its foot, the Explanada de España runs alongside the port under the palm trees, on a wave-patterned mosaic of tricolour marble made of 6.6 million tiles. The old town is home to the Basilica of Santa María, the oldest religious building in Alicante; the Co-Cathedral of San Nicolás; and the Baroque City Hall, with the "Cota Cero", the reference point from which the altitude above sea level of any place in Spain can be measured.

Museums

The guide also covers its museums: MARQ, winner of the European Museum of the Year Award in 2004; MACA, with works by Picasso, Dalí, Chillida and Miró; MUBAG, in the Gravina Palace; the Hogueras Museum; and The Ocean Race Museum, by the port's Paseo Volado, which tells the story of the toughest sailing race in the world.

Beaches and coves

Its beaches are one of its great attractions: Postiguet, at the foot of the castle in the heart of the city; San Juan, with 3 kilometres of fine sand and a promenade of over 2 kilometres with a cycle lane; Albufereta, sheltered and with a permanent 2-kilometre swimming channel; the coves of La Almadraba and Cabo de las Huertas, with clear water and rocky seabeds that are perfect for diving; and Saladares-Urbanova, which keeps its line of dunes.

Tabarca, eleven miles out

Eleven nautical miles from the city lies Tabarca, the only inhabited island in the Valencian Community: some 1,800 metres long and 400 metres across at its widest. In the 18th century, Charles III had it fortified and a village built for Genoese fishing families who had been held captive in the Tunisian city of Tabarka; today its walls are a Historic-Artistic Site and an Asset of Cultural Interest, and its seabed has been a marine reserve since 1986. Boats leave from the port of Alicante for a crossing of about an hour, and its signature dish is caldero.

A city facing the sea

For sailors, Alicante has its marina, where all kinds of nautical equipment and services can be hired; the Real Club de Regatas; and the Club Náutico Costa Blanca, on Albufereta beach. Since 2008 it has been the start port of every edition of The Ocean Race, the round-the-world sailing race, and on 17 January 2027 it will send the fleet off once again.

Festivals and good food

From 20 to 29 June, the Hogueras de San Juan, declared of International Tourist Interest, fill the city with light and gunpowder: on the 24th the fire consumes the monuments, and from the 25th to the 29th there is a fireworks competition on Cocó beach. At the table, Alicante proudly bears the title of "City of Rice", with over 300 catalogued specialities — from arroz a banda to soupy rice — along with its salted fish, the "esmorzaret" and turrón, its nougat with a designation of origin.

Before your visit

The guide also gathers practical listings: tourist offices, accommodation, where to eat on Tabarca, gourmet shops and water-sports companies. Some details (opening hours, addresses, businesses) may have changed since it was published, so please check them on alicanteturismo.com before your visit.

And if your visit to Alicante includes the sea, come and see us: our office is in Marina Alicante, on the same Muelle de Levante as the port's tourist office. We will talk your Lagoon project through with you, whether it is your first catamaran, shared ownership or a charter programme.