Alicante is a city on the east coast of Spain’s Costa Blanca. Spain is divided into communities, communities into provinces and those into municipalities. Alicante is located in the south of the Community of Valencia and is the capital of the Alicante province. I have visited the city several times and although I am sure it still hides many interesting places from me, I wanted to introduce you to the best, in my opinion, walking route to be completed in one day.
Where to park a car?
To park a car in the city is usually quite a challenge. Leaving your car downtown is often impossible due to lack of space. Of course, you can drive into one of the many underground city car parks as we did the first time. However, the cost is not so low.
One of Alicante’s main attractions is Santa Bárbara Castle. There are several free parking lots below the castle. The problem is that they have an extremely small capacity, so the tour should start quite early. But “quite early” does not mean some deadly 5 or 6 am. We’re in Spain. Most facilities open at 10.
Alicante sightseeing
Castillo de Santa Bárbara
The car is left in the parking lot, so we can go to the castle. More specifically, its ruins. I generally belong to the group of people who like castles. What does attract me to them? It’s hard to say whether it’s because of the building itself, or the history hidden in the walls, or that you can usually count on wonderful views. Probably a bit of everything. Anyway, I enjoyed strolling through the ruins of Alicante Castle. The area of the castle is quite extensive and there are many chambers to see. We entered only two, though. As usual, we travel with a child and a dog. One is often forbidden to enter, the other simply does not want to. But I’m also more interested in the outside, at least when it comes to the castles, so there was no problem.
There are a café and bathrooms on the castle grounds. You can easily spend half a day there. But that’s not all Alicante has to offer, so let’s move on.
El Barrio Alicante
The neighborhood called el barrio de Santa Cruz, or just El Barrio, is the old town of Alicante. It stretches at the foot of the castle and reaches the beach and the promenade, which is basically everything we’re interested in on a day trip.
From the castle, it’s not difficult to find the road leading to El Barrio. We immediately fall into a maze of beautiful narrow streets decorated with flowers and paintings. I recommend going without a map, to where your eyes and legs will carry you. And once you are filled with the surroundings, take back the GPS and head down for a coffee break among the old ficuses.
Plaza Portal de Elche
Portal de Elche Square is a great place to relax for a short time before continuing sightseeing. The fig trees growing on it are really impressive! Due to their size, several are under protection.
Plaza Portal de Elche was once a place of execution. Then it became the main water supply for the city. Now it serves primarily for recreation.
During my first visit to Alicante, I thought it would be extremely pleasant to sit in a café in the middle of Portal de Elche Square. This time it happened and it was really nice. The coffee cost a bit more than I usually pay, but the scenery is worth a moment of relaxation.
Calle San Francisco
Portal de Elche Square is only a few steps away from San Francisco Street. This street has become famous for the mushrooms that grow there. But before the mushrooms appeared on it, it was also famous, but not from the good side. It was bypassed by law-abiding citizens but attracted those involved in illegal trade, drugs and prostitution. The city authorities decided to change this situation and so they have planted mushrooms, slides, restaurants and shops on San Francisco Street.
Explanada de España
It is time to take steps towards the city’s promenade lined with characteristic pavement bricks. Along the Explanada de España you will find a lot of bars and restaurants, so if you want to try Spanish cuisine, now is a good time.
Playa del Postiguet
If you have time, you can relax at the nearby beach after lunch. But remember that you still have to climb to the castle to get a car!
The end of the trip
We’re going back to the castle, to the parking lot. If you left your car not at the top, but in the parking below, now you don’t have to climb to the summit.
I think that’s enough for one day. Main attractions seen, photos taken, we can go home. 🙂
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