Mediterranean Soul

Alicante is associated more with beach holidays, tanning, splashing in the sea, and heading to bars and enjoying the nightlife. However, there is much more to the city beyond what most tourists make of it. It is a place with its own rich history and culture that stretches back far before it became a popular holiday destination. One of these cultural hotspots is the Gravina Museum of Fine Arts (MUBAG) that is a nice change of pace and dose of local history for those who have found a vacation rental in Alicante.

Located inside the Palacio del Conde de Lumiares (Palace of the Count of Lumiares), a gorgeous, listed four-storey building that was built between 1748 and 1808, not far from the Plaza del Mar, the Esplanade and Postiguet beach, the Gravina Museum of Fine Arts is home to a collection of over 500 works of art dating from the 16th to the early 20th centuries.

The popular seaside resort town of Alicante is famous for her excellent beaches, her great weather, her charming old town with its brightly coloured buildings and pretty winding streets and alleys, her numerous parks and open spaces, her palm tree flanked shopping streets, and her vibrant nightlife. If you have found a vacation rental in Alicante and are exploring everything that she has to offer, then you will likely work up an appetite and find yourself in need of sustenance. The best part of renting an apartment or villa is that you have access to a kitchen and if you’re a travelling foodie, you’ll probably want the chance to play around with some local ingredients during your stay. To source the freshest food in the prettiest of surroundings, just head to the Mercado Central de Alicante (Central Market of Alicante) and shop the various stalls that are housed within.

Located on the central shopping street of Calle de Alfonso X the Wise, the Central Market of Alicante is an architectural gem that was built under J. Vidal Ramos between 1911 and 1912. With an elaborate and ornate façade featuring modernist-inspired elements, the building is on a rectangular plan and built in the style of a basilica, with a tacked-on addition to the south-west corner that is topped by a semispherical cupola and called La Rotonda.

Villajoyosa, or La Vila Joiosa, is a picture-perfect seaside city, often simply known as “La Vila” to locals, in the Province of Alicante in Spain. With the most idyllic of beaches – picture fluffy white crescents of sand meeting crystal clear cerulean water – and a town populated by pretty little streets lined in a veritable rainbow of crayon-box-coloured buildings, there is no doubt that it has all of the visual appeal that one could hope for from a town on the Mediterranean Sea. However, there is also plenty to see and do. If you have found a vacation rental in Valencia and you’re looking for somewhere to spend the day, you could not even dream of more perfect place to do so.

Literally meaning “joyful town”, Villajoyosa is a pretty extraordinary spot along the famous Costa Blanca that boasts 3km of beaches, including La Platja Centre, right by the city centre. It is also famous for its chocolate industry and tourism and has an exceptionally pretty Old Town, all of which amounts to plenty of reasons to be joyful and joyful experiences for visitors who find themselves in the city.

Spain's Costa Blanca is known for her beautiful, picture-perfect beaches, crystal clear water and promise of sun but all this is somewhat taken away from by the reputation of certain towns and resorts and the tourist crowds that can plague them. If you want that assured ideal beach holiday but are looking for something a little more authentic and a little less crowded, we have the perfect place for you: Cala de Finestrat.

Cala de Finestrat is a pretty beachside resort close to the lovely village of Finestrat on the Costa Brava in the region of Valencia.

The Els Enfarinats Festival is another of Spain's wonderful traditions and another example of an annual large-scale European food fight, just like the Spanish La Tomatina fight with tomatoes and the Italian Battle of the Oranges. This festival, however, takes place in the Spanish town of Ibi and employs flour bombs and eggs, instead of oranges.

Taking place on the 28th of December each year, it sees residents of the town dress in military garb, separate into two teams, and throw flour, eggs, and fire extinguisher dust at each other. It also escalates an hour later and firecrackers are involved in the fight, as well. If you're looking for an exciting post-festive season getaway, this is just the thing! Just find a vacation rental in Valencia and head to the town of Ibi, but make sure to bring a spare set of clothes.