The Costa Blanca
The Costa Blanca is, undoubtedly, one of Europe's most attractive destinations when it comes to enjoying the sun and the beaches in full contact with nature. Located in the Spanish Mediterranean, the Costa Blanca is the tourist highlight of the Alicante Province. A land privileged not only by its weather but also for its environment: its fine golden sandy beaches and inland, where green valleys of fertile orchards contrast with mountains not too high, among which quaint and charming Mediterranean villages emerge. The sun shining almost all year round, coupled with an enviable average temperature of 20°C (55°F), allows for swimming and water sports any time of the year. The natural landscape and parks also provide for trekking, horse riding, bicycle-riding or hiking.
It's attractive beaches, the beautiful landscape, the conserved environment, the weather, the modern communication facilities, together with the open, cosmopolitan local people have turned the Costa Blanca into a privileged place to live in. Many Europeans have chosen the Costa Blanca to spend their holidays.
It boosts modern facilities with all kind of services and comfort. There are as well three maritime passenger terminals: Valencia, Denia and Alicante. A complete network of highways and motorways links the Costa Blanca and the main Spanish and European regions. At the turn of the millennium, the railway has also undergone a profound transformation in the shape of state-of-the-art trains capable of doing more than 200 km/h.
Alicante has rich natural contrasts thanks to its peculiar mountainous heights, which give rise to astonishing Mediterranean landscape. The interior parts of the Costa Blanca surprise the visitor with unique images thanks to the natural richness of the Province and the open and cosmopolitan people. In the Canelobre Caves, in Busot, the stalactites and stalagmites adopt fantastic figures. In the coastal region, the beaches alternate between geographical accidents as emblematic and singular as the Penon de Ifach in Caipe, the capes of San Antonio and La Nao, the island of Benidorm or the cliffs of Sierra Helada and Benitachell. These destinations are the ideal complement to the main tourist coastal resorts and are not far from the sea.
The Costa Blanca offers endless opportunities to practice water sports. From sailing to surfing, from diving to fishing, the seaboard of the region is a paradise for lovers of water sports. A great many of the aquatic sports are organized by nautical clubs and marinas.
Most of them, very efficiently organise competitions, and beginners and advanced courses. Their facilities and water quality have been rewarded with recognition by the European Union's top environmental agency.
The Costa Blanca is one of the main international golf resorts all year long. The players can enjoy a fully equipped network of courses with unsurpassable sports facilities, and, what it is more important, in an appealing climate suitable for these sports with temperatures ranging from 19° Celsius in January to 32° Celsius in August. This fact, coupled with the very few rainy days there are in the year, has made it one of Europe's main goif destinations, especially in winter.
The Costa Blanca has a very rich and varied cuisine. From north to south, from east to west, the traditional cuisine of the Province has produced rich foods based on rich fishing, fertile soils and varied dry farming. A journey around the dining tables of the local villages will reveal a cooking based on rice, vegetables, fish and shellfish on the coast, and inland, a culinary tradition more to do with stews, hunting meat, desserts and liqueurs. Most of this cooking knowledge lies in the family household. However, most of this traditional Mediterranean cuisine can be found in noted restaurants where you can also sample international cuisine.
The Costa Blanca is in itself an endless range of possibilities for the visitor, a varied choice of routes, from the beach to the mountain. Its natural attractions, the mild weather and its people's effort have made possible a rich tourist industry operated on a professional basis, for the enjoyment of the Costa Blanca, where people can enjoy sports pastimes or even adventure, among the beautiful natural scenery.