places of interest

La Fuente

This complex, which is a 5 minute walk from the villa, has many bars and restaurants with varied cuisines to suit every taste. Children are welcome and there are often themed activities taking place e.g. Halloween.

 
La Zenia Boulevard 

zeniaboulevard.es

Situated between the villa and la Zenia, the boulevard is a superb open air complex with a large range of shops and attractive seating areas on the ground floor and restaurants and children’s pleasure rides on the first floor. There is entertainment every day and daily lists are posted in the central area opposite the information centre.

 
David’s Coach Trips

coachtripsonline.com

These all-inclusive trips range from daily bookings to 2/3 overnight stays or evenings out to a show with a meal and can be booked online before you leave the UK or while you’re in Spain.

 

Rio Safari Park & conservation area

riosafari.com

This is a lovely family day out with much to see, safari train rides and café areas. Children will enjoy all the animals and the many activities on the site.

It is situated south of Alicante at Elche, just off the N332.

 

Local Markets

Every weekday it is possible to visit an open air market in one the local towns. These are usually very big and there is a huge variety of stalls selling everything from fruit and vegetables to leather goods, clothes, rugs and pottery. You can try out your Spanish and your bartering skills at the same time. Guadamar market on Wednesday morning and Torrevieja on Friday morning are the biggest and offer the best choices. Get there early so you can park reasonably close. You will hear several langauges as the markets are popular not only with the Spanish and English, but also Germans, Dutch, Irish and Swedish.

 

One of the greatest tourist attractions of Torrevieja has always been its variety of entertainment for young people. There are more than a hundred night bars, the majority concentrated in the so-called El Baluarte area in the La Punta district, which have become a major attraction for thousands of people from all over the world.

 

 The cosmopolitan nature of Torrevieja's nightlife can be seen in its leisure areas: Casablanca, Bésame Mucho, Pata Palo, Tía Roqueta, Tirachinas, Iris Pub, La Cantina or Correcaminos, are just some examples of typical leisure places in the town. For the real nightbirds this provision is rounded off by the macro-discoteque Pachá, as well as the historic Look and KKO clubs, which cannot be passed over during a nocturnal pub-crawl (la ruta del bakalao).

 

During the day Torrevieja also offers a range of leisure and entertainment areas. As well as its beaches and numerous terraces along its maritime promenade, its great aquatic park (Aquópolis) is swarming with families, young people and children during the summer months.

 

If you prefer to contemplate and enjoy the Alicante coastline, there is no better way than by going on a trip on the Tabardo cruisers equipped with catamarans in which you can observe the sea bed. Excursions to the island of Tabarca and trips all along the coast of southern Alicante round off this interesting and unique tourist provision.

 

Murcia


Set in the beautiful region of the Costa Calida, Murcia is one of Spain's most fascinating and historic cities; located in a plain, it lies enclosed between a rugged mountain range and nearby fine sand beaches. Murcia is home to great food, vibrant festivals, orchards and flowers that bloom all year long, all flanked by the Murcian hills and the Mediterranean Sea.

This ancient Moorish city of sienna-coloured buildings is home to a variety of historical sites, including the Bishop's Palace, the Museo de Arqueologia, with artefacts dating from prehistoric times and the Museo de Salzillo, displaying the sculptor's finest works and many biblical based terracotta figurines. Among the other splendid buildings found on every corner are the 18th century Convent Church of Santa Ana and the Church of San Miguel, with its marvellous coloured altarpieces.

One of Murcia's outstanding features is the river Segura that crosses the city and is crowned by seven bridges, built in different architectural styles, its banks lined with promenades and narrow, twisting streets. The city's masterpiece is however the 14th century Cathedral de Santa Maria, with its wonderful Baroque faÇade and a tower, from which great views of the city can be admired and nearby the Cathedral, in the 18th century Square, is the Glorieta, the perfect place to relax.

Lands rich with fruit trees, mountains covered with pines, vineyards and unforgettable scenery surround Murcia. Nearby is the Mar Menor, a salt water lagoon, excellent setting for water sports and renowned for its natural spas, and on another unspoilt corner of the Costa Calida, where the orchards and flowers flourish in the year long sunshine, the exclusive La Manga Club can be found, stretching between the Mar Menor and the Mediterranean Sea.

Murcia offers great leisure facilities, varied entertainment, historical artefacts, craft works, concerts, festivals of ethnic music and plays performed in the Romea Theatre. And with its celebrated museums, highly varied gastronomy, Mediterranean beaches and year long sunshine, Murcia is a treasure chest enveloped in an unforgettable scenery.

 

Cathedral de Santa Maria, built in 1394 over the site of the Aljama Mosque, the Cathedral was renovated at a later stage in the Baroque style. The cathedral interior features 16th century style plasteresque decor and is home to 23 different chapels, and its museum displays gothic altarpieces and a frieze from a Roman sarcophagus. From the cathedral tower, spectacular and impressive views of the city can be enjoyed.

Museo de Arqueologia, one of the best in the whole of Spain, traces the life in the province of Murcia since prehistoric times. It is home to a great selection of artefacts, including mosaics, ceramics, pottery fragments and Roman coins and its two most important collections are devoted to finds from the Hispano-Moorish period of the 12th to 14th century and to Spanish ceramics of the 17th and 18th century.

La Manga, discover the hidden world of La Manga Club; a privately owned villa, townhouses and apartments set on a green valley sheltered by the Murcian hills and fringed by the deep blue Mediterranean Sea, offering spectacular panoramic views over the Mar Menor, La Manga's inland lagoon. Three famous golf courses, one of the best tennis centres in Europe, beach clubs, marvellous water sports, swimming pools, restaurants, bars and a casino are only some of the leisure facilities offered within this beautiful and tranquil environment.

Mar Menor, Europe's largest salt-water lagoon offers, in its littoral perimeter, 73 km of coastline of tranquil villages, transparent water beaches and little deep waters. Enclosed by a natural breakwater made up by sandy deposits, its waters, rich in salt and iodine have become natural spas, with great healing properties for rheumatism. Mar Menor is also home to a great variety of unusual fauna and is perfect for sailing and surfing, as well as many other water sports.

Cartagena, facing the Mediterranean Sea, is the region's most important port and a quiet but modern city, despite its 3000 years of history. The city, inhabited since Roman times, was briefly the capital of its own kingdom and is of great historical importance. It boasts the ruins of a Roman Theatre and other sights of interest include the cathedral, Bishop's Palace, the Isaac Peral's submarine, several historic churches and the Provincial Archaeological Museum, including Roman and Punic displays.

Costa Calida, the 'Warm Coast' is the sunniest region of Spain and is set in 1500 acres of highly varied landscape. Expanses of flowers, orchards and wild plants, a rugged landscape of mountains extending to the sea edge, fine sand beaches, the Mar Menor, a beautiful lagoon home to seagulls, cicadas and flamingos and a land dotted with occasional watchtowers in ruins are all part of these striking changes in the scenery.

 

 

 

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