Southern Costa Blanca

From Alicante in the North to San Pedro at the northern end of the Mar Menor in the South, you are sure to find something suited to your taste. The area behind the coast is fertile with many orange and lemon groves lining the local routes. Te 'Golden Triangle' of golf courses - Las Ramblas, Villamartin and Campoamor are found here together with the new championship golf course of La Finca. These and the other quality golf developments have seen the area become a real golfer's paradise rivalling the better known, busier and more expensive Costa del Sol .

Water sports including sailing, water skiing, wind surfing and scuba diving are available throughout the costal area. Bowls, horse riding, aqua parks and tennis clubs are just a few of the varied activities available in the area. All this together with the World Health Organisation's Award for clean air standards and the superb medical facilities available in the region have made this an area many people choose to live.

ELX is Europe 's greatest palm grove. It's 200,000 palm trees are fully protected against felling. Elx was originally an Iberian village - Illici - colonised later by Phoenecians, Greeks and Romans. Elx has a long 9km stretch of coastline within it's municipal boundaries providing handsome beaches that from north to south are called L'Altet, Arenales se Sol and Carabassi down to Pinet. La Marina and Les Pesqueres-El Rebollo in Elx-Guardamar dune are beside the mouth of the river Segura .

ALICANTE has a quality coastline with sandy beaches, exotic dunes, rolling hills and challenging golf courses. There is much history attached to the castle of Santa Barbara , the bastion that still stands on the hilltop today which has historically housed political prisoners. At the foot of the castle, the ancient part of the town, with it's narrow and often steeply climbing streets, is the home of most of the monumental buildings. We can find the Baroque architecture of the Town Hall, the magnificent collegiate church of St. Nicholas (17 th Century), decorated in the Rococo style and the Gothic church of Sta. Maria with it's Baroque façade. The buildings gradually slope downwards to the sea where the much famed Esplanade of Spain separates port from city. There is always atmosphere on the esplanade; some stroll beneath the palms on the hypnotic colours of the paviours, others lounge on the terraces sipping the local beverage. Alicante offers excellent shopping whilst the marina is surrounded by many quality restaurants and cafes. To the south of the city is the main airport for the region offering car hire and airport shopping.

SANTA POLA has an altitude of 140m that, in the province of Alicante on the Mediterranean coast, is high enough to command a panoramic view over the sea and also to protect the town of Santa Pola from the easterly winds. The elongated shape of the island of Tabarca can be seen from the lighthouse.

ORIHEULA is a town of ancient lineage and shares with Alicante the Episcopal seat. Many of the beautiful churches that can be found here are declared as national monuments. It is the main town of the area, very unspoilt and well worth a visit.

GUARDAMAR DEL SEGURA is home to eleven kilometres of dunes and sandy beaches. This ancient town was built on a hill whose skirts were washed by the river Segura . Still preserved are the ruins of a castle and other historic remains from Hellenic times. The gentle streets of Guardamar are lined with single-storey houses each with a flat roof. Pines, palms and eucalyptus trees enliven this little seaside place, which is also home to superb restaurants offering select cuisine.

TORREVIEJA is a place where once sailing ships from Cuba anchored in the docks ready to load salt from the local salt flats in the 19 th Century. Consequently, their influence can still be felt around Torrevieja. The whole face of the town was changed after the earthquakes of 1828-1829 and the inhabitants built safer single-storey houses along wider streets. This type of building predominates today.

THE GOLDEN TRIANGLE of gold courses to the west of Cabo Roig consists of -

Las Ramblas which is, by consensus, the most demanding of the three [the name translates as gully] and is a very picturesque and desirable area.

Campoamor has a superb newly built hotel and clubhouse at it's centre while the course plays long with wide fairways.

Villamartin has a bustling square at it's centre with bars and restaurants that attract the local populace.