The Costa Blanca translates into English as the ‘White Coast’ and stretches over 200 kilometres from the town of Denia in the north to Torrevieja in the south. The area boasts a long line of white sand beaches, perfect for some relaxation and tanning. The majority of the accommodation in Costa Blanca is located right on the seafront so that visitors can easily enjoy one of the areas most popular attractions, water sports. Most of the major resorts have facilities for wind surfing, water skiing, boating, jet-skiing etc and several have diving and snorkelling available. Scuba-diving also has taken off in a big way on the Costa Blanca. The Mediterranean climate means that these all activities take place nearly all year round and the best place for all this has to be Alicante which has a wonderful marina with a sailing school where you can learn to crew yachts.

The provincial capital, Alicante has managed to preserve some of its Hispanic traditions, compared with other resorts on the coast such as Benidorm and Torrevieja. The summer in Alicante brings sun, holiday makers, but most importantly of all the bonfires of San Juan. On the 20th June Alicante’s most important festival begins with the erection of enormous figures of wood and papier maché. These figures are then burnt 4 days later following a spectacular firework display, launched from the summit of the Santa Barbara castle. It really is worth a visit and has even been declared an ‘international tourist interest’. Visitors will be able to witness street parades, bull fights, musical performances, dancing and many more activities. Dates tend to vary each year for these types of events so if you are planning on coming to the Costa Blanca especially for a fiesta, check with the local tourist information office first. I personally don’t think you can get properly into the occasion from a hotel so I would suggest renting one of the many Costa Blanca apartments that are on offer.

Alicante is easily accessible as the local airport, of the same name, is one of the busiest airports in Spain connected by low fare carriers such as RyanAir and EasyJet. There are also regular ferries to the Balearic Islands and Algeria giving visitors the option make small excursions to add a little bit of a different experience to the holiday.

My suggestions for day trips would be the breathtaking Canelobre Caves. The caves can be found near Busot, 24 km north of Alicante. This year round attraction is a huge natural underground chamber where the mineral deposits resemble candelabra. Effectively lit to properly illuminate nature’s fantastic handiwork the caves are also used for concerts due to their acoustic properties. There are great views and paths for walking tours close to the entrance. I find trips like this tend to break up the monotony of the daily trip between beach bar and villas in Costa Blanca, keeping both adults and children entertained.