I’ve spent long weekends in Alicante twice in the last two years and hopefully I’ll be able to visit again soon! Situated on Spain’s Costa Blanca, Alicante rolls a city break and a beach break into one location for a quick blast of culture and sun lounging! It’s big enough to get a little bit lost but not with so much to explore that you feel bad about the time whiled away reading a book under an umbrella before dipping into the cool Mediterranean Sea. Read my post 5 reasons why Alicante will surprise you to learn how it did that for me and to put it on your travel list!
And if that’s not enough to convince you then check out the 10 most Instagrammable places in Alicante that will have you reaching for your passport!
P.S. scroll right down to the bottom for a map of the locations because some of these were very tricky to track down!
1. Calle San Francisco
First up is the super quirky Calle San Francisco – it’s sure to make people stop scrolling past and chuckle! This street was a no-go area for a long time but in 2013 changes were made. Pretty drastic changes. 10ft high mushroom characters were constructed to rise out of the newly painted green and yellow cobblestones, complete with hopscotch layouts and slides for kids to enjoy! Take a look at the faces of the mushrooms and you’ll see their different expressions.
2. Casita Sofia on Calle San Rafael
This second place is found in the Santa Cruz Area of Alicante which can be found on the banks of the hill underneath the shadow of the Santa Barbara Castle. You’ll notice a few different mentions of this area through this list and it’s because nearly every street is worthy of a post of its own! I’ve actually shared this spot, Casita Sofia at the top of the steps on Calle San Rafael , twice on my Insta feed!
The top photo is from Summer whilst the one directly above with the bright purple flowers was taken in Autumn! I love the pop of colour that the petals bring.
3. Santa Barbara Castle
Stoic Santa Barbara Castle perches 166m high above the city on top of Monte Benacantil. Explore the Castle complex to learn about Alicante’s history as well as find sweeping views across the city, out to the horizon on the Mediterranean and back to the towering mountains behind. This is a great place to watch the sunset and snap the golden hour glow catching the prominent towers that stick out from the edge.
4. Calle San Antonio
We’re already back to the Santa Cruz area (I told you we would be!) for the beautiful Calle San Antonio. I really like this shot straight down the middle of the brilliantly bright street but there are somany angles you can capture. Look at the house on the left with its coordianted plant pots and decorative mosaics! When the sun is shining you may see the areas residents sitting out and enjoying the warmth – what a lovely place to live.
5. Explanada de España
Alicante’s promenade, called the Explanada de España, snakes along the city’s seafront for half a kilometre. The intricate wave mosaic is an iconic shot for your Instagram and is flanked by soaring palms and two line of lamp posts standing to attention. Can you believe it took more than 6 million individual tiles to make up the pattern?! I’m sure you’ll agree it was worth it.
6. Calle San Luis
Calle San Luis is the street that runs parallel to Calle San Antonio so it shouldn’t be too difficult to navigate between the two of them. This street is so narrow that there is a point where it is a squeeze for two people to pass by each other!
This street is incredibly Instagrammable because there are so many different perspective to choose from and each looks like it could be a completely different street. All three of these photos are of Calle San Luis but it is only when you look closely that you can spot the same features across them.
When I visited Alicante in Autumn the whole city was pretty quiet so the Santa Cruz area was as well. In Summer we got up early to arrive here around 7.30am (you can tell because only the birds were up with us!). I can’t say how busy it could get during Summer later in the day but I always try to visit the pretty areas of a city or the areas where tourists come as early as possible to enjoy the quiet and so that you can capture these wonderfully empty streets!
7. Alicante Port
Stretch your legs with a walk round Alicante’s port and admire (or become very jealous of) the fancy yachts that line the harbour. As you walk round, there’s a place with a nice view back across the harbour towards the promande with Santa Barbara Castle atop Monte Benacantil rising up out of the background. I swear this shot was actually candid 😂
8. Basílica of St Mary of Alicante from Be Alicante’s rooftop bar
On my first trip to Alicante I was waiting for my family to arrive and having a slow sneak peak around the streets when I passed a sign reading roof top terrace bar. Now, I love a rooftop bar 😉 and I especially love one when it’s an excuse to stop and sit down instead of dragging my suitcase around!
Be Alicante’s rooftop bar is open to anyone and the drinks are very reasonably priced! It boasts an impressive view of the Basílica of St Mary of Alicante as well as up to the Santa Barbara Castle.
9. Calle San Rafael
This is the final place in the Santa Cruz area to share with you and you can find it towards the middle of Calle San Rafael which you are likely to enter the area from if you have come from Alicante’s historic centre. This spot shows off the dazzling white streets and nautical blue pots and doorways tht make the Santa Cruz area feel reminiscent of a sailors’ vilaage.
10. View to Concatedral de San Nicolás
The Mirador de la Santa Cruz is located at the very top of the Santa Cruz area and boasts a spectacular view across the city (the walk up all those stars is definitely worth it!) and in particular across to the Concatedral de San Nicolás. This is probably one of the best views you can get of this building and its ornate blue dome as it is tightly packed into the narrow streets of Old Town Alicante and you’ll be craning your neck up to peer at it from ground level.
Find them for yourself!
It can be tricky to hunt down some of these spots even with the street name so hopefully the map below gives you an overview to where all of the places I’ve shared in this post are!
Want to know why Alicante will surprise you…
Cat x
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