My Mum moved to Spain a couple of years ago and on the first visit we made I started looking around for somewhere  to buy so that we could go out and visit as often as we liked. I was lucky enough to find a cute little house which had been refurbished and extended slightly and since then have been on many lovely trips to Casa Rana (which means Frog House as frogs are a theme in our family).

Where it is -

The house is in a small ‘urbanizacion’ or development called La Marina- it is on the plains slightly up from the coast – about 5 mins drive (or 20 mins cycle) from the nearest beach. 

The nearest beach at La Marina village

La Marina  is situated half way between the towns of Guardamar and Santa Pola and is about 20 minutes drive south of Alicante airport.

Beautiful old buildings along the seafront at Alicante

The urbanizacion is very mixed with small and large houses and lots of different nationalities – about a quarter of the residents live there full time (most of these are retired) and the rest are holiday homes.

Looking out over La Marina to the mountains

Therefore apart from the summer holidays (when lots of Spanish people come to the area) it is a pretty quiet place. As well as English people there are Spanish, Dutch, German and Swedish people there which means that there is a good mix of people and it does not feel like Costa del Bognor!

What is on La Marina -

La Marina itself has plenty of supermarkets, bars and shops as well as two public swimming pools (essential in the summer as our house does not have a pool!).

The nearest public pool to the house - about 5 mins walk away

There are also doctors, dentists, vets etc as you would expect in a residential area. There are a couple of English pubs (and a Cornish Pasty shop!) but generally the services are very mixed culturally which we like as it is not all fish and chips and English beer. There are a couple of nightclubs but it is more of a family / retirement place and it is fairly peaceful – certainly no foam parties!

The house -

Casa Rana

The view from the terrace

The house has one bedroom, a bed settee in the lounge and a pull out bed therefore it can sleep five people at a push though four is more comfortable.

The terrace

 There is a small terrace at the front of the house which we use for eating in the summer. The lounge is a combined lounge and kitchen area and in winter we eat there (there is no dining table).

The main area of the house

 

Rest of main area with bed settee

There is a bathroom with (small) bath and shower as well as toilet (obviously).

The bedroom

The house is well stocked with cutlery, crockery and cooking equipment as well as bedding and towels (including beach and swimming towels) so visitors just have to bring their personal belongings. We also provide folding chairs and an umbrella for you to take to the beach. There are also four bikes available plus helmets (two adult bikes , two large teen sized bikes) which are stored at my Mum’s a few minutes away.

In the lounge is a TV with  DVD. We do not keep a stock of DVDs there so you will need to bring your own but there are a few books, cards and dominoes if you need entertaining in the evenings (not that you will!).

What you can do while you are there -

This really depends what you are into and when you come. For the sun worshippers and summer visitors this place is very hot in June, July and August so during the day the beach or the pool is definitely the preferred option. In the evening when it cools down ( a little!) there are loads of bars, restaurants to visit on La Marina or if you fancy travelling the nearby towns all have beautiful seafronts, marinas, parks, bars and street markets to wander round, eat and drink. The Spanish close their main businesses (apart from supermarkets) during the day from 2-5 which means that all the shops open again at 5pm till 8pm – great for a bit of shoe shopping before the tapas and evening meal.

Shoe shopping is a feature of this area as there are lots of manufacturers here and Spanish shoes are absolutely gorgeous – try nearby Elche or Alicante for the best shops.

Shopping generally is a big hit here – all of the local towns have very good markets (we particularly like the one at Santa Pola on Saturday mornings) and there is a smaller market in La Marina on Thurs and Sun mornings. Bargains are handbags, shoes, jewellery and clothing as well as fabulous household linens (tablecloths, voile, bedspreads etc.) Fashion shopping is excellent here – head to Elche or Alicante and if you like department stores you must visit Corte Ingles which is the very height of luxury – they have a new and very swish store in Elche which is well worth visiting just for the architecture!

If you are more into culture then there are churches, old towns and castles galore. Spain is full of the most marvellous architecture and especially if you go inland rather than to the coast you find lots of beautiful towns (not that old Alicante isn’t lovely and Calpe is well worth a visit)  but we tend to avoid Benidorm.

Elche (as well as being good for shoes and shopping) is famous for having the most palm trees in Europe – celebrated in a park called El Palmeral which is a UNESCO World Heritage site – while Orihuela has four churches and a cathedral. Murcia is a lovely town on the river about half an hour away that has a wonderful cathedral square with lots of cafes where you can watch the world go by!

The cathedral at Murcia

Part of the cathedral at Oriheula

Festivals here are very popular – well worth a visit is the biggest Moors and Christians one which takes place in the mountains at Alcoy (about 2 hours drive away) over 3 days around St George’s Day. There are also lots of other smaller ones – the Spanish have particularly excellent religious festivals so if you are into icons and ecclesiastical embroidery (as I am) you will be in heaven.

If you come with kids as well as pool and beach there are a few water parks around at Torrevieja, Elche and outskirts of Benidorm that have slides and thrill rides. Also well worth a visit is Mundomar - on the outskirts of Benidorm again – which is a mini Seaworld with excellent dolphin and seal shows. The park is next door to the excellent Aqualandia water park lots to do from thrill rides to mega jacuzzi pools! This is only open during the peak season as is Terra Mitica near there which is a theme park with rollercoasters.

There is also a small wildlife park at Elche and all of the Spanish town parks and beaches have play areas – you can always find a climbing frame when you need one! Spain is a very family friendly country and there are lots of facilities here. One of our favourite things to do with our kids is to go and watch the catch being unloaded at the docks in Santa Pola – this takes place weekdays at about 4.30 – 5pm and is fascinating as the kids love to see all the fish and octopus that the boats have caught.

 Another nice activity for all ages is to take a boat ride from Santa Pola to the island of Tabarca- it takes about 30 mins to get there and journeys there and back are very regular.

The harbour at Tabarca

It is a small island but has lots of rocky coves to explore , a cute old town and lovely bars and restaurants on the beach. The views from the boat are superb as well as you get to see all the mountains behind Alicante.

If you come in the cooler months there is fabulous walking and cycling – there are some great short cycle routes around La Marina and for those who don’t like hills there are lots of bits that are on the flat! All of the Spanish roads have cycle paths and there is very little traffic but there are also some good off road routes through the local scrub. La Marina is surrounded by mountains so you are never far away from fabulous countryside to go and explore. Particularly good are the mountains around Murcia.

Santa Pola is famous for windsurfing and for nature lovers there are lots of ’salinas’ or salt lakes all around the area where birds come to eat – the massed ranks of flamingos becoming pinker as they feed are very special to see.

After all the exercise if you need some R and R there are two fabulous spas at Archenna and Fortuna about an hour away. The spa at Archenna has recently been extended and for £10 you can have 3 hours wallowing in bubble pools, rapids, massage jets in water that is naturally 37 degrees – bliss! The spas themselves are beautiful to visit – they date from Roman times and have now been developed into elegant hotel complexes so there are gardens to wander round and places to eat.

How to get there and getting around when you are there -

We normally fly into Alicante airport – cheap flights with Jet 2 from Leeds/Bradford and Manchester airports or with Easy Jet from Liverpool. You can also fly into Murcia airport which is a little bit further away. If you want to rent a car you can do so from Alicante airport – one of the local car hire companies is Sol Mar which seem to do the best deals.

You do really need a car to see the best of the sights but if you just want a quiet week there in the summer you can do without a car – there are hourly buses to and from the beach and buses to all local towns as well as taxi companies operating in La Marina (including English speaking ones.)

All in all it is a lovely place for a holiday with plenty to see and do.