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The main gateway to the Costa Blanca, the big, bustling city of Alicante is often overlooked in the charge to the beaches and resorts, yet this is one of Spain’s most engaging cities, with a picturesque old quarter, a collection of beautiful churches and fascinating museums, and a lively port with plenty of bars and restaurants. The whole city is dominated by the splendid Castillo de Santa Bárbara, high on a cliff above the sea (see Castillo de Santa Bárbara, Alicante).

This vast cavern, which soars up for almost 140 m (460 ft), is the largest and most impressive of a network of caves which riddle the Cabecó d’Or mountain near Busot. It was probably first discovered by the Arabs, and has been put to all kinds of strange uses, including housing a factory for aeroplane engines during the Spanish Civil War.

This wild and lovely stretch of windswept dunes on the outskirts of the low-key tourist enclave of Guardamar is a protected area, which has blocked the intrusion of the kind of high-rise developments that have blighted other parts of the coast. The dunes undulate along endless beaches of fine pale sand, backed by shady pine glades with walking paths, cycling routes and picnic areas. Although the beaches are very popular in summer, they remain relatively uncrowded. Nonetheless, the best time to visit is off-season, when you can go for long, bracing beach walks without a soul in sight.

Come around Easter to see Elx’s famous and elaborate palm crosses being made for the Easter Sunday parades (see Hort del Cura, Elx (Elche)). At any time of year, dozens of shops sell fresh dates and delicious date sweets and cakes.