Alcalali – The Essential Guide from Local Residents…

Thinking about going to Alcalali? This quick guide provides a number of useful tips and advice to help you get started.

Below we feature a fantastic interview with Vanessa Crocker-Dean of Hello2Spain who covers the Alcalali area.

We wanted to learn from Vanessa the advantages of going to Alcalali and why you should consider moving to the area.

Esglesia de la Nativitat de Maria, Alcalali – Photo by Hello2Spain

Where is Alcalali?

Alcalalí is part of the Jalon Valley (also known as Vall de Pop), situated inland from the coastal towns of Denia, Javea and Moraira. The Jalon Valley is situated on the Costa Blanca North Spain.

How to Get There

Direction to Alcalalí from Alicante and Valencia Airports

AP7 exit junction 62. N332 signposted Pedreguer. Take exit to Pedreguer/ Denia take the turn to Pedreguer and follow the CV720 and Alcalalí will be signosted.

Alcalalí has significant resources of architectural, historical, cultural, ethnological and gastronomic character. Besides having an extraordinarily rich landscape Alcalalí offers exceptional meteorology that makes it an ideal location for any time of year, practice outdoor sports like hiking, biking, etc.

What are your favourite things to do in the area?

OUTDOOR SPORTS

Hiking Trails: Alcalalí municipality is crossed by many rural roads surrounded by almond and orange trees, which is a pleasure to walk. During the month of February, during the almond florida, our roads fill with a coming and going of walkers.

You can reach the municipality of Alcalalí by taking the hiking route – Coll de Rates.

This tour is a great way to approach the cultural and landscape heritage of the town and valley. It is estimated that can be covered in approximately 3 hours and 40 minutes and the difficulty level is medium – low.

Torre medieval de l’Alcalali, Marina Alta – Photo by Hello2Spain

Another proposed route that let us dig further into our history and heritage is the “Rock and Water” route. Its path runs along the bed of the river Gorgos, a site of Community importance (SCI) and links the towns of Valley Pop from Benissa to Benigembla. This route adds value and hydraulic architectural heritage of our people and offers visitors unique landscapes.

In Alcalalí, you can start this route in the Mirador del Terrer both meaning and direction Parcent Jalon. The 19.5 km route can be covered in an estimated 5 hours and 50 minutes and has a very low level of difficulty time.

CYCLING

Cycling, both in the mountain and on the road is a very popular activity. It is common to find the roads around Alcalalí with groups of cyclists.

The municipality has three mountain bike routes and is properly installed with signages with varying frequency.

Different routes are suitable for both beginners and experts to guide them in their journey and help them discover the scenic treasures of our territory.

At the entrance to the municipality an information panel is located and this point is where the three routes start, all circular in nature.

MUSEUMS

Parish Museum of San Juan de la Ribera: The museum houses exhibitions of paintings, sculptures, clothing, books, jewellery, etc.

Ethnological Museum: Located in the old mill in Alcalalí. Both machinery utensils that were used to make the oil and wine have been restored. The museum shows us the daily lives of the farmers of the time.

Photo by Hello2Spain

Can you give us some insider tips to the best bars or restaurants?

There are many restaurants to go to with regional and typical local meals. The food is usually accompanied with a variety of wines, prepared by local winemakers.

BAR LA TORRE. Serving European food cuisine, majority of people find the restaurant really satisfactory.

BAR PORCHE serves traditional tapas and if you fancy a burger then this is the place.

LA SOLANA. This is the favourite and recommended by many travellers. A beautiful place to eat with a relaxing atmosphere.

RESTAURANTE PEPE.  This is a favourite for most people. Great steak pie, lasagne, spaghetti bolognaise, soup as a starter take your flask to fill up with what you cannot eat, great portions and tasty food. Service can be a bit slow and advanced booking is therefore recommended.

Are there many facilities such as doctors and dentists, shops etc?

Also locally there is a butcher, bakeshops and supermarket, chemist, hairdressers, dentist and news agents.

Beaches. There is a choice of beaches within 20-30 minutes driving. Denia, Javea, Moraira and Calpe. They are all blue flag beaches and most have marinas, diving centres, kitesurfing and many other water sports.

Vanessa, thank you so much for sharing this information on your experiences in Spain to our readers. If you want to contact her, you can find her details below.

Hello2Spain

Marques de Campo, 6, 03700 Denia
Tel. +34 672 208 879
Email: info@hello2spain.com
Website: www.hello2spain.com

Below is a video where you can see some of the notable places in Alcalali.

Contact us to be featured – we want more expat interviews for our newsletter and website. You don’t need to be an estate agent, we want to hear from anyone who lives in Spain whether you are working or retired.