Quality Accommodation

Ondara, Costa Blanca, Spain

Your Hosts: Jeff & Karen Morrow

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Recommended on

As seen on BBC1’s

Living in the Sun

Ondara, Costa Blanca, Spain

Your Hosts: Jeff & Karen Morrow

English

Español

Quality Accommodation

Recommended on

As seen on BBC1’s

Living in the Sun

The Costa Blanca is blessed with two of Spain’s major cities, Alicante to the south and Valencia to the North. Both cities has a rich history but Valencia in particular is filled with spectacular architecture, both old and new. Notably the very modern Science and Arts park built in the old Turia river bed is definitely worth a trip with your camera. In contrast, Valencia’s old town offers castle ramparts, stone bridges and ancient markets that go back well over 1000 years.

25 minutes south of Casa en el Campo is Benidorm. This once sleepy fishing village has grown at an incredible rate, and now boasts the tallest hotel in Europe. Benidorm is great for day trips to one of the many theme parks dotted around its perimeter. There really is nowhere else in the world like Benidorm.

Gandia, 30 Kilometres north of Casa en el Campo is where a visit to the opulent Borgia's Palaca is a must for anyone interested in the history of the infamous Borgia family. Very influential during the Renaissance. Callixtus III was a Borgia and a Pope. His nephew, Alexander VI , also a Pope, was a brilliant man notorious for his un-pontifical private life. Alexander's illegitimate children included Cesare Borgia, a political operator and intriguer, and Lucrezia Borgia, married to the Duke of Ferrara and a patron of learning and art. The Borgias legendarily poisoned people to gain political advantage and wealth. A later member of this family, Francis Borgia, was canonized as a saint.

Closer to home the large seaside towns of Denia and Javea each have their own attractions. Denia is a more traditional fishing town where a coffee at one of the many coffee houses along the central 'Marques de Campo' is highly recommended. Javea has a picturesque old port and the new 'Arenals' area has a great beach, with floating islands, a promenade and many tourist bars and restaurants.

The many small villages in the area each have their own charm, most of them retaining their original Spanish character. Every summer the villages burst into fiesta mode, with live music and dancing, bull running and, of course, the compulsory giant paella. At the end of August most villages will be competing for the biggest and best end of fiesta fireworks display.

Useful link:

The Borgia Family - Wikipedia