Here’s a trip I have been dreaming up since last year. Once I knew we were going to Valencia, I began to dream up an itinerary for a Costa Blanca trip. The Costa Blanca (white coast) stretches over 120 miles in the south eastern coast of Spain from Denia to Pilar de la Horadada in the Valencian Community in Spain. But what I didn’t know was how my toddler would do in a car all day, what we would do or eat on the way, or what we were actually planning to see. That’s right, I pulled another “trip with zero plans” like our cross-country trip in 2018 and, y’all… I’m here to tell you this road trip was the highlight of our vacation.
First things first: rent a car
You have many options but we went with Auto Europe and picked up our car at the Joaquin Sorolla train station.
A lil tip for US Americans: an SUV in Spain is much smaller than an SUV in the US! Be mindful of packing/space!
Stop 1: Javea/Xabia
We arrived in Javea around 10AM, just in time for coffee. We found Canela Cafe near Playa Arenal and I loved the little back corner with books and toys for Ale. After coffee we head to Arenal, thus finally putting my feet in the ocean [it had been over 7 months!]. There was a playground Ale enjoyed and my parents fell in love with the promenade. We definitely noticed a lot of British ex-pats but didn’t quite get a feel for the town, so I knew I wanted to swing by the Old Town on the way back. After playing in the sand some more, we head to our next stop: Altea.
Stop 2: Altea
Altea is called the Santorini of Spain, with its little cobblestone streets and white buildings. We went up, up up [parents, leave your stroller in the car] and found Cafe Fornet for lunch – have I mentioned how much I LOVE menu del dia? Just like in Peru. Anyway, we had so much fun exploring Altea, the little shops, the views, climbing the hills for the view. It was the most historic-looking of the places I had been to.
Stop 3: Benidorm
After lunch we head to Benidorm and boy I loved the sunset. It was tough to find parking, and it was definitely the most touristy of the places we visited, with huge buildings and English heard in every corner. We grabbed tea and walked around the promenade as the day started to wind down. The beach was not busy but also not empty, with street vendors and live music while the tourists hung out from their balconies watching it all.
Stop 4: Villajoyosa
Finally, Villajoyosa, where we spent the night. We stayed near Torres beach and after putting comfier clothes on, we drove down to the Parque Censal area for dinner. My parents chose Chinese and we chose pizza – there are so many restaurants along Av. del Port, it was lovely to have so many options. It was dark, so we didn’t explore that area so much, but we noticed the pizza place (though in a visibly touristy place) had a lot of locals: families, friends, lots of kids running around. Delicious pizza too, with excellent service and cerveza. We drove back to our well-earned night of sleep.
The next morning, we drove downtown to Villajoyosa and had breakfast at Dalt Vila Cafe on Carrer Colon. It was delicious, and Ale as usual loved his croissant. Villajoyosa is known for its brightly colored houses and they are as spectacular and lovely in person as in photos. We found a playground which I am convinced has the most stunning views of the ocean of any playground Ale has played in, although he was really mostly interested in the escalators down to the promenade. I walked around downtown and this is when, out of all the little towns we visited, Villajoyosa became my favorite. I walked into a little bodega to grab some baby wipes and I watched so many locals come in, regulars, it seemed, and strike up conversations about life with other locals shopping or with the workers. It felt small and quaint, with character and beauty – that plus the ocean, what more could I ask for? Villajoyosa won me over. But there was one place I wanted to see almost as much if not more than Valencia:
Stop 5: Alicante
Alicante welcomed us with open arms. It was WARM, like, actually warm, and SUNNY. I am emphasizing this because although lovely, Madrid and Valencia had been windy and chilly most of the time we were there. Parking was super easy to find, but not so easy to actually park. Again, this SUV was tiny compared to US SUVs but huge compared to regular cars in Spain. So, parking garages were tricky. We parked near the mushroom street.
Okay, I lied earlier, we definitely planned on the mushroom street, aka Calle San Francisco, which has mushroom-themed statues and whimsical play structures for kids…and adults. It is all pedestrian, like so many parts of this beautiful country, and I may have enjoyed them more than Ale.
After wilding with the mushrooms, Ale, Nick and my mom decided to have empanadas, and we found a delicious Argentinian place with warm, baked empanadas. Then we walked over the the Esplanade, a paved walkway along the ocean with lovely mosaic patterns on the ground. Along the area where we were, we came across an Indian restaurant that had delicious food and where Ale fell in love with garlic naan. Sitting there, having a tinto de verano and curry with my husband and son, with the ocean in the background and the sun in my face…peak moment.
After lunch, we came across a kid’s amusement park complete with a carousel, bumper cars, a canoe ride, and lots more. Let’s just say the only tears on the trip were when we told Ale we had to leave. It has been over a month, and the kid is still talking about this experience. Here he is having no fun at all:
After meeting up with my parents, we picked up the car and started to make our way back to Valencia.
I was still itching to see the Old Town in Javea, so…
Final stop: Old Town Javea/Xabia
It was so sleepy and quiet, the kind of town that does not take siesta time lightly. We managed to find a coffee shop open, so we grabbed cafecito and sat on the square while Ale played. I adored Javea, the streets were small and picturesque, and I truly felt like we were so far from our life in Huntington there. I began to picture us living in a town like that, what our routine would be like, how slow things would be. To any American mom reading this, I know you can relate: slow life is so rare. In Javea, in Valencia, even in Madrid, it felt slow.
The Highs:
Coffee with my parents in Javea, the first step in the Mediterranean, lunch in Altea, pizza night by the beach in Villajoyosa
The Lows:
Ale not wanting to leave the amusement park. Also me not wanting to leave Alicante.