Alicante, Ali-ali-cante - Weekend Away from the cold Southampton

I should have sat down and written this some time ago but better later than never, right?

This is one of those experiences that I have organised in the last minute due to the cheap fares from Bournemouth Airport and RyanAir (go ahead and check their ‘Fare Finder‘). I definitely hit the jackpot with the return ticket for around £60 and with my large bag - I was ready to go. I have had my eye on Alicante for a while but never had the time or have found a good excuse to do it.

After spending the weekend there and even my flight to Spain was so enjoyable that I would probably go back again. I had so much fun travelling with my best friend Craig and the people we met there that this is worth every penny. After the security check, we were sent to the aeroplane and we stumbled across this group of guys going on a stag do. I was hoping this wasn’t happening to me as I know how much mess and noise these groups cand do. You know what? I was pleasantly surprised. They were loud but they were a friendly and funny bunch of lads that definitely added to this experience. As my seat was away from my travelling buddy, I had to find somebody else to talk to. That didn’t really take long because apart from the gang I was with and one of their members on my right, I had a chance to meet this lovely Irish lady who was enjoying her relaxing view from the window. I thought I was very social but once she got comfortable with me - this conversation lasted until we landed at the airport in Alicante. I wish I could share everything we talked about but I don’t frankly remember most of it and it would take a lot to time to go through it all. Nevertheless, I can show you some of the snaps I had the chance to capture:

The airport was so easy to navigate through that in no time we were out and waiting for the C6 Bus to the central part of the city. You can definitely feel the temperature changes and the climate was much warmer and inviting to enjoy yourself. People around us still seemed to be wearing light long sleeve tops and even jackets but for us, that wasn’t an option (coming from the UK) - 19 degrees felt like a warm Spring breeze in comparison to Hampshire’s ongoing cold weather. Once we arrived at our stop, we were so busy and excited to follow our Google Maps guidance to the hostel that my friend’s luggage stayed on the bus and he had to borrow clothes from me (don’t worry we found it the following Monday and it is on its way back to the UK).

As you can see, nothing stops us from having fun. On the contrary, the hostel Hostel Ole was the best place to stay in the neighbourhood. Absolutely social space where you can meet people from across the globe. Honestly! Rooms are comfortable and the food is reasonable if you are travelling on a budget. They even organise Pub crawls, Free City tours and many more. On top, paying €3 for breakfast is a real find if you are in a hurry for the day!

Overall this city has plenty to offer for short term and budget travellers or even people who are doing it for the first time. From historical monuments and beautiful sights to booming nightlife and incredibly diverse selection of restaurants, bars and local shops. This is definitely the place to be if you want to test your sense of adventure. Don’t forget to visit the Nou Embolic Gastrobar. You think you have eaten divine food until now? No, you haven’t. This place taps into your secret food taste buds and believe me after trying all their ‘on-the-day‘ tapas we can talk again. A tasty and classy food adventure with a mixture of traditional Russian recipes with a modern twist and fresh Spanish ingredients. Best spent €35!

Don’t hesitate and give Alicante a try you will not regret it. 2.30 hours away flight from Bournemouth and with affordable hotels, bed and breakfast and hostels - surely we can all afford a weekend in the ‘City Of Light‘ (the city’s original name was “Lucentum”).

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