Santa Pola Costa Blanca South

Santa Pola Costa Blanca South

Santa Pola is situated on the Costa Blanca South it is a popular holiday destination for many, especially the Spanish themselves, its close proximity to the Airport helps and it is only a few miles from Alicante city.

Unlike many of the other nearby coastal towns, Santa Pola remains busy all year round as it is a working town with a busy port, every evening you can see the fishing boats return with their daily catch. The port also has a lovely marina.

If you like outdoor activities, Santa Pola offers: hiking trails, promenades for walking or skating, cycle friendly routes and of course its famous for its water sports especially wind and kitesurfing, in fact Santa Pola was chosen to host the world windsurfing championship in 2009.

Santa Pola is also perfect for paragliders and is one of the top paragliding spots in Europe and is particularly good with an easterly wind, there are take-off areas which are easily accessible were paragliders can enjoy hours of flying time.

More places to visit on the Costa Blanca South

Places to visit on the Costa Blanca North

Santa Pola Beaches

The town has 6 beaches that cover 4km.  Playa del Varadero, Calas de Santiago Bernabeu, Playa de Levante, the marina, Gran Playa (or big beach), Playa Lisa, Playa del Tamarit.

All 6 beaches are sandy and have Red Cross and lifeguard towers.  The Gran Playa and Playa de Levante also have access for wheelchairs.

The best beaches for windsurfing are Gran Playa, Playa Lisa, Playa Tamarit and Playa de la Gola you will also find clubs around these beaches for equipment rental and classes etc

Market days -  Saturdays and Mondays

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Santa Pola Costa Blanca

Santa Pola Miramar Marina

This wonderful marina has 234 berths and 195 car park places. Enjoy a stroll along the Marina where you will find some very stylish restaurants and bars. the Marina is a lovely spot for a break from the beach and a spot of lunch or a evening meal watching the world go by.

You can also catch the ferry from here over to Tabarca Island which is only 9km away.  Do not forget your snorkelling gear as the pebbled beaches and picturesque little coves make this an ideal snorkelling location.  Current ticket prices for the round trip are 15€ for adults and 10€ for Children. Journey time is between 15 and 30 mins depending on the type of boat. These boat trips are seasonal and obviously dependent upon sea conditions.

Do not forget to visit the fishing port where you can observe the daily fish auction at the Fish Market from Monday to Friday from around 4:30 pm.

The Municipal Aquarium, Acuario Municipal de Santa Pola NOW OPEN

This is the oldest and largest salt water Aquarium in the Valencian Community and has 9 large aquariums and is dedicated to showing some of the fauna and flora of the Mediterranean Sea and reveals the underwater world in the bay of Santa Pola and the island of Tabarca. Most of the species collected have been donated by the sailors of Santa Pola.

To celebrate its reopening, the normal admission charge of 3€ for an adult, and 1.50€ per child has been waived...(and will be for the rest of this year!) 

The aquarium is situated in the Plaza Francisco Fernández Ordóñez - 

Winter Hours (September 9 to June 24)
Tuesday to Saturday from 10:00 to 13:00 and 17:00 to 19:00 h.
Sunday 10:00 to 13:00 h.
Monday and public holidays closed.

Summer Hours (July 1st to August 31st)
Monday to Sunday from 11:00 to 13:00 and 18:00 to 22:00 h.

Special opening hours (September 1st to 8th)
From 10:00 to 13:00 h.
8 September closed

Entrance Fees
Adults and people over 16: 2.50 euros From 4 to 16: 1.25 euros Children under 4 free Retired people: 1.25 euros Groups, students: 0.65 euros Telephone 965 416 916 for more information.

Santa Pola Castle and Sea Museum

The castle/fortress can be found n the centre of Santa Pola, on Plaza de la Glorieta.  This was built in the 16th century its main purpose was to protect local seamen against pirate attacks. Entrance is via an access gate that leads up to a large patio called Patio de Armas.

Over the years the castle has had various uses including being a hospital, the court, and Gardia Civil headquarters.  It is now a chapel, exhibition hall and home of the maritime museum which is a good place to learn more about the local history.

Opening times for the museum - From Tuesday to Saturday: 10 a.m. to 1 p.m. and 4 p.m. to 7 p.m. Sunday 11 a.m. to 1a.m. Monday closed.

Santa Pola Costa Blanca

Esteban Gonzalez Boat Museum

The Esteban Gonzalez is a boat museum that recreates the authentic and genuine life on board of the fishermen of Santa Pola. This can be found in Constitution Square, around the Town Hall.

Enjoy a guided tour, seeing the most important places of the boat and learn about the most relevant type of fishing in the municipality. You can also see what life was like onboard

Winter timetable from the 9th September:
Friday guided tour at 12 am. and 5:30 pm.
Saturday guided tour at 11 am. 12 am. and 5:30 pm.
December and January closed

Timetable from 1st May:
Friday guided tour at 12 am. and 6 pm.
Saturday guided tour at 11 am. 12 am. and 6 pm.
Sunday guided tour at 11 am. and 12 am.

Summer timetable from 1 July - 31 August:
Tuesday to Sunday from 6 pm. to 9 pm. (guided tour every hour, last visit 8 h.)

Closed during Festivities (from 31st August to 8th September)

Entrance Price 

Individual entry: 3 euros.  Child (under 3 years): free.  Child (between 4 and 16 years), students, young-card and pensioners: 1,50 euros

You can also purchase combined tickets for the museum, aquarium and boat museum.

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Plaza del Calvario

This is the fishermans's quarter and  located in one of the highest areas of Santa Pola. whilst in this area visit the Chapel ( Ermita ) built at the beginning of the 20th century designed on Moorish architecture

Santa Pola Costa Blanca South

Santa Pola Lighthouse the Faro de Santa Pola  and the Skywalk

The lighthouse was built in 1858 on the sight of an old watchtower "Atalayola" and is situated to the northeast of Santa Pola.

There are two options to get to the lighthouse and the skywalk, neither of which are well signposted.

A)  Put this address into your satnav, 63 Avenida Escandinavia, 03130, Gran Alacant, this will take you to a small parking area and from there it is about a 15 minute walk through pine forests to the lighthouse, the Skywalk is just down a track to the right. 

B ) There is a road to both the lighthouse and the skywalk, located just off the N332 between Gran Alacant and Santa Pola, it is easy to miss as there is only a small signpost to the Faro de Santa Pola and this can only be seen from if coming from the Santa Pola direction.  The road is quite rough in places and is 4km long, you will find parking and a picnic area to the right and also a few parking spaces right at the very end, from here  it is then just a short walk to the lighthouse and skywalk. (wear suitable shoes)

Santa Pola Skywalk

In 2015, Santa Pola Council invested 300,000 Euros in building a 100m metal skywalk (or viewing point) this is  suspended on the cliff, you will feel like floating in the air, this is not for anyone who suffers with a fear of heights as it’s 450 feet straight down.

This is a great place for photographers, with panoramic views of the bay and Tabarca, on a clear day you can even see Benidorm. 

Please note there are no cafes, restaurants or services at either the lighthouse or Skywalk.

Pola Park - Perfect for the family

Pola Park is a theme park which opened in 1996, it covers and area of 24000 m2 with plenty of rides and entertainment, suitable for children of all ages, Pola Park offers an exciting day out for everyone to enjoy. Some of your classic fairground attractions at this popular theme park include a thrilling roller coaster, the giant pendulum and the adrenaline rush freefall. Go-karts, a boating lake, and an aerial train, slides, bouncy castles, flying chairs, rollercoaster, pirate boat, karts and mini-golf. The park also offers a good choice of food services such as a sandwich bar, burger restaurant, and pizzeria.

Pola Park is located just a short distance from the centre of Santa Pola just of the N332, opposite the beautiful pink salt lakes in Santa Pola, Alicante where you can frequently spot flamingos, and experience the most stunning sunsets at the end of the day.

Salt Flats of Santa Pola, Salinas de Santa Pola

Situated to the west of Santa Pola, are the Salinas de Santa Pola (salt flats ) these are a designated nature reserve and an area of Special Protection for the conservation of wild birds. The salt flats cover 2,496 hectares, the exploitation  of the salt started at the end of the 14th century. Today the salt is extracted from here and commercialised.

Here you will also find a strategically placed "Tamairt" watchtower, which has been renovated.  The towers were used to communicate warnings of impending danger, smoke signals were used during the day and lights at night. 

There are several walking routes through the park, where you can explore the varied flora and fauna as well as the elegant pink flamingo's which are famous in this area.

DISCOVER THE EL PINET WALKING ROUTE IN SANTA POLA!..This picturesque and peaceful walking route, commences at the old salt ponds of Santa Pola that are no longer used for production, but still maintain the water circuit and the wealth of wildlife that goes with it. The nature trail runs from the carpark into the sand dunes with the shore line as a backdrop, until it reaches the beach. Here you can take in beautiful views of the Cape of Santa Pola, the Island of Tabarca, the mouth of the River Segura and the entire coastline to Cape Cervera in Torrevieja.

The route includes two micro-flora reserves and three observation points for bird watching. It is a fairly simple, circular route with a duration of about 30 minutes. The best place to start is at Calle Noruega, 29, 03194 Elche, where you will find a car park and picnic area

At the reserve, you will find the Museo de la Sal (the Salt Museum) where you can learn more about the process of salt extraction and its history. The Museum also has a lookout for bird watching and offers guided visits.  Opening times  - Monday, Wednesday and Friday from 9’00 to 15’00h. Tuesday and Thursday from 9’00 to 15’00h and from 16’00 to 18’00h. Saturdays, Sundays and holidays from 9’00 to 15’00h.

*Benidorm Seriously are not responsible for any changes in schedules or prices quoted above*

Getting to Santa Pola from Benidorm 

The nearest trains are from Alicante and Elche. There are buses from Alicante city and Alicante airport to Santa Pola which run about every 30 minutes and take 35 to 45 minutes.

Santa Pola is a 45 minute drive (70km) from Benidorm via the A-70 and AP-7 or Via the N332

For the return journey, and a great views follow the coast road through Santa Pola del Este.  That takes you back along the base of the cliffs back towards Urbanova and Alicante.

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