5 Beautiful Spanish Mediterranean Towns Perfect for a Day Trip

Exploring Spanish Mediterranean towns is a main reason I lived in Alicante, Spain for a year while participating in the NALCAP English teaching program. Alicante is a medium-sized beach city on Spain’s Mediterranean Coast, also called the Costa Blanca. During my time there, I explored charming cities and towns that were an easy train or bus ride away. (Find out more about Tram Alicante, a train line that runs up and down the Valencian Community coast.)

There are so many great places to visit in the area, but here I will focus on the smaller Spanish Mediterranean towns within the Valencian Community province. These cities are perfect for a day trip because they offer the chill, serene vibes of a beach town.

Read more about Alicante here, Valencia here, and Marbella, in the south of Spain.

Altea

Altea was one of my favorite towns. The crystal clear blue water and clean, white pebble beaches are the obvious draw. It’s a quiet town, with gorgeous panoramic views once you scale the hill up into the old town. The center of old town is a large plaza where restaurants set out tables and chairs beneath the domed church. Along the cobblestone streets you will find shops, cute boutiques, and more places to eat and snack. The stark white of the buildings against the blue sky and ocean make it clear you are on the Mediterranean coast.

Orange trees beside a restaurant with outdoor seating in the historic town center of Altea, Spain

Altea is a stop on the tram line that runs up and down the Valencian Community coastline, so it’s an easy straight shot for a nice day trip.

Benidorm

Benidorm has the same beautiful water as Altea, but is known for its active nightlife. Benidorm is much more popular with tourists, especially Brits, so if you’re craving an English breakfast after a night out at the bars you’ll be in luck. Benidorm is also along the Tram Alicante line, just south of Altea.

@aishaurbanescapist
Benidorm has all the views 😍 #spain🇪🇸 #benidorm #costablanca #traveltiktoks #traveltiktoker #mediterranean
♬ Vente Pa’ Ca (feat. Maluma) – Ricky Martin

Torrevieja

Torrevieja is located in the very south of the province and is easiest to reach by bus. Of course, it has beautiful beaches, but the main things Torrevieja has that the other towns do not is two large pink salt lakes, called Las Salinas de Torrevieja. To take a tour of the salt flats, you can buy inexpensive tickets right on the boardwalk, where a cute train takes you to the site and returns to the same spot. In one section of the boardwalk, you can walk through a large market that includes crafts and hair braiding by African vendors, among other stalls.

Old church surrounded by palm trees with a round fountain in the foreground

Tall mound of salt in a salt flat site in Torrevieja Spain

Jávea

Jávea (Xàbia in Valencian) is a town approximately halfway between the bigger cities of Alicante to the south and Valencia to the north. It’s a quiet seaside resort town with gorgeous water, pebble and sand beaches, as well as cliffs and rocky coves. You will also find hiking trails and overlooks in Montgó Natural Park. It’s definitely worth it to pay a visit to the market in Jávea’s historic center, where you can find marinated olives, loose leaf teas, and all kinds of crafts, food, and special gifts. Although a quiet town, Jávea does have some nightlife. On weekends, visit bars along the main beach, Platja de l’Arenal, for drinks and dancing.

It’s easy to find luxury in Jávea, either at spas, boutique hotels, or even Michelin-starred restaurants. For the best ambience, I recommend La Siesta, a restaurant that sits directly on a white pebble beach. The simple, white and blue restaurant is open to the ocean air. It’s the perfect place to have dinner, lounge with a bottle of wine, and watch a pink and purple sunset.

For more on Jávea, read this more detailed blog post.

Woman standing on rocky shore of a Spanish Mediterranean town called Javea — La Siesta restaurant

Barrels of marinated olives at a market in the Spanish Mediterranean town of Javea — La Siesta restaurant

Elche

Elche (Elx in Valencian) is not directly on the coast, but about 20-30 minutes away by car or bus. I still had to include it because I think it’s worth a quick visit. A main attraction is the palm grove, El Palmeral de Elche. This palm grove, an UNESCO World Heritage Site, has over 200,000 palm trees that were planted during Roman times and used for agricultural water management. Within El Palmeral is a municipal park, museum, gardens, walking route, and the Vaillo Tower built in the Middle Ages.

Woman in yellow dress sitting on a tiled bench with tall palm trees all around

A large, white sculpture in the center of a street roundabout

What do you think of these Spanish Mediterranean towns? Would you take a day trip there? Let me know in the comments and follow me on Instagram and TikTok for more of a look into my travels.