Alicante, a lively city on the Mediterranean coast of Spain, is a popular holiday destination for many gay travelers. Although much smaller than Madrid or Barcelona, Alicante offers numerous opportunities for enjoying an unforgettable summer vacation.
Most of the tourists are attracted by its fascinating beaches. With endless kilometers of golden sand and sunny summer weather, Alicante is the perfect place for getting in touch with the Mediterranean. The most popular beaches among gays and lesbians are definitely Alicante nudist beaches: Urbanova and Cabo de las Huertas. Urbanova beach is situated in the south part of Alicante coast, several kilometers away from the city center. It is quite close to the Alicante airport and you can often see airplanes flying above the beach. You can access it by car following the road N-332, direction Elche. Another option is to take a bus number 27 in front of the main Alicante train station RENFE, which communicates once per hour. Urbanova is a long sandy beach, offering a lot of space and an impressive view towards Alicante harbor. Another choice is the rocky Beach of Cabo de las Huertas. It is a place with the wildness of untouched nature and a lot of flat rocky plates. You can reach it either by bus number 22 or simply walking back from the San Juan beach along the rocky seashore, passing by the lighthouse.
Coming back from one of your favourite Alicante beaches, you can start socializing already in the afternoon or early in the evening. Just visit one of gay coffee bars. Or i Ferro (Gold and Iron) is an old bar with a friendly atmosphere, placed in Belando street close to Plaza Luceros. Another one is Pikadura, situated in Rafael Altamira street close to Rambla avenue and Explanada promenade. These two bars are the best places for getting more information about Alicante gay nightlife. Take a drink, have a snack and read newspaper and gay reviews.
After midnight, you can start partying in several pubs and night clubs. They offer diverse ambient, always full of people during hot summer nights. You can start with Canibal Pub – definitely the most popular gay bar among younger people. It is situated on the Plaza Nueva square (there is an interesting Aquarium on the square with large Mediterranean fish, so you can not miss it). Canibal pub regularly organizes special events, such as Halloween parties, featured music nights or New Year celebrations. You can take a drink, have a good time for half an hour and then go to the next bar – all of them are just a walking distance away from each other.
Crossing Rambla Avenue, we enter El Barrio – Old Town of Alicante. El Barrio is a large pedestrian zone with numerous clubs with good music for all tastes. You will meet thousands of young people having fun on the streets. If you like Europop music, visit Divina bar. You can find it in Montengon street, close to the Cathedral. It is quite small and always crowded. Turning around the corner, we come to Santa Faz, a beautiful historic town square behind the city hall. Here you can find El Forat bar. It is the oldest gay bar in Alicante and one of the veterans of El Barrio, attracting a large number of gay-friendly visitors. Passing the main square and entering Gravina street, you can finish your walk in Missing. This night club is placed close to MUBAG museum and Explanada promenade. Its darker mood and special night events mix a pub atmosphere with the aspect of a nightclub.
Once you close the circle, you can start another round, visiting the club you like most. Alicante Old Town is quite small, everything is easily reached by foot and there is a lot of fun both indoors and on the streets. Finally, once the bars in El Barrio are closed, you can continue partying in one of Alicante discos. The usual choice of gays and lesbians is Byblos discoteca, placed in San Francisco street parallel to the Explanada promenade. Enjoy dancing, drinking and having fun until the sunrise.