The area of Playa de San Juan in Alicante with a spacious beach of the same name is one of the most prestigious and well-maintained areas of the city of Alicante. The place got its name thanks to the municipality of San Juan de Alicante, located just two kilometers from this area, just a bit about it:
- San Juan de Alicante is a municipality of the province of Alicante in the Valencian Community, Spain;
- Population – 24,363 (2021);
- Area (total) – 9.64 km2.
This is a beautiful and comfortable area, which offers restaurants of International and Mediterranean cuisine, a variety of hotels, private colleges for children of all age categories, a cozy cinema, parks, a green manor for celebrations and a luxurious golf club with its own infrastructure.
Spaniards themselves choose this area as a second residence with great pleasure, and someone was lucky enough to live here all year round, because the urban infrastructure of Playa San Juan de Alicante will please even the most exacting taste. But let’s take a closer look at why this is such an amazing place and why property prices are generally higher here than in other areas of Alicante.
Attractions of Playa San Juan, Alicante
San Juan Beach (La Playa de San Juan)
The main attraction of the area Playa San Juan in Alicante is, of course, its amazing beach with dark pearl sand. Previously, this place was called Platja de l’Horta, and this name can be seen on some pointers. This beach is one of the favorite places of residents of nearby towns and the capital.
From the south, San Juan Beach stretches from the cape El Cabo de las Huertas north to the spit of El Rincón de la Zofra, where the municipal district of El Campello already begins. The beach is located about five and a half kilometers northeast of the center of its namesake city.
The characteristics of the beach are as follows:
- Length within the boundaries of the city of Alicante – 2900 m;
- Total length – 6200 m;
- Average width – 60 meters;
- Swimming conditions – moderate waves;
- Blue Flag mark – yes;
- Lifeguard tower – yes;
- Alarm system – yes;
- Police patrol – yes;
- Salvage equipment – yes;
- Accessibility for persons with disabilities – yes;
- Type of access – on foot/by car/by tram/by bus;Notification of availability for swimming – yes.
Even though that in fact the beach has a total length of more than six kilometers and the entire sandy strip was traditionally called «Playa de San Juan», the part of the beach that is located in the municipal area of Alicante with an area of 2900 m is usually called «Playa de San Juan», and the one that is located in the municipal area of El Campello, with an area of 3300 m, «La Playa de Muchavista».
A little bit about the history: when El Campello separated from Alicante, San Juan de Alicante was offered to annex the beach part of the coast to its municipality, however, it was underdeveloped in terms of infrastructure, and the town showed no interest in such an acquisition. In the 1940s, the area «Playa de Muchavista» appeared on the map, indicating a part of the beach located near El Campello. This beach strip received such a toponym in the XIX century due to its location opposite the former observation booth of the Carabinieri corps – Mucha-Vista.
For the record: carabiniers are a special type of military personnel, on foot or on horseback, equipped with carbines as the main weapon, excellent shooters. The Carabinieri did not have independent police functions, however, they could be involved in cordoning off and patrolling, where a policeman acted as a senior.
Today, on San Juan Beach, in addition to the listed amenities, you can find several playgrounds, rental of umbrellas and sun loungers, a tourist information center. During the tourist season, dance floors, karaoke halls and open-air pubs are open on the beach, as well as numerous cafes, where you can taste light meals from fresh seafood.
Sports Club «Alicante Golf» in the Playa San Juan, Alicante
A prestigious area in the Spanish resort cannot be imagined without a good old golf club. Golf is a recognized «game of millionaires», which means that the owners of elite real estate will certainly want to have a privileged club nearby, where they can spend their leisure time with health benefits and in pleasant company.
«Alicante Golf» is considered one of the best golf courses in all Spain: it is distinguished with premium service and luxurious design. The club confirmed its high reputation with the implementation of an important and expensive green reconstruction project, which lasted 5 years: from 2004 to 2008. As part of this project, 18 green fields were reconstructed and the design was modernized: irrigation, drainage, landscaping and planting were organized.
In «Alicante Golf», there is an opportunity to take golf lessons for adults and children, there is such a good playground with palm trees made of natural grass and there will be a great children’s area, and if you take a walk along the well-groomed green fields, you can come across the ruins of a Roman villa of the 1st century BC.
The planting of thousands of trees on the territory and an effective water saving system confirm that caring for the environment is also a priority aspect of the club’s activities. «Alicante Golf» is the first establishment of its kind in Europe to simultaneously receive two of the most prestigious environmental quality certificates: ISO-14.001 and Q-Plus.
ALICANTE GOLF
- Avda. Announcer Vicente Ipolito, 37 03540 SAN JUAN BEACH, AlicantePhone: (+34) 965 15 37 94
- Website: www.alicantegolf
- Email: [email protected]
The result of the updated design is the following: magnificent trees and artificial lakes which can be seen not only by playing and walking, but also by watching from the rooms of the golf club’s own hotel. «Husa Alicante» is located just 800 meters from the beach Playa de San Juan. It has 156 rooms with all the modern amenities and comfort of a four-star hotel, with their own outdoor terrace, and many of the rooms offer fantastic views of the golf courses.
«Husa Alicante» is equipped with 2 swimming pools (one indoor and one outdoor), a sauna, a Turkish bath, a paddle court and a beauty salon for enjoying pampering treatments, as well as 10 conference rooms with natural light and a capacity for up to 280 persons. Staying at such a luxury place will not leave anyone indifferent!
Of course, all guests can also enjoy gourmet cuisine at the golf club – at «Petimetre Restaurant», that is open all day, offering creative dishes from the chef, prepared by using the highest quality and freshest products.
PETIMETRE RESTAURANT
- Table reservation: (+34) 965 29 74 76
- Website: petimetrerestaurant.com
Ancient Towers of Las Torres de la Huerta in the Playa San Juan, Alicante
These towers from the late Middle Ages are located near the golf club. Their history goes back centuries, and therefore today many travel companies in Alicante offer their routes to them – walking or cycling.
The towers of Las Torres de la Huerta were built in the 16th and 17th centuries in the so-called Huerta, part of the land of Alicante, located northeast of the city of Alicante. These areas were irrigated by the waters of the Tibi swamp through a complex system of ditches for growing vineyards.
Wine production was a profitable business and brought great wealth to the municipality, which attracted the Barbary pirates here, who made quick raids across the Mediterranean Sea to get goods and drive the inhabitants into slavery, devastating everything around.
A defensive system was developed here to protect structures against dangerous attacks, that consisted in the timely detection of the presence of hostile ships by using watchtowers on the coast. In precarious situations, the rest of the towers and nearby towns were quickly informed so that their inhabitants could hurriedly seek protection in defensive towers and shelters.
There now remain nineteen such towers, and most of them are privately operated. Some towers have been restored, others have been badly damaged, but each of them keeps its own image and traces of history. The route for exploring the towers is not difficult, it is suitable for both adults and kids, as well as for older persons. A bicycle path leads to almost any tower, making access to the sights as convenient as possible.
It is worth start getting to know the towers from La Torre Sarrió. This tower is municipally owned and in good condition, thanks to a restoration carried out a few years ago. On the tower La Torre Sarrió, there is an inscription that allows to find out its age: 1594. At the base of the tower, there is also a slope, which refers it to the buildings of the late 16th century. This tower belongs to the house built next to it. Some towers have small raised gates that are locked from the inside and connected to stairs to make it difficult for invaders to enter.
Most towers have three floors. Windows are small round openings that give a good view, but also provide good protection.
The inhabitants of these structures also had a water supply, thanks to which it was possible to withstand a long siege. The walls of the tower are very thick: they reach one and a half meters in some parts. In the masonry were used stones, most of which were brought from La Serra Grossa in Alicante. But looking closer, we can see different colors of stones of the towers, which means that they were taken from different places.
Even though the tower La Torre Sarrio is in the middle of a roundabout and daily traffic, once inside, reality seems to dissolve. The top floor with a terrace is particularly impressive, offering great views. The main value of the towers lies in the fact that they were located at strategic points from where other towers were visible, as well as the Mediterranean Sea, from which the invaders came.
In most of the towers of Las Torres de la Huerta, drawings and indentations on the wall can be seen, probably to count the ships, which were sighted. In other towers, even drawings of these ships can be found, and thanks to the detailed characteristics, it was possible to understand what their flags were.
Also, there is a clear distinction between towers in the garden and watchtowers, as the former were square while the latter were round.
The next tower is La Torre Castillo de Ansaldo, also known as La Torre Mauro, topped with battlements. This tower is one of the most famous in the area, as it is located between the recreation and F&B areas, which is convenient for tourist visits.
Then comes La Torre Ferrer, where the first thing that jumps out: it has a slightly lower height than the previous ones. Therein, two different stone shades can be clearly seen. This tower is owned by the municipality and has also been restored. Together with the tower La Torre Mauro, they are closest to the cape. Like most other towers, La Torre Ferrer was attached to a house, which is currently disappeared.
Further on the way is La Torre Ciprés, which is also subject to restoration. This is a rich tower, completely built of hewn stone. All details such as the shape of its semi-circular arched door betray the era when it was built. La Torre Ciprés dates back to 1565: a similar accuracy is associated with the inscriptions in the house built at the same time in the neighborhood. Since 1661, a chapel has also been added here – Ermita Del Ciprés, dating from 1668 and to this day also in need of restoration.
Without leaving the road El Camino del Ciprés of the same name, the tower La Torre Mitja can be got easily. It is the only one whose house is separated from the tower. An interesting fact is that this is one of the few towers inhabited to this day.
The road then leads to the tower La Torre Plasia, where it could be seen the remains of a modern dwelling that was built in the 80s of the last century. It is assumed that the name of the tower comes from its heiress named Dª Plácida Mingot (late XVII century).
The next tower is La Torre Rejas, one of the best restored, which is now a part of the restaurant. The owners let their guests enjoy this tower and its exceptional views. It keeps sketches of ships detected at the sea, which were made from observation towers. The researchers attribute the belonging of some of the depicted ships to the English fleet. Climbing the tower, you can make sure that all the towers were ideally located and connected to each other in order to give the necessary warning signals in case of detection of invaders.
There’s the tower La Torre Conde in the track ahead. That is a private and renovated structure. It is also one of those, which have kept sketches of ships on their walls. To continue with our list, the tower La Torre Boter is one of the tallest structures. The house attached to it has a massive Maltese cross over its door. The building has a gable roof, which it acquired in the middle of the XX century.
And the next tower is La Torre Cacholí, which received this name by adapting the French surname of the owners.
Passing by the Count’s House of De Soto Ameno, the tower La Torre Villagarcía appears, built in 1698 by captain Boacio in an era when there were no more invasions, which marked the luxurious nature of the tower structure.
The next tower, La Torre Santa Faz, was built by the owners with four watchtowers. On the ground floor, La Torre Santa Faz connects to the monastery. This structure looks strong, impressive and much larger than the previous ones. Its role was to protect the House of de Santa Faz, which had its own garrison.
Visitors can admire these and other towers along the above-described or independent route, for example, as follows: multimedia.comunitatvalenciana.com
Private Educational Institutions in the Area of Playa San Juan
Of course, there are many public schools in Playa San Juan, as in any other area of Alicante. But it is about private schools we’ll talk further. Usually those, who are interested in living in this prestigious area, prefer not to save on the education of their children, in order to give them a strong base for a successful future.
Escuela Infantil La Mar Salada in the Area of Playa San Juan
This institution is perfect suitable for the little ones. There is a nursery that accepts children from 4 months to 3 years. In addition to educational games, children are taught English and Spanish, there are theater and music classes, as well as speech therapy class.
In addition, if one requires the services of a babysitting out-off-school, then they can be found right here. The school also has a children’s summer camp.
Escuela Infantil La Mar Salada
- Address: Calle Manuel Azaña, s/n, 03540 Alicante
- Phone: (+34) 965159742
- Website: escuelalamarsalada.com
European School Alicante in the Area of Playa San Juan
The idea of this school was born in Luxembourg in 1953 at the initiative of a group of European officials in order to bring together students of different nationalities and languages.
The success of this pedagogical experiment prompted the European community to open a network of schools in various countries, including Spain. The European School in Alicante was established by the High Council of European Schools in November 2000, as amended by the new convention on the status of European schools (BOE No. 110 of 6.05.2004).
The school opened in September 2002 with preschool and primary educational levels, and in September 2003, a secondary educational level was added.
The school teaches 4 languages: Spanish, English, French and German.
After completing the Bachelor’s degree, at the end of the 6th and 7th years of secondary school, graduates receive a European Baccalaureate Diploma, which allow to get access to universities in all states of the European Union.
European School Alicante
- Address: Av Locutor Vicente Hipólito, s/n, 03540 Alicante
- Phone: (+34) 965269595
- Website: escuelaeuropea.org
El Valle Alicante Collage in the Area of Playa San Juan
This is an international college, a bilingual center, where almost all subjects are taught in English. From the 4th elementary grade, German is added as a second foreign language.
From preschool, all school children can use i-pads to get access to learning information appropriate to their age. Later, students are also taught using a laptop with digital books.
The college offers pre-school education, including morning and evening kindergarten, as well as Elementary School, Secondary School and Higher Education. At the same time, a high school graduation certificate can be obtained in two ways: a document of a Spanish High School, which is adapted to the curriculum that meets the requirements of Spanish laws, or an International High School diploma that allows students to easily enter all leading European universities.
The college also provides:
- School transport;
- Medical office;
- Psychological and pedagogical office;
- Two scientific laboratories;
- Library;
- Two outdoor sports grounds;
- Indoor pavilion and heated swimming pool;
- Music class with an assembly hall;
- Extensive recreation areas.
Colegio El Valle Alicante
- Address: Av. de la Condomina, 65, 03540 Alacant, Alicante
- Phone: (+34) 965155619
- Website: colegioelvallealicante.com
Infrastructure of the Playa San Juan Area, Alicante
The infrastructure of the area Playa San Juan is well developed and there is everything you need for a comfortable life and recreation. There is a large supermarket chain: Mercadona, Aldi, Consum, etc., and lots of small shops with fresh fruits and vegetables. Also, there are private and public schools, pharmacies, a public medical center (Centro de Salud), shopping centers – Centre Commercial Fontana and Centro Comercial Torre Golf, the park Parque La Marjal, the health center Club Deportivo Arena Alicante, etc.
In Parque La Marjal, there are many paths, cozy benches, greenery and a small pond where visitors can feed ducks. A little higher, there is Parque Canino de Playa de San Juan, where dogs are allowed to walk. Also, in this park, there is a large special tree, hung with colorful ribbons. Here everyone can tie their own ribbon in memory of a four-legged friend who’s gone.
There are a lot of restaurants and cafes in the Playa San Juan area and it is very easy to find something to your taste, whether it is traditional Spanish cuisine (for example, Mauro Restaurante and Restaurante Baeza&Rufete); Mediterranean cuisine (for example, Restaurante Toch), or Italian cuisine (for example, La Mafia se sienta a la mesa).
Fast food facilities include Macdonalds, Burger King and pizzerias (La Ricetta Ristopizza&Bar, Via Gustosi Pizzeria and Don Pino).
Also in this area there are branches of two large Spanish banks – CaixaBank and BBVA.
The wonderful manor of Finca Torre Bosch offers its beautiful open-air location in the northern part of the Playa San Juan area for all kinds of celebrations: weddings, birthdays and anniversaries, as well as business conferences are arranged here.
Finca Torre Bosch
- Address: Avda. Conrado Albadalejo, 3, Alicante, 03540, Spain
- Phone: (+34) 665 79 69 28
- Website: torrebosch.com
San Juan Holiday in Playa San Juan, Alicante
The San Juan holiday has its roots in the pagan celebration of the summer solstice, that is why to these days there are popular jumping over bonfires on the beach. However, with the Christianization of European territories, this holiday was renamed the day of St. John the Baptizer. But the bonfires did not disappear from this fact – on the contrary, now they have become the Bonfires of St. John (Spanish: Hogueras de San Juan) and have become a favorite national holiday that celebrated on June 24 in both Spain and many other European countries.
Although this noisy festival is held everywhere: in Benidorm, Teulada Moraira, Torrevieja, Javea, etc., but its most magnificent and vibrant celebration is held annually in Alicante. Bright festivities continue from June 19 to June 24.
Before the main events at the beginning of June, there is an exhibition of street figures – ninots; a competition for the best paella, for which the Valencian community is so famous, and a solemn opening ceremony of the holiday. On June 23, the locals arrange a show with the participation of riders and light ritual bonfires that need to be deftly jumped over.
After June 24, colorful fireworks splash everywhere, sports competitions and a crowded colorful fair with traditional souvenirs take place. On the last night of the festival, the main action is transferred to San Juan Beach, accompanied by songs and dances, attracting many foreign tourists and residents of the surrounding area.
Property in the Area of Playa San Juan, Alicante
After all the above, here the question arises: how much does real estate cost in this developed, promising and elite area of Alicante? According to the portal idealista.com, the median housing value in the area of Playa de San Juan is at 2,537 €/m2, as for February 2022.
- A studio with the total area of 31 m2 will cost 59,900 €, the price includes a parking lot and using of the communal pool.
- An apartment of 45 m2 with one bedroom will cost 110,000 €, a two-bedroom apartment of 56 m2 is at 120,000 €, a three-bedroom apartment of 95 m2 starts from 170,000 €.
- 140 m2 – chalet with three bedrooms and garage starts from 295,000 €.
- Duplex with an area of 140 m2 starts from 265,000 €.
- Detached house with the total area of 189 m2 with a garden, swimming pool, garage and three bedrooms will cost at 437,000 €.
If you are interested in the opportunity to purchase high-quality property as a profitable investment or for your own residence, you can contact our specialists or get acquainted with the housing offer in the catalog.