SPAIN  |  Valencia, Spain Travel Guide
Thursday, November 7, 2024
images
7 Of 7

Elche

Elche, Spain (cc)
Photo:
 

Elche Travel Guide

Introduction

Elche, Elx in Valencian, is a city of palm trees – but not just any palm trees, specifically date palms, which were originally introduced to the Iberian Peninsula by the Moors in the 8th century. Thus, not surprisingly, all roads leading into Elche are lined with palms, as are many of the city's inner streets, while the shady green Palmeral – or palm grove – of Elche, which covers some 1,000 acres and boasts more than 200,000 trees, is now a UNESCO World Heritage Site. Elche's other claim to fame is its hugely popular medieval mystery play, Misteri d'Elx, a lyrical dramatization of the Assumption of the Virgin Mary, staged in the city's 17th-century Baroque Basilica de Santa Maria in mid August every year, in which an angel descends from the heavens, emerging from a pomegranate, to announce the sleep and assumption of Mary. The city itself is supremely historic, heir to the early Iberian settlement of L'Alcudia, the site of which lies just to the south of it and where the statute of Dama de Elche – Lady of Elche – was discovered in 1897. It thus has a good store of historic monuments and a fabulous old town with pleasant plazas to show for it. Apart from its historicity, however, Elche has all the trappings of a modern city, with its fair share of restaurants and cafés, shops and boutiques, museums and galleries, and parks and plazas. Elche, besides, is all but a stone's throw from such delectable beach resorts as Torrevieja, as well as the touristy Costa Blanca and bustling Alicante.

Location

Elche is situated in southeastern Spain, just 7 miles (11 km) from the Mediterranean coast. It is 31 miles (50 km) southwest of Alicante, or 2 miles (3 km) north of the site of the ancient Iberian settlement of L'Alcudia. It can be reached by way of Alicante, which has an international airport, from where you can take highway N-340 southwestward to Elche.

How to Get There

Sightseeing

Main Neighborhoods

  • -

  • -

  • -

  • -

How to Get Around

Where to Party

Where to Eat

Where to Stay

Know Before You Go

  • Best Time to Visit: April-October
  • Cost Per Day: €50-€250 (US$65-335)
  • Currency: Euro EUR (€1 ~ US$1.30)
  • Electricity: 230V - 50HZ | Schuko Socket or Europlug with 2 round pins
  • Phone Code: +34
  • Population: 238,000
  • Offcial Website:

Nearby Destinations

© Indian Chief Travel Guides

Last updated November 30, 2013
Posted in   Spain  |  Valencia
No votes yet
Explore the Destination
Amenities and Resources
Trending Themes:

Guides to Popular Ski Resorts

  • Ischgl is a small mountain village turned hip ski resort, with massive appeal among the party-hearty young crowds. It is... Read More

  • Andorra la Vella is its own little world, and not just because it’s a 290-square-mile independent principality (a fifth the... Read More

  • Bariloche (officially San Carlos de Bariloche) is the place to be seen. It is to Argentina what Aspen is to the... Read More

  • Aspen is America's most famous ski resort. And that's an understatement. For, as a ski complex, Aspen is unsurpassed. Its... Read More

  • Zermatt is a small but glamorous mountain resort town, with a population of approximately 5,700. It is one of Switzerland's... Read More

  • St. Moritz is a glitzy, alpine resort town in the celebrated Engadin Valley of Switzerland, with huge notoriety as the... Read More

  • Lake Tahoe is the premier lake resort of America, and the largest alpine lake in all of North America. It is an absolutely... Read More

  • St. Anton, Sankt Anton am Arlberg in German, is Austria's premier ski-bum resort! It's actually a small village cum... Read More

  • Kitzbühel, a small, Tyrolian resort town in the Kitzbüheler Alps, comes with international renown and huge snob appeal, and... Read More

 

Copyright © 2010-2013 Indian Chief Travel Guides. Images tagged as (cc) are licensed under the Creative Commons CC-BY-SA license.