The town of Moraira, located in the heart of the Marina Alta, belongs to the municipality of Teulada. The latter is located inland, while the former is located on the coast, near other well-known towns on the Costa Blanca such as Calpe, Benidorm or Denia.
This small urban center, with only 1700 registered inhabitants, multiplies its population during the summer, with the high tourist season. Today we show you what to see in Moraira.
If you are on vacation on the Costa Blanca, we recommend you to visit other towns. You can stay at Camping Arena Blanca in Benidorm.
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Coves and beaches of Moraira
Visiting Moraira means enjoying landscapes and environments reminiscent of the Mallorcan and Ibizan coasts, with a wild and unspoiled coastline. Following the coastline, a little more than 10 kilometers away is Jávea, heading north. And less distant, but heading south, are Calpe and the famous rock of Ifach.
Moraira has about eight kilometers of coastline, although much of its coast is rocky and steep, not very accessible by land. Even so, the town offers beautiful beaches and coves that do offer opportunities for bathing and relaxation. The cove of Cap Blanc or Punta Estrella, those of la Galera and l’Andragó, Les Platjetes, the cove of Portixolet, the beach of Portet, the Llebeig cove and the beach of L’Ampolla are all sandy beaches.
Most of these beaches are small, close together and offer good bathing conditions. In many of them you can snorkel and some active tourism companies in the area offer the possibility of renting kayaks to discover them from the sea.
Of all the sandy beaches, the busiest is the beach of l’Ampolla, which is framed next to the town center, is sandy and offers about 40 meters wide to the shore.
Moraira Castle
Beyond the beaches, among the things to see in Moraira you can’t miss its castle. In reality, rather than a great fortress, it is a small defensive bastion, a horseshoe-shaped construction dating back to the 18th century, specifically to the 1740s. This building is located very close to the beach of l’Ampolla and the Senillar marsh, a wetland declared a Wildlife Reserve since 2004.
The most interesting part of the visit to the castle is the permanent exhibition on the coastal defense towers erected during the sixteenth and eighteenth centuries. The purpose of these structures was to warn of possible incursions by Barbary pirates. They are a constant throughout the Mediterranean and even reach the Atlantic coasts, although in some cases their origin dates back to the Muslim era.
Port of Moraira
The Port of Moraira, today a marina, began its activity in 1935. In that year a first dock was built to cope with the power of the waves on the boats during storms.
Until then, the boats were beached on the sand. For decades it remained a small but functional space. It was in 1979 when the expansion of the port was proposed on the occasion of the foundation of the Yacht Club.
Today it is a modern facility adapted to the times that welcomes numerous ships. Historically, it has served as a space for the export of grapes, something that was also done from the regions of the Marinas Alta and Baja.
Old town
Although there are only 1700 people registered in this town, its historical framework is surprising for its beauty. The urban center of Moraira does not arise until the nineteenth century, but it was the construction of the castle a century earlier which led to the appearance of the first fishermen’s houses.
In the 20th century, buildings for vacation purposes began to be built, such as hotels and second homes, as well as stores and restaurants. The most recommendable streets in the historic center are located near the port. Some very popular ones are Barranquet, Dr. Calatayud, Almacenes and Mar.
Cap d’Or Tower
The moment to put an end to a day in Moraira is to go to the Torre del Cap d’Or. It is located to the east of the village, next to the Portet beach. It stands on the peninsula known as Punta de Moraira or Cap d’Or. The small cape is crowned by an ancient watchtower that was erected in the 16th century.
This tower is aligned with all the defensive constructions that are explained in the visit to the castle. The coast of Alicante is full of buildings of this type. Cap d’Or is about 11 meters high and the curious thing is that it is not entered from the base, but from an intermediate area that had to be reached by a rope ladder that was launched from the inside.
This place offers beautiful panoramic views that reach up to the cliffs of Benitatxell and the Ifach rock. If you don’t know what to see in Moraira in one day, here you have an essential visit.
Cave of Ashes
The Cueva de las Cenizas, or Cova de les Cendres, is also located at the tip of Moraira. To get there, follow the SL-CV-51 route. It is located near the cliffs and is named for the curious grayish color of its interior.
This area is one of the most outstanding archaeological sites in the Valencian Community, as vestiges have been discovered that show its occupation since at least 25,000 years ago.
These caves were already inhabited in the Paleolithic era. In turn, ceramic remains have been found from the Neolithic period. And later, the Iberians were another civilization that settled in the Cova de les Cendres, as even today there are still remains of some walls that show that there was an important human settlement there. Some of the objects found in the cave are kept in the Provincial Archaeological Museum of Alicante.
We hope these ideas about what to see in Moraira will serve you as a starting point to enjoy the area. The visit to this small coastal town in Alicante can be completed with a walk through another of the villages of the Costa Blanca.
