Alicante - What to see in Alcoy, in addition to the Moors and Christians

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Bridge in Alcoy in the province of Alicante

Whenever I think of Alicante its Mediterranean climate of warm temperatures comes to mind year-round.

But in Alicante not everything is sun and beach, but also interior lands that we wanted to know, and what better than visit the city of Alcoy, town surrounded by natural parks.

Located 54 kilometers from Alicante and 105 from Valencia, Alcoy It is a town full of medieval heritage Y modernist, which had great importance during the industrial revolution and the Civil war Spanish.

Cavalcade of the Magi in Alcoy in Alicante

Known as the city of bridges, currently from the tourist point of view it stands out for its two recognized parties loaded with traditions.

On the one hand its famous Moors and Christians parties in which the era of the Reconquest of the peninsula, and on the other, its parades of the Three Kings Cavalcade In Christmas.

They have been precisely the Christmas parties those that have led us to know Alcoy, where we could not miss the opportunity to discover its other attractions.

What to see in Alcoy

I detail below what places you can see in your visit to Alcoy.

Corner of the historic center of Alcoy in Alicante

Explora Museum

A great success we had on our trip was visit the Explora museum Just arrived. It is a museum that is not located in the center of the city, but on the outskirts of the surrounding wall, right on the riverbed.

It was very useful to give us a fairly accurate idea of ​​what the city of Alcoy offers.

It's something similar to what a visitors Center and it is a perfect starting point that made us understand better what we later saw in the walk through Alcoy.

In this museum, all the periods that this area of ​​Alicante has lived through, from its origins to the present, are reviewed.

The exhibition is structured in several themes such as history, industry, modernism, city and traditions. Do not miss the map in 360 degrees that we found great.

By clicking on the buttons of each of the visited sites, it marks you with a white light where they are located on the map to help you locate all the enclaves within the municipality.

Natural Park of the Font Roja in Alcoy

Font Roja Natural Park

Alcoy It has almost 70 percent of its area listed as a natural park, specifically, two parks, the Red Font, that takes its name from the color of the earth and the one we walk on our visit, and the Sierra de Mariola.

The Red Font It is one of the three most visited natural parks in the entire Valencian Community, Next to the Albufera of Valencia and the Peñon de Ifach in Calpe and the most visited by schools that come to perform various activities.

In times when there was no habit of going to the beach on summer vacations, people went up to spend the holidays in the mountains to spend the summer with a cool temperature.

Hence the great importance that natural parks have had over time for the city of Alcoy.

The Red FontIn particular, it has a very important peculiarity such as that, within the network of protected natural spaces, which are 22 natural parks, it is the only representative of the Mediterranean forest, in addition to being one of the few mixed forests that remain.

Natural Park of the Font Roja in Alcoy

It is a small forest with many species of fauna and flora, some of them absolutely unique.

But what we didn't know and could discover there is that the Park of Red Font It is a very important enclave to see the historical customs of the inhabitants of the area through the centuries.

It has several examples of the use of the forest as it was done in other times, such as remains of snow pits to make ice, which are practically no longer left, or old coal bunkers.

In the visitor area is the Center Font Roja Natura, which was once a splendid hotel, and is currently an exhibition and congress center.

Next to the center is the Hermitage of the Virgin of the Lilies, co-patron of Alcoy, where every third Sunday of September goes to pilgrimage for veneration.

Sierra de Mariola in Alcoy in Alicante

Do not stop visit the viewpoint that you can find going up from the parking lot, just a kilometer, from where you can see all the Sierra de Mariola and from where we get one of the best panoramas of the whole area. You will not regret.

If you have time and want to enjoy nature, you can travel one of the routes established by its trails to get to know the forest in depth.

Specific information about the routes can be collected within the aforementioned Font Roja Natura center.

Alcoy parties

If there are two important events in the city are its famous and traditional parties which thousands of people from all over the community attend.

Museum of the Moors and Christians Festival in Alcoy in Alicante

With the Feast of the Moors and Christians the battles occurred during the Reconquest in the Middle Ages.

In the Town Hall Square they place a castle that serves as a stage for the reenactments of the battles. On different days the conquest of the Muslims is dramatized, and the next day, the reconquest of the Christians.

They are a few days full of parades where the alcoyanos are dressed in period clothing from different sides.

The other event that arouses great interest is the parades of the days of the Magic kings's horse riding. They are two days where the illusion of Christmas is lived like nowhere since it is about the oldest ride in Spain.

We were lucky to be able to live it, and here we tell you everything you need to know about this exciting Christmas party in Alcoy.

About these two events have been created in city two museums that are almost together, one dedicated to each party, which are interesting to visit if you getaway to Alcoy It doesn't match any of these popular parties.

In museums you will find, for example, costumes donated by parade participants, as well as explanatory videos of all the events that take place in the city during those days.

Historic Center and Wall

When we talk about Alcoy remember that the city is declared Historic Artistic Set with several goods of cultural interest.

The founding letter of the Alcoy City It dates from 1256 in the middle of medieval times, and already in the thirteenth century it was surrounded by a wall from which several sections have been recovered.

So from the wall we could know the Na Valora and Naixa towers and the portals of Riquer and Sant Roc.

Alcoy Spain Square in Alicante

The historic center is heir to the town planning of the second half of the nineteenth century, where you can see perfectly the influence of the modernist architecture of Catalonia.

The Spain Square It is the nerve center of the city from where you can visit most interesting points.

The church of San Mauro and San Francisco, Dins Square and theLotja de San Jordi These are the points that you must visit next to the mentioned square of Spain.

One of the essential streets to see is Sant Nicolau, which part of the Plaza de España and where the Industrial Circle.

This center is a perfect enclave to understand life during the industrial revolution in Alcoy, where the separation of classes between workers and industrialists is expressed in the architecture and spaces used for each class.

Corner of the historic center of Alcoy in Alicante

Do not stop looking at the forges of the balconies of modernist houses, as Alcoy It was very important in the metallurgy industry and there it is perfectly reflected.

If you go up the Sant Nicolau street, do not forget to stop to visit the Tirisiti Square, historical character of the city and Christmas of Alcoy.

Civil War Shelter

Due to the great industrial importance that the city had, during the Civil war All factories had to be converted.

Thus, those of textile began to produce military suits and those of metallurgy began to manufacture armament, as was the case with grenades.

Alcoy Industrial Circle in Alicante

This made Alcoy it became the target of the bombings, which forced the city to build numerous shelters to protect the population near the important nuclei.

Almost all of the center and the factory and school areas are full of shelters.

As a curiosity they told us that shelters they were constructed with an "L" shape at its entrance to avoid the effects of the bomb blast.

When the war was over, all the shelters were closed and abandoned, which has favored their conservation, and currently one of them has been enabled for their visit, and a second refuge is being recovered.

At refuge museum You can see, among many objects of the contest, an interesting audiovisual show interviews with inhabitants of the city who lived inside the shelters.

Bridge in Alcoy in the province of Alicante

Twill

Twill is a Neolithic settlement where the first remains of civilizations have been found in the area, which date back about 40,000 years ago.

You can also see some prehistoric cave paintings declared World Heritage, and also remains of Iberian writing have been found in a rocky area, which have not yet been deciphered.

Municipal cemetery

Lately there is a European current in the visits to the cities that is to know the cemeteries that show something special. In fact there is the European Cemetery Route from which Alcoy It is part since 2012.

Although cemeteries are not one of my favorite places when I visit a city, in this case I was surprised.

This municipal cemetery is a great space to see the social representation where the upper classes had impressive modernist gravestones.

Bridge in Alcoy in the province of Alicante

The exempt pantheon zone It is the one with the greatest richness and artistic variety, authentic micro-architectures where we were told that artists had considerable creative freedom.

The consequence is that now crossing the cemetery trails has become a walk through the different architectural styles that have prevailed in the city, from the eclecticism, until the art deco and the rationalism.

Where to sleep in Alcoy

As last advice based on me Alcoy visit experience, I recommend you stay in a central accommodation near the Spain Square, since it will give you the possibility to move easily walking through the city without using just public transport.

We stayed in the cozy Savoy hostel which is located just two minutes from the aforementioned Spain Square, which allowed us to be able to eat, dine or gain strength every time we need it.

If you are going to visit Alcoy coinciding with one of the important holidays, it is necessary to book well in advance since the city is full and you may be forced to look for accommodation in one of the neighboring towns.

How to get to Alcoy

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