Villajoyosa - a joyful town.
Nestled between Benidorm and Alicante , this small and colourful town whose name means Joyful Town, hides a deep history that over shadows it’s neighbour in many ways. It’s culture like many areas in this part of Spain is an amalgam of a number of historic or ancient civilisations, each influencing the development of this place albeit often subjecting it to the tragedies of the times on this stretch of coastline.
The colourful buildings along the sea front and into the old town are sited on the location where in previous times events troubled generations for hundreds of years, as it’s sea shore was terrorised by armies from other lands including corsairs and pirates. Today it’s a beautiful place to stay , altogether different from it’s noisy neighbour in Benidorm, a more recent usurper to the tourist sector, offering a shelter from the madness and intensity happening just up the road. Don’t get me wrong Benidorm is an amazing place , but there is a need to contrast it against Villajoyosa if an accurate distinction is to be made.
By night or day the most obvious thing you notice is the coloured buildings, a historical nod to a previous time and the custom of fisherman painting their homes different colours, so as make them more visible to the eye as they approach their home port from the sea. Today it is regulated that these houses must be painted in the same colour and this colour cannot be changed in order to ensure the historic look is maintained.
Above is a picture of a house painter using a traditional approach to the house painting requirement.
A walk along the promenade is a very pleasant affair with lots of smart cafes , bars and restaurants available, as well as great views of the sea and beaches. The sunrises and sunsets here are a joy and the cloud formations surely the work of an artist in the sky.
Time to dive into the history , essential and unavoidable for us as we are both history addicts as you will know if you follow our travels. The history of this place is covered in the below Video and it’s a gripping story.
We stayed at a site called Alicante Imperium - which was ideally located and a 30 min walk to the sea front.
A good site albeit there is some off site noise which might bother some. The site website is here https://www.campingalicanteimperium.com/ .
Public Transport
One of the great benefits of staying in Villajoyosa is that it is located on the Tram line which links Alicante to Benidorm , where a quick change to the train service allows onward transport to Altea, Calpe and Denia. Here is a short video about this service and the ride to Alicante.
The Town of Villajoyosa
Much of the detail of the town is covered in the above video , but in summary it is a ‘Spanish’ town , not overrun with tourism and there is a traditional Spanish way of life to experience here. A great indoor market, a great museum and even a chocolate factory that does tours. It’s well worth a visit.
For more pictures from Villajoyosa please visit our image galleries here https://www.behance.net/gallery/156233363/Villajoyosa-2022
Any further questions about staying at Villajoyosa drop us an email via the contact tab and we’ll be in touch. Best Wishes Helen and Martin
