32 Discovering The Costa Blanca COSTA NEWS, August 19-25, 2016

f you want to see the realMediterranean, head over to

Tabarca! This small unspoilt is-land, lying four nautical milesoff Alicante coastline, is steepedin history and preserves a tradi-tional way of life despite the in-vasion of day-trippers in sum-mertime. It’s almost like beingwhisked back to the 1950s beforethe tourist boom hit the Costas!

Tabarca is the only inhabitedisland in the Valencia Regionand was one of the first pro-tected nature and marine re-serves created in Spain. Roughly1,800 metres long and measuringonly 400 metres at the widestpoint, it was originally known asIsla Plana, the ‘flat island’.

On a hot summer’s day,there’s nothing nicer than a boattrip, a cooling light wind in yourhair and the anticipation ofseeing new sites... even if you’renot into boats, the pleasant 15minute ride on a calm sea fromSanta Pola harbour is a breeze!

Tabarca is the perfect placefor a day out… history, sea,beaches and fabulous local cui-sine! Santa Pola harbour is thenearest departure point and thefrequent service features pas-senger ferries, glass bottom cata-marans, fast boats and water

IBy Karen Marco taxis. Standard tickets are

normally open ended, so passen-gers can depart in the morningand return sometime in theafternoon, or even on a differentday. There are also scheduledboat departures from Torreviejaand Alicante, and El Campello(summer only).

For a truly unique and mem-orable experience, charter ayacht for the day! Sit back andlet the crew take you, yourfriends or family on a fabulousouting to Tabarca Island… don’tforget your swimwear, towel,shades, hat and suntan lotion!You can pack a picnic or havelunch at one of the informalbeachfront restaurants. Laze onboard, have a turn at the helm,swim or snorkel in the sea… thiswill be a day to rememberforever.

The island is an interestingplace to explore with a smallharbour and the main crescentshaped beach. Several seafrontrestaurants offer typical cuisine,fresh seafood and rice dishes arespecialities; reasonable menu ofthe days are usually available.

Tabarca Museum is locatedon the strip of land that separ-ates the harbour from the beach,in a reconditioned tuna fishingwarehouse. Discover the history

of the island, the marine life andthe villagers’ traditional way oflife in the past.

The original fortified villagedates to XVIII and was built togive shelter to Genovese fisher-men and their families, whowere captive in the Tunisiantown of Tabarka.

Enter the walled villagethrough an ancient archway andyou’ll find yourself in anotherworld. Tabarca is traffic free, soyou can leisurely stroll along theunpaved ‘main street’ and nar-row side ‘roads’, lined withwhitewashed traditional fis-hermen’s houses trailed withbright bougainvillea.

Places of interest include themonumental San Pablo church,

the central plaza where childrenplay and old folk sit under shadytrees, and the amazing lookoutpoints with stunning viewsacross the sea to the Alicantecoastline.

Accommodation and facil-ities are specially limited to acouple of small hotels andfamily-run holiday homes,corner shops, local bars and ea-teries. In the evenings, when thelast tourist boats have departed,watch the sun setting over theocean, enjoy the peaceful villageatmosphere in the evening andget up at dawn to capture thesunrise on camera. Above all,the island provides the chance todisconnect from the world andtruly relax.

The rest of the island extendsto the east - you can walk mostof the way around the low, flat-tish isle along sandy trails; you’llsee the lighthouse, an old prisontower and the small graveyard.There are tiny coves and bays,and invariably yachts andlaunches anchored offshore.

The underwater world isteeming with sea life, an authen-tic marine reserve ideal for snor-kelling; special permission isrequired for scuba diving andfishing is now banned.

Coordinates: 38°10'00.4"N0°28'50.5"W

You can see more featuresabout the Costa Blancaon my personal travel blog:www.KaliTravel.net

Photo courtesy of Alicante City Tourist Board

Photo by K. Marco Photo courtesy of Alicante City Tourist Board

Photo by K. Marco