The Eagle's Nest (Guadalest (Spain))

Member Name: Recon

Product:	Guadalest (Spain)
Date:	02/03/08 (90 review reads)
Rating:

Advantages: Scenic, Many museums, Lovely surroundings, Lots to do, Interesting shops

Disadvantages: Lack of places to eat in the town, Cold and windy in winter months!

Guadalest is a beautiful town set on the top of a mountain, over looking some fabulous countryside right down to the sea. Guadalest is well-known for its castle, which is literally hanging off a cliff. It is obviously quite stable though, and can be walked across to see the spectacular views. Guadalest makes a wonderful day out and you can quite easily spend three quarters of a day in and around the area, as there is quite a bit to do. This has to be the most beautiful area I have visited on the Costa Blanca in Spain, and I would recommend going there.

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Getting There
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If you are staying in or nearby Denia, Javea, Altea, Benidorm, Calpe or Alicante, then it is easy enough to get to Guadalest. If you are coming from Benidorm, then take the CV70 road out of Benidorm and head towards Terra Mitica (the theme park). From here, follow signs to La Nucia until you see the first sign to Guadalest. From here, there will be a 30 minute slow and scenic drive up to Guadalest. If you are scared of heights, then don't look out the window as you really do go up the winding mountain sides! On the way up, you will pass through a town called Polop, so this is a way-point. This is also a lovely town to stop off at with plenty of shops.

If you are driving from Alicante or Denia in the other direction, then head to the National highway, the N332. Then, drive towards the 3318 road that will take you to the 3313, which Guadalest is situated on. You should still go by La Nucia and then through Polop, as it's the only way up really. From Denia, it can take around an hour and a quarter to get there. From Benidorm, it may take 50 minutes or so. It is 25km from Altea, which is a posh city nearby Benidorm.

Once you get close, you will spot the castle on the cliff. It is easy to spot; in fact I saw it from a distance. You may also see a Dam when approaching the town, which can just about be seen from the castle when in Guadalest. It is best to get there early so you can get a parking spot. There is a small car park just as you enter Guadalest on the left by some shops and cafes. Once parked up, a woman will approach you and give you a parking ticket to be displayed in your window for just Euro1.70 for a whole day.

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Setting
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Guadalest is set very high upon a mountain, with its castle being the highlight. I visited in late January. The weather wasn't terrible but it was quite cold and most of all very windy. In the summer, it is a wonderful place and can get quite warm so you won't need winter jackets then! It drizzled a bit when I was there, probably because it was so high up. There were no major weather conditions such as heavy rain. Nearby from Polop on your way up, you can also visit the stunning Algar Falls. This is a waterfall that can be swam in, and is remarkable in the summer and quite a popular tourist attraction. It is a very beautiful waterfall set in lovely surroundings.

The castle is built right at the top of the town, and the Moors considered it as a strategic location because of this. Some of the castles walls still stand today, as most were unconquerable, despite being bombarded in the 18th century in the Spanish war of succession. From the top of the castle, there are a few telescopes that you can pay to look through. You can view the fabulous reservoir from the castle walls as well as admire the fascinating views right to the sea. The reservoir is normally a lovely turquoise colour with plenty of green trees up the mountain side opposite you, giving a fantastic view. Also, you will notice in many postcards and yourself the bell tower of Penon de la Alcala. This is a white tower with working bells that are sounded every now and then. It has a fancy roof and is literally built into the cliff and looks brilliant!

Once parked up, you can head across the road towards the town. On your left is a stall of all kinds of dried fruit and nuts as well as a few sweets. This place is quite expensive and I wouldn't recommend buying anything there. On your right is the Micro-Gigantic museum. Continuing down the pebbled path, you will pass an alley to your right, with the torture museum located at the bottom. As you reach the end of this path, you start to climb a bit and then walk to a path that walks you along the cliff side. As you go downhill, there is an attraction on the left, which features a gigantic insect that you can walk under, as well as lovely gardens, plants and trees. This was closed in the winter, but I am sure it opens in the summer. This is where the Ribera Girona museum is, displaying art and architecture with the magical gardens outside.

At the end of this path, you can either head back to the right to climb further down the path towards the bottom of the town, or you can head straight on through the tunnel towards the old town. path right brings you up close with palm trees that stand tall from the landscape below the tall wall. At the bottom of this path, you will find the Doll's house & toy museum. If you continued through the tunnel, then you would reach the old town. The tunnel is carved out of the cliff, and it's like you are transported back in time when you walk through it. After having your photo shot by the cameraman, you are faced with the church in front of you. Key rings or photos can be bought after your photo has been shot, which are actually quite nice as they show a fabulous background. However, if you bring your own camera, then they are totally free! The buildings in the old town are very different, and there are more museums and shops here. The ethnological museum is the first you will pass with the miniatures museum further ahead. At the top of this path are the town hall and a viewing point with telescopes to look over the fabulous surroundings and reservoir. This is the peak of Guadalest and is a breathtaking place to spend a few minutes at.

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Shopping
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I found Guadalest a superb place for shopping, although it may seem they sell tacky tourist goods. As well as the tacky things, there is a good range of weird and wonderful objects that can be purchased; some of which are very unique! By the car park, there are some shops here. There are a couple that sell the same kind of things. They sell really Spanish rugs as well as pottery and sets of salt/pepper containers as well as olive sets. These shops contain a lot of random things along with T-Shirts and jewellery.

We actually bought a few of these fabulous Spanish rugs as well as some other things like bendy salad servers. One shop here sells a lot of sets such as cutlery sets and all utensils. The same shop had these amazing clocks that you could stare at for ages! They had a swinging piece of string with a ball on the end. As it swung, it wrapped itself round the pole (one on each side). It then swung the other way and back to wrap round the other way. Finally, it would swing right round to the other side to repeat the same thing. The way it worked was just fabulous, all by the motion of this small ball on the end of some string. Another shop there was entirely devoted to works of art and jewellery. It was a very modern shop and was closed for siesta with a little dog barking at the door until it opened later on. It had automatic lights that went on and off as you walked near certain areas. They sold many things from earrings, necklaces and key rings to vases and all kinds of ornaments.

In the old town, there were more shops. There was one shop here that was simply brilliant and I thoroughly enjoyed looking around as well as buying many things! It is on the same side as the church half way up the town. They sell the weirdest things and have such a variety; it's unbelievable that you are in the same shop when in different corners! In one corner they sell copies of Coca Cola merchandise such as money boxes. In another corner, they sold the most fabulous plates for food. They were made from some magical material and coated in glass. The effect that these bowls gave was amazing. They had the most vibrant colours as well as shiny gold, and they seemed to have wonderful textures although the glass coating them made them smooth. We ended up buying quite a few of these as they were so unusual and looked brilliant. They also sold old furniture and toys such as old cars. There was one Chinese chest of drawers that had the most intricate work in it that we ended up buying and it was made of leather with wooden drawers. Overall, this was an amazing shop and well-worth checking out! It was quite busy and another English family bought a bunch of those fabulous bowls and plates straight after us in amazement of how unique they were. Everything here was ever so cheap as well in all of the shops! One of these bowls may have cost around Euro25 for a large-sized one, which is ridiculously cheap!

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Eating
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There aren't many places to eat in the town itself; however there are quite a few cafes. We ended up eating just down the road, around 2 minutes away. It was a restaurant over-looking the fabulous views. They had quick service and the prices weren't bad. I had chicken soup to start, which actually didn't taste very nice at all. I couldn't believe that it was chicken soup as it had a kind of sour taste, which wasn't nice. I then had veal for my main course, which was very tasty and of good quality. For desert, they came round with a trolley and I chose a chocolate cake that had biscuit around the edge, which was fabulous. This was a good restaurant and probably the nicest in the area.

If you aren't too bothered, then just grab a snack at one of the few cafes! To start, there is one just by the car park. It is on the very right when you are facing the shops here, and sells some fast food such as burgers, chips, wraps and more. In the old town to the end, there is another café but they sell nicer things as well as warming drinks for the winter weather! There were a few other places to eat here and there, including another restaurant a further 1 minute down the road from where I ate. I can imagine the cafes and restaurants are very busy in the summer as it is a small town but full of attractions, so bare this in mind.

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Museums
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Perhaps the highlights of Guadalest are all the museums that you can visit! There are loads of them, and some are out of the ordinary, whereas others give you a bit of information on the history of Guadalest and what life was like. In such a confined area, there are many of them and I have constructed a list:

Torture Museum
Micro-Gigantic Museum
Dolls Museum
Ribera Girona Museum
Ethnological Museum
Miniatures Museum

I am aware that there may even be more, but these are the main ones and the best in my opinion. The torture museum isn't far from the car park as you cross the road an enter the town. It is just at the bottom of a side alley and costs Euro4 to enter for an adult and children under 15 are free. It features many of the traditional torture objects and methods of torture. With each recreation or original item, there is a detailed explanation in English and Spanish of what you are looking at, how it was used and who it was used on. It is a very interesting museum with some horrific insights into history, so not for the squeamish!

The micro-gigantic museum is rather similar to the miniatures museum. It is located opposite the car parks just as you enter the town, whereas the miniature museum is towards the top of the old town. The micro-gigantic museum features some amazing miniature works of art such as a bull ring on a pin head, a bible written on a hair, a flea riding a bike on a seed and many more amazing creations! The miniatures museum features the statue of liberty inside a needle, a camel walking through the eye of a needle and the Eifel Tower in the eye of a needle. These museums are ever so interesting and feature the most unique art you may ever see in your life! Telescopes around the museum enable you to get a good look, and some of the art can't even be seen by the naked eye!

The Ribera Ginora museum is situated along the Cliffside just before the tunnel to the old town. This museum displays 29th century art, architecture and landscape with the amazing magical gardens outside. It is a very interesting museum and the gardens outside truly are magical, making it a fantastic experience.

The ethnological museum is actually free to visit. It is in a small building in the old town around 4 floors high, if you count the lower floor as you enter and the very top floor. The museum contains authentic furniture and gives you an idea of what life used to be like in Guadalest. They also have many machines that would have been used to extract olive oil from olives. There is also a little farm area at the bottom with a few fake animals, which may enlighten the little ones! Being free, there is a tray for tips at the bottom, and I would suggest leaving something as it is quite a nice little museum.

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Conclusion
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Guadalest is a very scenic and unique town. It is quite a journey to get to from Denia or Alicante, and even a good 50 minute journey from Benidorm. However, once you are there it is an experience you will never forget. With breathtaking views, fabulous architecture and many museums, it makes a great day out! There aren't too many places to eat, but there are a couple of larger restaurants literally a 2 minute drive from the town if you were heading back towards Polop. The shops are fantastic and sell some traditional things as well as the weird and wonderful. I thoroughly enjoyed my day in Guadalest, and would like to visit back one day to admire the surroundings.

Thanks for reading,

- Recon -

Summary: A beautiful town over-looking the Costa Blanca right up to the sea with fabulous views