5 Erasmus months in the wonderful Alicante

Why did you choose Alicante?

I've always been fascinated by the idea of living in a "small city", where everything is more concentrated; you only have to walk to see anything you want. In addition to this, I had only heard positive things about Alicante, and above all, the focus of every conversation about this city was the partying. And the fun actually never stopped!

Puerta de Mar square and Santa Barbara castle.

What do you think of the university?

The university is located outside of Alicante, specifically in Saint Vicente. It's a big campus with many faculties. There are many different spaces such as bars, stationery shops, the library, the gym, study rooms, and very pleasant outdoor areas for spending time between lessons.

It's not a problem at all that the university itself isn't located in Alicante, it's very well connected and you can travel there on the 24 bus or on the tram, the journey lasts between 20 minutes-half an hour. The bus is slightly faster than the tram but you normally end up standing for the whole journey. The tram takes a few minutes longer but it's much more spacious.

There's a screen at every bus and tram stop showing all the timetables of arrival in real time. You can buy the ticket as soon as you get on the bus, without having to go to the tobacconist.

Is it also possible to get a transport pass?

Of course. Go to the shop called TAM, on the corner of Calle Alfonso el Sabio and La Rambla, there you can request the pass. If you have a Carta Joven, which you can get from the office of Comunitat Valenciana in La Rambla, you also have a quite convenient discount.

The pass works by journey rather than giving you unlimited journeys for a fixed period of time. I found this quite annoying as, if you change buses after travelling for 5 minutes for example, you have to swipe the card again using another journey on the second bus.

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What area did you live in and how did you find your house?

I started my housing search very early; I was leaving at the end of January and I starting looking at the end of October, but I know that many people found their house only a few days before the start of university. The easiest way to find a house is via Facebook, every semester new groups are created where available rooms and flats are advertised. The filters were also useful, where I can adjust the price, area etc., and see all the available flats that met my requirements.

The area with the best atmosphere is surely that of Mercado Central. I lived there, it was exactly 2 minutes from the Plaza de Toros. It's not the most aesthetically pleasing area of the city but, with regards to services, everything was really close by.

To reach the centre on foot it takes around 6 minutes, and 10-15 mins to get to the sea. In my opinion it's perfect for both the services and the noise level; if you have upcoming exams and you have to do an all-nighter, silence is guaranteed.

The best advice I can give is to avoid living in Saint Vicente. The buses only run until 11pm and if you're a party animal type, you can say goodbye to spending the evenings in Alicante's city centre. It's perfect for getting to uni, but the worst for everything else.

What can you say about the cost of living here?

Honestly, Alicante is generally very cheap. In the Mercado district that I mentioned before, a house for 5 people, with a big living room, kitchen and bath, I paid €220 a month. That's €190 for the room and between €25-€30 for bills. Bear in mind that I was in Alicante between February and June, so we never turned on the heating. The thing that costs the most is the water, so pay attention to this!

The key words regarding food shopping is Mercadona. This fantastic supermarket is well-stocked, quite cheap and just under my house. Furthermore, if you're a fan of markets, you can take advantage of the Market's shopping mornings and feast on the meat, fish, fruit and vegetables. But be mindful of your wallet, it's not as cheap as they say! I, in order to spend less, prefer to go to the little shops like "La Fruteria", where they sell good products for lower prices.

For the rest, drinking and eating out is very cheap. You can get a beer for €2. 50 and a tapas for €1... paradise.

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What's the weather like in general?

From February to March the temperatures are around 18 degrees. From April you can start leaving your jacket at home, May is nice, in June it is very hot.. I can count on one hand the number of times it has rained here.

How did you handle the language? Would you advise taking a Spanish course?

I had already taken a short Spanish course for a month at the Polytechnic University of Turin. It served me quite well as it provided me with the basics of this new language that I'd never studied before. After that, I attended a course offered by the University of Alicante which met twice a week; all the levels were available there and I found myself in the A2 class, although I regret not asking to be moved up to B1 as A2 was too easy. I recommend taking the course because it gives you extra help (and some credits), although I assure you that you'll learn Spanish in the real world, by talking and getting to know the locals and by travelling.

What are Alicante's best tourist attractions?

Well, we say that the culture, the museums and the exhibitions aren't Alicante's strong point. There are some interesting small museums, but the only one, from personal experience, that I can talk about is the Contemporary Art Museum in Plaza Maria. It's a beautiful buildings that houses works of contemporary art, amongst which is a painting by Magritte. It's an interesting museum and free to enter, perfect for a day of boredom when you have nothing to do.

Maria square and Museum of Contemporary Art.

Without doubt, you cannot miss the Santa Barbara castle, emblematic of the city. The climb is a bit tiring, I don't advise doing it in the summer when the temperature is around 35 degrees (but try it at least once). The castle is beautiful, but the most amazing thing is the view one has of the whole city, especially during the descent.

However, my favourite place will always be the Santa Cruz district, it's a fascinating area of the city. When you step foot in this place you'll think you're no longer in Alicante. Everything is vivid, quiet and peaceful. The terrace is unmissable, which you can reach by climbing a few steps.

Santa Cruz district.

Outside of Alicante, in the neighbouring cities, there are many places you must visit. I strongly advise the San Juan beach, which, with respect to the Postiguet beach in Alicante, is much nicer and the sea is very clear, and the Cabo Huerta beach, it's totally natural and unpolluted, with the rocky sea bed that creates tide pools.

And Spanish cuisine? What are the best restaurants for eating out?

The key words is tapas. Spain is famous for this type of cuisine; they are small portions of different food. The most typical are patatas bravas, Spanish potato salad, bread with tomato and ham.

Cerveceria Sento is definitely the best place, it costs a little more than usual tapas bars but it's really worth it. Another place you must try is D'Tablas, it's local, incredibly friendly, good and very cheap. The waiters walk around with big trays and you choose the tapas you want for the unbelievable price of 60 cents apiece. Another tapas bar I'll never forget is called El Sentio on Calle Labradores; it's a small local place, almost easy to walk by and not see it, where the first tapas with a beer costs €1. 50, after which the cost of each tapas is the same.

Mascletà, Racò de plà and El Mosquito, which are quite cheap, are the best restaurants to eat paella.

Alicante is well known for being a party city. What is your opinion?

Everything that is said about Alicante is true. It's a city that never sleeps! Many young people come from nearby towns to spend the night here and I will never forget my nights out in Alicante. The most popular places in the city centre, especially with Erasmus students, are Havana and Carpe Diem, two small clubs that play reggaeton music and that of various other genres. Carpe Diem is very, very cheap.

If you're looking for good quality drinks the first place to go is Coscorron, where you'll find Alicante's best mojito. On the other hand, an amazing place for shots is La Sede, where, in addition to enjoying the incredible hospitality provided by the bartenders, the shots are completely different from anything else and are very good and elaborate.

For those who like clubbing, the best are La Quinta Avenida, Concerto and all the clubs in the harbour.

Are there any cities near Alicante that are worth visiting?

Alicante is in a strategic position; besides the weather and the sea, it's located near fantastic cities such as Valencia, Granada, Seville, Cordoba and many others. You can travel to all of them with Alsa buses, or BlablaCar for those who prefer travelling by car. Also there are groups like Erasmus Life and ESN that organise trips for Erasmus students.

Alhambra, Granada.

In addition to these big cities, Alicante is well-connected by tram with cities like Benidorm, Altea, Calpe and Denia, which I strongly recommend visiting. My favourites are Altea, with its uniquely white centre and its breath-taking beaches, and Calpe, where you can go mountain climbing. Magnificent!

Altea.

In the opposite direction there's also Santa Pola and Torrevieja, famous for its Pink Salt Lake.

When is the best academic period for Erasmus in Alicante?

If possible, go in the second semester. Everything is much better then! Besides the season and weather being nicer, from February to June in Alicante there's one party after another. Most of April is holidays and there are fewer lessons, whereas June is the craziest month of them all. The week of the Hogueras festival is not to be missed. 24 hours of shows, food and parties, followed by a "week of fire", when there's a fireworks show every evening, which get better and better.

Hogueras festival.

Advice for students and tourists going to Alicante?

Enjoy every single second. You will leave this small and enchanting city with great memories and unique experiences.