Altea

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For other uses, see Altea (disambiguation).

Altea

Image:Sin bandera.svg	Image:Escut d'Altea.svg
	Coat of Arms

Location

Coordinates : 38°35′55″N, 0°3′7″W
Time zone : CET (GMT +1)
- summer : CEST (GMT +2)

General information

Native name

Altea (Valencian)

Spanish name

Altea

nickname =

Administration

Country

Spain

Autonomous Community

Valencian Community

Province

Alicante

Comarca

Marina Baixa

Geography

Land Area

34.43 km²

Altitude

62 m AMSL

Population

Population

21,898 (2006)

Density

636 hab./km² (2006)

Image:Calle típica Altea Alicante.jpg

A street of Altea by night

Altea is a Valencian town and municipality located in the province of Alicante, Spain, north of Benidorm on the section of Mediterranean coast called the Costa Blanca. It has an area of 34.4 km² and, according to the 2002 census, a total population of 17,608 inhabitants.

At present, the economy of Altea is based on tourism, which started to grow in the 1950s because of its good weather, beaches and the beauty of its labyrinthine streets with whitewashed house-fronts. Altea is protected on the north by the bluffs of the Serra Bernia, creating an especially mild microclimate. Its seafront esplanade is planted with palms.

Image:Altea3.jpg

La Mare de Déu del Consol

The Iberian coastal settlements at the mouth of the Algar River in the wide Bay of Altea were joined by a Greek marketplace, named Althaia.^[1] During the Moorish domination the land around Altea belonged to the Taifa de Denia until it was recaptured by Christian Spaniards in 1244 under James I of Aragon. The town was quickly fortified, and walls were erected to enclose what is now known as the "old town" from outsiders. This maze of cobbled narrow and crooked streets with glimpses of the bay is one of the better features of the town. One of its places of tourist interest is the church of La Mare de Déu del Consol ("Our Lady of Solace"), easily identifiable by its picturesque blue and white domes, tiled with glazed ceramics.

Image:Altea01.jpg

Streets of Altea

Altea shares a campus of the University Miguel Hernández.

The city is a member of Douzelage.

[edit] References

^ Althaia, with an implication of curative power, was the name of several nymphs in Greek mythology, and of the mother of Meleager.

[edit] External links

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Wikimedia Commons has media related to:

Altea

Altea-Info, Good Information-Guide of Altea - in German and English
Altea, Guide to area with links to Altea sites and images of the area in English
Douzelage: Altea
Altea-Info, Photo gallery of Altea

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v • d • e Municipalities of Marina Baixa
L'Alfàs del Pi · Altea · Beniardà · Benidorm · Benifato · Benimantell · Bolulla · Callosa d'En Sarrià · Confrides · Finestrat · El Castell de Guadalest · La Nucia · Orxeta · Polop · Relleu · Sella · Tàrbena · La Vila Joiosa	Image:Flag of the Land of Valencia (2x3 ratio).svg