Elche

The city of Elche is in a truly privileged location. 20 kilometres from Alicante and 50 kilometres from Murcia, it is in a strategic position forming, together with other nearby towns, the southern axis of the Mediterranean Arc, a district that boasts great dynamism in both demographic and economic terms.

Elche is in an area with good land, sea and air communications. El Altet International Airport is located within its boundaries and it is also close to the provincial capital’s sea port. Road communications are also good, linking it to the Mediterranean toll motorways and the motorway to Madrid, while the rail links will soon include a station for the AVE high speed train.

The Palm Grove (better known as Palmeral de Elche in Spanish, or as Palmerar d’Elx in Valencian) it’s an orchard of over 200,000 palm trees that was declared a World Heritage Site by UNESCO in 2000.

The Mystery Play of Elx (better known as Misteri d’Elx, in Valencian) is a sacral-lyrical medieval drama, dated from the 15th century, which was declared a Masterpiece of the Oral and Intangible Heritage of Humanity by UNESCO in 2002. It is played every year in mid August, in the context of the local holidays dedicated to the Assumption of Virgin Mary. Also as a part of this celebration, on the 13th of August is the date of a celebration in Elche/Elx called Nit de l’Albà (Night of the Dawn) in which a city-wide night-long show of fireworks takes place.

Elche is a nice place for living. Part of the municipality is coastal but the main city is some 15 km (9.5 miles) from the Mediterranean Sea. According to the 2006 census, Elche has a population of approximately 220,000 inhabitants (called il·licitans in Valencian and ilicitanos in Spanish), ranking as the third most populated city in the Valencian Community and the second within the Alicante province. A small creek called Vinalopó flows through the city splitting it in two parts.

Best link: www.turismedelx.com

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Photo: Adriano Agulló

Tags: elche, elx