Alicante

Alicante – What you should know

Alicante is among the driest places in Spain. July averages 2 mm across zero rain days, February 11 mm across one — the annual total comes to under 360 mm. Behind this lies its position in the rain shadow of the Baetic mountains, which intercept moist Atlantic air before it reaches the Costa Blanca.

The result is an unusually long season. Summer reaches 31°C in July and August, but May already brings 24°C and October still 25°C. The Mediterranean follows with a lag: it warms to 27°C by August and is still 22°C in October — making October one of the best months here.

Winter is the real reason so many northern Europeans overwinter on the Costa Blanca: 17–18°C in January and February with six to seven hours of sunshine daily. That is not enough for swimming — the water falls to 14°C — but plenty for golf, cycling and walks along the Explanada. The only appreciably wet spell falls in September and October at 42 to 55 mm.