Costa Blanca, Spain

In the past I spent several summers in Torrevieja on the Costa Blanca. It's now a mass of urbanisations, but it used to be a much quieter place. Since I learnt to dive, I haven't been back that often, but I have done some diving in the area.

Costa Blanca Map

The area to the south of Alicante tends to be quite flat. There are salt lakes and the mountains are further inland. North of Alicante, the hills come much closer to the sea, which gives some good drop-offs and walls, so the diving tends to be better. The visibility is usually good, though the water is quite cold other than in the summer. Even in the summer, there are thermoclines, so it can get pretty chilly at depth.

It's not somewhere you would go for a diving holiday. Many of the operators only do one dive a day, because the wind often blows up in the afternoon. But it is a good place for a family holiday, or a short break, and it's well worth getting a couple of dives in while you're there. I do recommend that you avoid going there in August if you can. The whole coast gets unbelievably busy and the traffic is horrendous. Come September, it all quietens down and the weather is still hot. If you're going in the Spring or Autumn, bear in mind that it can get quite cold at night. Spanish housing is designed to stay cool in the summer, with tiled floors, so make sure you've got some form of heating in your accommodation.

In 1995 I went to Torrevieja for a couple of weeks and went diving in Santa Pola, Torrevieja, Benidorm and Cabo De Palos, which is near La Manga. Obviously the information may be out of date, but I hope that it at least gives an idea of where the best sites are.

Then in 2001 I went to Pego, which is near Denia, for a 4 day trip over Easter. I did a day's diving down the coast at Moraira.

After a long break, I went out to Torrevieja in 2013 and did some deeper wreck diving using trimix.

• 1995 Torrevieja Trip Report
• 2001 Pego Trip Report
• Torrevieja 2013 Trimix Diving