La Vila Marinera
La Vila Joiosa, its people and its history have been shaped by the sea. Its twelve kilometres of coastline with its thirteen beaches, its traditional fishing industry, its Royal shipyards, which in 1860 became the second largest naval shipyard in Spain, its importance throughout history as the main port in the area for both passengers and merchandise... are some of the facts that allow us to understand how the sea has modeled the future of this town and its people. That is why La Vila Marinera is a must for all those who want to get to know and understand the open nature and idiosyncrasy of this Costa Blanca town.
The seafront of La Vila Joiosa is full of colour and history. There are several options for accessing the town's seafront promenade, where we find the sandy Playa Centro, which is more than 1.5 kilometres long. We recommend the descent along the Costera la Mar, which allows us to contemplate the Renaissance walls that surround the Old town, one of the best preserved in the Valencia Region. This descent takes us down to the statue of Dr. Esquerdo, a distinguished neighbour of La Vila who was the national leader of the Republican party and the father of modern psychiatry, and who gives his name to the city's promenade.
The northern part of the promenade takes us to the old town, to the fishermen's quarter who painted their houses in different colours to be able to distinguish them from the sea. An attractive and colourful maritime façade that invites us to wander through the narrow streets and discover each of the corners and charms of this old quarter, an example of the traditional polychrome of the western Mediterranean, along with Malta, Girona and some Venetian neighbourhoods.
If we continue our walk to the north, we reach the Arsenal area, where the Amadorio river flows into the sea. After the regeneration and adaptation of the riverbed as a promenade, this area has turned it into a beautiful and pleasant walkway from which it is possible to contemplate the most photographed and most 'famous' picture of La Vila Joiosa, the coloured houses on the Renaissance wall.
The southern part of the promenade allows us to walk along the Playa Centro, following a cultural route that allows us to discover some of the curiosities of La Vila Joiosa's recent past, such as the Neptuno Spa or the lighthouse that were located on this beach but which unfortunately disappeared during the 20th century. The end of the beach is called 'Basseta l'Oli' (little oil pond) because of the calmness of its waters and in fact in this area there is an 'Accessible Beach' point which was a pioneer in its day and which allows people with reduced mobility the opportunity to enjoy refreshing baths in the sea during the summer.
Following the promenade, next to Playa Centro, we find the marina. The Club Nàtic La Vila was founded in 1964, with the aim of channelling the love of sea sports in all its forms. This aim has been more than fulfilled, since in its facilities you can learn with its 'Escola de Mar' and practice countless nautical sports such as kayaking, sailing, diving, rowing and windsurfing.
It also has different teams that have achieved great titles at national and world level in different modalities, and it is also the organiser club of national and international events such as the Eurochallenge of Kayak, annually in May, or the European Kayak Championship in 2018.
Since 1995 it has been awarded the 'Blue Flag' every year, for the care and improvement of its facilities and specially for its impeccable management under environmental care parameters such as waste recycling or the programming of environmental protection and environmental activities.
Opposite the marina we can see the fishing port, where we reach by following the route along the promenade. On the way to the port we find the 'Santa Marta Shipyards' as a reminder of the importance of shipbuilding in La Vila Joiosa. Since the 15th century the shipyards were in the arsenal and ships were built there for the Crown and the Corsairs, but during the First World War the largest schooners and pailabots were built, sailing ships of around 400 tons that needed a lot of depth to be launched, so in 1918 they were moved to this area known as Alcocó.
It was shortly before the shipyards were moved to this area, in 1911, when, using the opportunity of the visit of King Alfonso XIII, the neighbours asked him for a port. In the past, the boats used to anchor on the central beach opposite the old town.
The king granted the request and in 1917, the engineer Juan Diamante drew up the project. Although work began in 1921, it was not until the 1940s that the first phase of the port was completed. In 1960 the port was extended with the sheltering of the western quay, the marina and the yacht club.
This port is currently home to a fleet of 38 boats, thirty trawlers and eight for gillnetting. Every afternoon the boats return to port surrounded by seagulls searching for food. It is a real visual spectacle as impressive as typical, a picture worth contemplating and immortalising. After the entry and mooring manoeuvres, the unloading of the day's catch begins. Boxes and boxes of fresh fish and seafood are taken to the fish market for sale.
The fishermen's corporation is in charge of managing the sale of fish and seafood at the fish market in La Vila Joiosa. Every afternoon from Monday to Friday from 5 p.m. onwards, wholesalers, restaurateurs, observers and tourists fill the stands of this fish market where the fish and seafood is traded by a reverse auction system . On Thursdays and Fridays the volume of sales increases as the vessels that fish in the Balearic Islands also bring their catches. The trade finishes when all the fish has been sold.
From the fishing port, in addition to feeling the breeze and the aroma of the sea, swaying with the gentle sway of the moored boats and immersing ourselves in a hard and traditional task such as fishing ... From there we can enjoy incredible visits to the bay of La Vila Joiosa, which we must not miss under any circumstances.
