Alicante / The verdict
Are Alicante's beaches and San Juan worth it?
Alicante does beaches properly: Postiguet sits right under the castle for a quick city swim, and San Juan, 7 km of golden sand with 40 straight years of Blue Flag, is a 1.45 euro tram ride away. The trick is knowing which one you want.
By The Real Traveler Experiences team.
The Alicante story
Alicante earns its keep the quiet way: a working Spanish city first and a resort second, where Santa Barbara castle looks down on the palm-tiled Explanada and the whitewashed Santa Cruz quarter climbs the hillside behind it. The package crowds stay up the coast in Benidorm, which leaves the tapas bars around the Central Market and the lanes of the old town to actual Alicantinos, with Postiguet beach at the end of the promenade and the long sand of San Juan a tram ride north.
The verdict in 30 seconds
Go
Alicante does beaches properly: Postiguet sits right under the castle for a quick city swim, and San Juan, 7 km of golden sand with 40 straight years of Blue Flag, is a 1.45 euro tram ride away. The trick is knowing which one you want.
Go if
- anyone who wants a real city beach without leaving town
- sun-seekers who prefer San Juan's space and services over a crowded strip
- families: shallow entries, lifeguards, playgrounds and chiringuitos on both
Skip if
- you want a wild, empty cove; these are urban beaches and San Juan fills up on summer weekends
- you rely on shade; San Juan has very little of it away from the chiringuitos
What it costs
- Beach entry: €0 (all city beaches are public; showers, lifeguards and playgrounds are free). Official source, checked Oct 2026.
- TRAM single fare, 1 zone: €1.45 (covers the ride to San Juan or Postiguet inside Alicante's zone A; rechargeable card costs 2 euros). Official source, checked Oct 2026.
- TRAM 24-hour ticket: €8 (unlimited hops for a beach day, worth it from about six rides). Official source, checked Oct 2026.
What travelers report
Based on 12 traveler reports (Nov 2024 to Jun 2026) and the official sources linked on this page. 2 were negative.
What people like
- San Juan's space wins over Postiguet's convenience: about 7 km of golden sand with room even in August (3 of 12 reports)
- a Blue Flag pedigree now 40 years unbroken, a mark fewer than a handful of beaches worldwide can match (2 of 12 reports)
- the tram makes it cheap and easy: about 20 minutes from the center for the price of a 1.45 euro fare (2 of 12 reports)
What people complain about
- Postiguet reads crowded and commercial through the season, a city beach under the castle (2 of 12 reports)
- almost no natural shade on San Juan between the chiringuitos; bring your own (1 of 12 reports)
- summer friction: night noise complaints and post-fiesta littering at the city beach (2 of 12 reports)
How to do it right
- For the city-center option, walk to Postiguet under the castle, about ten minutes from the Explanada.
- For San Juan, take tram line L3 or L4 from Luceros or Mercado to Costa Blanca or Avenida de las Naciones, roughly 20 minutes.
- Aim for the northern end of San Juan toward El Campello when the main section fills up on summer weekends.
- Bring shade: San Juan has almost none between the chiringuitos.
- Know the summer rules: lifeguards and showers run through the season, dogs are banned, and parking along Avenida de Niza fills early.
The trap to avoid
Settling for Postiguet alone. It is the obvious beach: central, castle-backed, ten minutes from the old town, and consequently the most crowded strip of sand in the city every summer afternoon. San Juan is the better beach in every way that matters (length, width, facilities, water) and costs only a 20-minute, 1.45 euro tram ride; the catch there is shade, because between the chiringuitos there is almost none and the sun is serious from June through September.
What to do instead
Why this verdict
Alicante is that rare city where the beach is part of the trip rather than a day out of it. Reports split cleanly between its two main sands, and the verdict is to do both for what they are.
Postiguet is the convenience beach: 900 meters of fine sand directly under the castle, ten minutes on foot from the old town, with the castle filling the backdrop of every photo. Reviews are warm on the setting and lukewarm on the reality, crowded and commercialized through the season, with city-center water to match.
San Juan is the better beach outright: about 7 km of golden sand up to 85 meters wide, running northeast toward El Campello. It has held a Blue Flag every year since 1987, one of seven beaches worldwide with an unbroken 40-year record, and it still fills on summer weekends because locals prefer it. The catches are straightforward ones: almost no natural shade between the chiringuitos, and a promenade that turns rowdy on August nights, when residents protest the noise.
Timing and tickets
Both beaches are free and serviced: lifeguards, showers and playgrounds through the season. San Juan is a 20-minute ride on tram line L3 or L4 from Luceros or Mercado to Costa Blanca or Avenida de las Naciones, 1.45 euros each way, and the 24-hour ticket at 8 euros pays off around six rides. Go before mid-morning for parking or the quieter sand toward El Campello; dogs are banned in summer and the small Albufereta cove lost its Blue Flag in 2026 over water-quality readings.
Practical notes
A few details from the reports are worth planning around. San Juan’s one real gap is shade: there is almost none between the chiringuitos, so bring an umbrella or arrive early enough to claim a spot near the cafes. On the tram side, the rechargeable card costs 2 euros on top of the fare, which nudges multi-ride days toward the 24-hour ticket. If you drive, the Avenida de Niza parking fills early on summer weekends.
Crowd patterns split the two beaches cleanly. Postiguet absorbs the after-dinner crowd and was left littered after bonfire night until the cleanup crews worked through. San Juan pulls the locals and fills on summer weekends, but its 7 km means a ten-minute walk thins the crowd considerably; one report pairs it with a Tabarca boat day run from the same Alicante base.
Book or check times
Questions
Which is the best beach in Alicante?
San Juan, on reports and infrastructure: 7 km of golden sand up to 85 meters wide, full services and 40 consecutive years of Blue Flag. Postiguet is the convenient runner-up right under the castle.
How do I get to San Juan beach?
Tram lines L3 and L4 run from central stops like Luceros and Mercado to Costa Blanca or Avenida de las Naciones in about 20 minutes; a single zone-A fare is 1.45 euros. Buses 21 and 22 also run there.
Is Postiguet beach worth it?
Yes for convenience and the castle backdrop, but reports warn it is crowded and commercialized in season: about 900 meters of sand serving the whole city center.
Can I take a dog to the beach in Alicante?
Not on San Juan or Postiguet in summer; the city reserves the Agua Amarga dog beach for that.
What about the other beaches?
Urbanova is the quieter southern strip and La Albufereta the small cove in between, though the Albufereta lost its Blue Flag in 2026 after anomalous water-quality readings.