Casa Leah

om, kitchen and a large dining/lounge area. This leads to a small patio and then to the pool. The pool is cleaned weekly but used by the residents rarely so it's always peaceful. It is completely screened off from the street with willow fencing and walls. From the patio you can see the blue domed old church, The Virgin de Consuelo, which sits in the main square, the site for all the festivals and with a great view of the sea. It has a few restaurants and bars but you'll find many more on your strolls around the maze of quaint cobbled alleys filled with beautiful homes, restaurants, cafes, bars and shops selling mainly local handmade produce. There is also the stunning University of Culture and Fine Arts and a new concert hall. A gentle downhill 10min stroll leads you to the beach promenade and the town centre with its town hall, library, weekly market, supermarkets, shops, a great art gallery and many beach side eateries and cafes. It's usual to receive a couple of free tapas with your drinks and a recommended delicious place to go (though it's not flash) is Fronton. Another huge favourite of ours is Bits and Bites - a great cafe/bar that is a fresh, new arty space that sells a few quality items from the East. It is owned by Susanna, an Altean native who lived in London for a long while so she speaks perfect English. She can help you with your Spanish, recommending things around Altea and she has a great drinklist for a cool beverage while you sit. Altea beach is made of smooth, large white stones which keeps the crowds away and your toes clean but if you prefer sand -1 mile away to the south is Albir that has a sandy stretch. Here there is a long, pristine beach with numerous bars and in town and a larger shopping area. There is also a great choice of hikes (really easy or difficult) to an old lighthouse with a tarmac path, hugging the mountainside with old relics of its old copper mining past signposted along the route. Further south you can drive to Benidorm or our favourite - Villajoyosa (see in photos). If you enjoy outdoor pursuits, you'll enjoy more than the view of the surrounding mountains, wine valleys and villages with hiking and especially biking being very popular year-round here. If you want to hire a bike, there is a great bike shop catering to the cyclists that pass through. You'll find a fun Argentinian who gives sound advice and good prices. The climate is always temperate with the winter months still feeling very warm when the sun is out. We have an agent that can help with everything you need but a neighbour, Cony keeps the apartment's material fittings pristine white and the apartment spotless. You have a washerdryer in the kitchen and an airer on the patio to air dry your laundry while you check out a different cafe/ walk/ restaurant/ village daily. However, if you prefer to stay in, you'll find a well equipped kitchen to cater from everything from juicing the Valencian oranges that grow locally, to cooking your own paella. With local supermarket deli counters offering tasters of their produce, it is cheap and easy to rustle up your own delicious cooking at home. There are also many DVDs, books, games and digital channels for the flatscreen TV to help you stay in contact with home news or programmes. We are available for enquiries on the email below or on Facebook. In the meantime, if you Google map Santa Teresa, Altea, Spain and press the 'person' you will see the steps leading to the old square and to the right, the apartments. The road is one way and makes the apartments easily accessed from the main road further along. Altea is about an hours easy motorway (the n-332) drive north of Alicante airport. There is a cheap toll road if you want to be even quicker! Please do browse the photos - our recommendations are personal preferences too - no incentives for their owners! If you book this apartment, we know you won't be disappointed and we'd love to hear any feedback on this page or our agents. The name Altea is from an old Moorish name Althaya which means 'Health to all".