BEFORE committing to buying a permanent home in Spain, many movers prefer to rent for a specific length of time to get a feel for life in their new country; this is also likely to be the go-to option for anyone planning...
Where are foreign home-hunters heading? Top 15 locations explored
17/08/2023
EXPATS and permanent foreign residents in Spain, as well as holiday home owners from abroad, often appear to be clustered around very specific areas – typically on the coast.
But latest figures show they are beginning to spread out farther afield, heading to smaller, more traditional municipalities.
Still close to a beach or, at most, within a half-hour drive of the nearest shore, the top 15 favourite locations for overseas movers and buyers in 2023 have now been revealed – and the majority are along the Mediterranean seaboard.
Daily newspaper Levante EMV, which covers the Comunidad Valenciana provinces of Alicante, Valencia and Castellón, reveals that two of the most sought-after locations are in this same region, whilst three others are close to the French border.
The article takes its data from residential property sales so far this year among people born outside of Spain, and who do not already live there at the time of purchase.
Here's a bit of detail on the top 10, with a summary of the final five at the end.
Number one: El Poble Nou de Benitatxell
Usually referred to simply as Benitatxell (the 'tx' makes a 'ch' sound in the regional language, valenciano), this quaint, coastal village is tucked into the mountains in the north of the province of Alicante. A close-knit community, the main expat area is the large cluster of urbanisations, or residential villa complexes, on a mountainside above the picturesque Cala Moraig bay.
This seclude clifftop cove has often been referred to as a miniature version of Galicia's world-famous As Catedrais beach – where the rock formations on the sand resemble the vaults and arches of a cathedral. In fact, the Cova dels Arcs, or 'Arches Cave', in the Cala Moraig is among the most-photographed sites along the Alicante-province coast, a favourite for social media influencers and, statistically, one of the most prolific on Instagram pictures.
This summer, for the second year running, the local council has launched a free on-demand shuttle bus between the urbanisations, the beach and the main hub of the village, which can be booked up to 24 hours in advance by all residents.
Number two: Arenales del Sol
This is not an actual town, but a 'satellite' hub of a larger city – the Arenales del Sol district is the beach neighbourhood of Elche, the second-largest municipality in the province of Alicante and just a short drive from the European holiday gateway of Alicante-Elche airport.
A relatively calm, low-rise and low-density coastal cluster, Arenales del Sol is the ideal spot for combining the convenience of city life and beach life without sacrificing out-of-season peace and quiet, and of being on the doorstep of some of the Comunidad Valenciana's most iconic and unique attractions.
Elche has collected UNESCO kitemarks – its huge mid-August Mediaeval mystery play takes over the city centre, and its 1,236-acre palm forest is home to an estimated 200,000 to 300,000 trees, making it the largest on earth outside the Arabian peninsula.
The city is also widely known for a prehistoric bust of a lady, known as the Dama de Elche, who makes her triumphant return from her Madrid museum home approximately once a year.
Additionally, Elche – along with neighbouring Elda and Petrer – is one of mainland Spain's biggest shoe-manufacturing hubs. Any designer footwear bearing a three-figure price tag, if it's a Spanish label, is either made in the Balearic Islands, or in one of these three Alicante-province towns. Unbranded shoes of exceptional quality can be found on markets throughout the region for incredibly low prices, and top-branded footwear anywhere on earth, if it's not made in Italy, is likely to have been made in one of these two Spanish provinces.
Number three: Llançà
This Girona-province village of barely 5,000 inhabitants is one of mainland Spain's easternmost municipalities. And for those who are undecided about which country to live in – or French nationals who want to be able to nip back to their native land in their lunch hour – Llançà offers the best of both worlds: It's only 14 kilometres from the national border, meaning you can 'pop abroad' in under half an hour by car.
Despite being right on the Costa Brava, Llançà is tucked into a mountain valley in the Pyrénées, meaning dramatic scenery, clean air and rural life, along with ski resorts close enough by that you can hit the slopes in an ordinary weekend, or even a day.
A traditional fishing village, Llançà does get busy in summer, but not overwhelmingly so – locals say it's still fairly tranquil even at high season.
Founded in Roman times – in 218 BCE – Llançà's Sant Pere de Rodas monastery was, in the late Mediaeval era, the most powerful and prestigious in Spain, if not Europe.
Number four: Pals
This picturesque Costa Brava village of around 2,500 inhabitants is breathtakingly beautiful in its Mediaeval glory, and another Instagram favourite. Visitors are bowled over by its sandstone arches, narrow cobbled lanes, ornate balconies, and Romanesque architecture, and residents never tire of seeing it, being blown away by their surroundings all over again every time they set off on their daily errands.
Among the biggest camera magnets in Pals is the Torre de las Horas, right in the heart of the historic quarter and built between the 11th and 13th centuries, when Spain's predominant religion was Islam and a majority of the population was of Arab descent.
Beaches range from rural coves to vast, sweeping sands, and it even has a countryside adventure park and a golf course.
Number five: Begur
Sitting on a hill and spilling down its east face towards the sea, this peachy-coloured village of around 4,000 inhabitants in the province of Girona sprang up around its Mediaeval castle, one of the best-loved along the entire Catalunya coastline.
Beaches are peaceful, low-rise and with minimal building development, enclosed bays, traditional fishing hubs, offshore yacht marinas, surrounded by pine forest – but as a well-established Costa Brava visitor destination, Begur has plenty of hotels. These are typically boutique-style, family-run outfits, cosy and welcoming, rather than global or national chains.
Number six: Frigiliana
Even though the Costa del Sol is arguably home to one of Spain's biggest established expatriate communities, foreign buyers this year – whether seeking to move permanently or acquire a holiday home – were most attracted to two towns in the province of Málaga that are some distance from the coast.
Neither is far from the nearest beach if you have a car, but they're not walking distance and you can't see them from your window: Frigiliana is just over eight kilometres (five miles) from the closest seaside town, Nerja, although it's a quick and easy drive of under a quarter of an hour along the main MA-5105 highway.
With just over 3,000 inhabitants and on a slight hill – around 320 metres above sea level – Frigiliana was voted the most popular visitor town of under 20,000 residents in 2021 by holiday activity platform Musement.
It's easy to see why. Part of Spain's official 'White Villages' or Pueblos Blancos network, which is exactly as the name suggests, Frigiliana is widely held to be among the most beautiful municipalities in the whole of the southern region of Andalucía. Tucked away in a mountain valley and closely guarded by a Mediaeval Arab castle, the elaborately-decorated cobbles along its narrow lanes between typical whitewashed Spanish townhouses, adorned with balconies that overflow with vibrantly-coloured flowers, it's ideal for anyone who wants to be close enough to the lively Costas to enjoy them, but without being in the thick of the hustle and bustle.
Frigiliana has few, if any, monuments or visitor attractions, but locals will tell you it doesn't need any: The village is enough of a monument or attraction in itself.
Number seven: Cómpeta
Another Málaga-province village you can't reach the beach from without a car, Cómpeta has been one of the top choices in the area for non-Spaniards seeking to buy a home for several years now. The scenery is likely to be a huge draw, given that the municipality sits at the gateway to three vast, verdant, forest-covered mountain ranges untouched by development.
And at 630 metres above sea level, panoramic views are guaranteed from anywhere within the town.
Completely white, with around 3,800 residents, Cómpeta's location means it's often known as 'the Cornice of the Costa del Sol', and one of its particularly unique features bears striking resemblance to a much more famous version: The 'hanging houses' are similar to those in the centre-eastern province of Cuenca, but are far lesser known. They are, in reality, very solidly rooted, but one side of them is on a cliff-edge with a seemingly-bottomless ravine in the 'back garden', giving them the appearance of 'dangling'.
Number eight: Ses Salines
Any town with 'Salinas' or, in the catalán-based languages, 'Salines' in the name is normally close to salt flats or natural salt marshes, some of which are working 'water mines' whose minerals are part of a traditional and lucrative trade. But they are usually home to an array of wildlife, from flamingoes to wading birds and birds of prey through to rare species of crustaceans and fish, and in the heart of natural rural landscape.
It's also common to find pink lakes in salt flats. Only a small number on earth are widely known about – including Lake Retba in Sénégal, and the Uyuni salt flats in Bolivia – attracting visitors from every continent. Yet Spain is home to several; they just haven't been discovered by global tourists.
One of the biggest and most-visited is in Torrevieja (southern Alicante province), and another is in Ses Salines, on the Balearic island of Mallorca.
This quaint village of around 5,000 residents is also blessed with paradisical beaches – huge expanses of pale sands with bright turquoise waters, as well as more remote, rocky bays surrounded by dense woodland, one of which is home to the iconic rocky arch of Es Pontàs – and an exotic botanical garden, the Botanicactus, populated with monkey-puzzle trees, palms, cacti and similar sub-tropical species is, with its flame-red soil, like taking a trip to the Wild West, albeit without the saloon bars.
Number nine: Ponga
This key foreigner homebuying destination bucks all trends seen so far. It's not on the Mediterranean or in the south, and it's nowhere near the coast – although it's in a region with some truly dramatic, raw and rugged shores, as well as popular seaside towns and fishing harbours much acclaimed by Spaniards living in northern and inland areas.
The emerald-green region of Asturias, along Spain's northern coastal strip and wedged between Galicia to the west and Cantabria to the east, is not a traditional expatriate community. It's very rare to meet anyone there who wasn't, in fact, born in Asturias – even during holiday season.
But for many foreign movers and holiday-home buyers, this is exactly what they want: Total immersion, 'real Spain', and a taste of the parts of the country that appear continents away from the more famous Costas.
Most northern Europeans, when first visiting Asturias or its neighbouring regions, immediately liken the area to Scotland, Ireland, or similarly bright-green, grassy, hilly parts. Water meadows, grazing cattle, wood-beamed chalets, dairy farms, and no palm trees or cacti in sight, Spain's northernmost stretch is possibly easier for new European residents to adapt to, despite being far less geared up to cosmopolitan communities: It looks much more like their home nations.
The climate can be an added attraction in summer – it's still very warm and you're guaranteed months of beach weather and sunshine, but it's milder and less humid than the south, Mediterranean and islands. In autumn and winter, it's slightly colder than farther south, but although it rains much more frequently, this tends to be intermittent drizzle or regular light showers rather than sudden, torrential downpours.
Ponga, with its dazzling-green Peloño woodland and its Alpine-looking Casielles nature reserve, is around an hour and a half south of the nearest beach, which is in the regional capital city of Oviedo.
In fact, it's closer to the province of León in the centre-northern region of Castilla y León. Here, León city is world famous for its cathedral, the top-rated attraction in the entire province.
Exploring Ponga's vast natural landscape is the main reason people visit this tiny village of just 200 inhabitants, and it's easy enough to do: Numerous rural tourism companies can take you on organised hikes, cycling trips, 4x4 safari truck outings, or even send you flying through the hills at speed on a zip line.
Number 10: Alcossebre
One of the two 'hubs' that make up the Castellón-province town of Alcalà de Xivert – along with Capicorp – Alcossebre and its 2,000 inhabitants are spread out along around 10 kilometres (about 6.5 miles) of coast, made up of five beaches and numerous untouched coves. Relatively low-density and with large swathes of undeveloped, green countryside right along its shores, Alcossebre's nearest large town is the lively seaside hotspot of Vinaròs.
Most of Alcossebre's newer builds are found on the urbanisations, or residential complexes, of Las Fuentes and El Pinar.
Local heritage includes the majestic, turreted castle in Alcalà de Xivert's historic quarter, and as well as Alcossebre's beaches – quiet, rarely crowded, practically unknown outside of Spain and southern France and with no trace of package tourism – the rural landscape is one of its greatest visitor magnets.
The last totally-virgin mountain range in the western Mediterranean, the Sierra de Irta nature reserve is well-loved by hikers, cyclists, birdwatchers, and also scuba-divers and snorkellers thanks to the marine reserve at its foot.
Numbers 11 to 15
Two neighbouring villages in the far north of the province of Alicante, bordering that of Valencia, come in at 11 and 12 – one, Els Poblets, with a small beach close to a river delta, and slightly inland, El Verger. The former has around 3,000 inhabitants, a large portion of whom are non-Spanish Europeans, but who tend to blend into their friendly, very local community. Newcomers will easily be able to meet other native speakers of English and German – most expatriates are from the UK and Germany – but village life is very traditionally Spanish and Valencian, making the experience authentic. Like El Verger next door, with its 4,400 residents, foreigners live very much in the thick of local life, have usually been there for many years or even decades and are fluent in valenciano as well as Castilian Spanish.
Both villages are famed for their summer fiestas, which include the colourful costumed pageant known as the Moors and Christians – particularly because the parades, although spectacular, last little more than an hour. Just long enough to go home star-struck, but not enough for young children to get bored and fidgety.
These two villages are part of a long string of coastal municipalities of varying sizes, where holidaymakers are usually Spaniards on 'staycations' and own second homes.
At number 13 is the idyllic-sounding Mallorca district of Cala d'Or – which translates as 'Golden Bay' – not only a Mecca for fans of paradise beaches, but right next door to Ses Salines, with all the attractions described above. Cala d'Or is one of the coastal hubs of the village of Santanyí, a mature visitor destination of around 12,300 inhabitants.
One of the key sights for day-trippers to number 14, Busot, is the vast and awe-inspiring Canelobre Cave, an underground grotto dating back millions of years, replete with stalactites and stalagmites, and accessible via guided tours that currently cost around €8.
Although Busot does not have a coast of its own, this village of around 3,000 residents is just seven kilometres (less than five miles) from the nearest beach town, the vibrant holiday hub of El Campello, and is about 19 kilometres (approximately 12 miles) north of the city of Alicante. This makes it convenient for international flights, retail therapy – Alicante is home to a huge El Corte Inglés department store – and sightseeing, at the city's hilltop Santa Bárbara castle and Lucentum Roman settlement.
Close to the highly-cosmopolitan southern-Alicante province municipalities of Torrevieja and Orihuela Costa – where urbanisations the size of entire towns are occupied almost exclusively by northern European expatriates – Algorfa is much smaller, more rural and less frenetic, but every bit as multi-cultural. Among the most popular activities in this village of 3,500 residents are the Sunday morning flea market – selling everything from shoes to fresh fruit, and with ample free parking – the Montemar castle, and local tapas bars.
Rounding off the top 15 towns in Spain for foreign home-hunters this year, Algorfa is ideally placed for the facilities, holiday atmosphere and visitor hotspots of the much larger coastal towns on its doorstep, but with a slower pace of its own.
If you're thinking of doing likewise, and buying a home in Spain – to live in permanently, or to spend your holidays in – perhaps these 15 most popular towns will serve as a guide to their wider areas – many municipalities very close to them may offer more of what you need or wish for. Inspiration is likely to come to you in droves as you search – and you'll certainly be spoilt for choice!
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EXPATS and permanent foreign residents in Spain, as well as holiday home owners from abroad, often appear to be clustered around very specific areas – typically on the coast.
But latest figures show they are beginning to spread out farther afield, heading to smaller, more traditional municipalities.
Still close to a beach or, at most, within a half-hour drive of the nearest shore, the top 15 favourite locations for overseas movers and buyers in 2023 have now been revealed – and the majority are along the Mediterranean seaboard.
Daily newspaper Levante EMV, which covers the Comunidad Valenciana provinces of Alicante, Valencia and Castellón, reveals that two of the most sought-after locations are in this same region, whilst three others are close to the French border.
The article takes its data from residential property sales so far this year among people born outside of Spain, and who do not already live there at the time of purchase.
Here's a bit of detail on the top 10, with a summary of the final five at the end.
Number one: El Poble Nou de Benitatxell
Usually referred to simply as Benitatxell (the 'tx' makes a 'ch' sound in the regional language, valenciano), this quaint, coastal village is tucked into the mountains in the north of the province of Alicante. A close-knit community, the main expat area is the large cluster of urbanisations, or residential villa complexes, on a mountainside above the picturesque Cala Moraig bay.
This seclude clifftop cove has often been referred to as a miniature version of Galicia's world-famous As Catedrais beach – where the rock formations on the sand resemble the vaults and arches of a cathedral. In fact, the Cova dels Arcs, or 'Arches Cave', in the Cala Moraig is among the most-photographed sites along the Alicante-province coast, a favourite for social media influencers and, statistically, one of the most prolific on Instagram pictures.
This summer, for the second year running, the local council has launched a free on-demand shuttle bus between the urbanisations, the beach and the main hub of the village, which can be booked up to 24 hours in advance by all residents.
Number two: Arenales del Sol
This is not an actual town, but a 'satellite' hub of a larger city – the Arenales del Sol district is the beach neighbourhood of Elche, the second-largest municipality in the province of Alicante and just a short drive from the European holiday gateway of Alicante-Elche airport.
A relatively calm, low-rise and low-density coastal cluster, Arenales del Sol is the ideal spot for combining the convenience of city life and beach life without sacrificing out-of-season peace and quiet, and of being on the doorstep of some of the Comunidad Valenciana's most iconic and unique attractions.
Elche has collected UNESCO kitemarks – its huge mid-August Mediaeval mystery play takes over the city centre, and its 1,236-acre palm forest is home to an estimated 200,000 to 300,000 trees, making it the largest on earth outside the Arabian peninsula.
The city is also widely known for a prehistoric bust of a lady, known as the Dama de Elche, who makes her triumphant return from her Madrid museum home approximately once a year.
Additionally, Elche – along with neighbouring Elda and Petrer – is one of mainland Spain's biggest shoe-manufacturing hubs. Any designer footwear bearing a three-figure price tag, if it's a Spanish label, is either made in the Balearic Islands, or in one of these three Alicante-province towns. Unbranded shoes of exceptional quality can be found on markets throughout the region for incredibly low prices, and top-branded footwear anywhere on earth, if it's not made in Italy, is likely to have been made in one of these two Spanish provinces.
Number three: Llançà
This Girona-province village of barely 5,000 inhabitants is one of mainland Spain's easternmost municipalities. And for those who are undecided about which country to live in – or French nationals who want to be able to nip back to their native land in their lunch hour – Llançà offers the best of both worlds: It's only 14 kilometres from the national border, meaning you can 'pop abroad' in under half an hour by car.
Despite being right on the Costa Brava, Llançà is tucked into a mountain valley in the Pyrénées, meaning dramatic scenery, clean air and rural life, along with ski resorts close enough by that you can hit the slopes in an ordinary weekend, or even a day.
A traditional fishing village, Llançà does get busy in summer, but not overwhelmingly so – locals say it's still fairly tranquil even at high season.
Founded in Roman times – in 218 BCE – Llançà's Sant Pere de Rodas monastery was, in the late Mediaeval era, the most powerful and prestigious in Spain, if not Europe.
Number four: Pals
This picturesque Costa Brava village of around 2,500 inhabitants is breathtakingly beautiful in its Mediaeval glory, and another Instagram favourite. Visitors are bowled over by its sandstone arches, narrow cobbled lanes, ornate balconies, and Romanesque architecture, and residents never tire of seeing it, being blown away by their surroundings all over again every time they set off on their daily errands.
Among the biggest camera magnets in Pals is the Torre de las Horas, right in the heart of the historic quarter and built between the 11th and 13th centuries, when Spain's predominant religion was Islam and a majority of the population was of Arab descent.
Beaches range from rural coves to vast, sweeping sands, and it even has a countryside adventure park and a golf course.
Number five: Begur
Sitting on a hill and spilling down its east face towards the sea, this peachy-coloured village of around 4,000 inhabitants in the province of Girona sprang up around its Mediaeval castle, one of the best-loved along the entire Catalunya coastline.
Beaches are peaceful, low-rise and with minimal building development, enclosed bays, traditional fishing hubs, offshore yacht marinas, surrounded by pine forest – but as a well-established Costa Brava visitor destination, Begur has plenty of hotels. These are typically boutique-style, family-run outfits, cosy and welcoming, rather than global or national chains.
Number six: Frigiliana
Even though the Costa del Sol is arguably home to one of Spain's biggest established expatriate communities, foreign buyers this year – whether seeking to move permanently or acquire a holiday home – were most attracted to two towns in the province of Málaga that are some distance from the coast.
Neither is far from the nearest beach if you have a car, but they're not walking distance and you can't see them from your window: Frigiliana is just over eight kilometres (five miles) from the closest seaside town, Nerja, although it's a quick and easy drive of under a quarter of an hour along the main MA-5105 highway.
With just over 3,000 inhabitants and on a slight hill – around 320 metres above sea level – Frigiliana was voted the most popular visitor town of under 20,000 residents in 2021 by holiday activity platform Musement.
It's easy to see why. Part of Spain's official 'White Villages' or Pueblos Blancos network, which is exactly as the name suggests, Frigiliana is widely held to be among the most beautiful municipalities in the whole of the southern region of Andalucía. Tucked away in a mountain valley and closely guarded by a Mediaeval Arab castle, the elaborately-decorated cobbles along its narrow lanes between typical whitewashed Spanish townhouses, adorned with balconies that overflow with vibrantly-coloured flowers, it's ideal for anyone who wants to be close enough to the lively Costas to enjoy them, but without being in the thick of the hustle and bustle.
Frigiliana has few, if any, monuments or visitor attractions, but locals will tell you it doesn't need any: The village is enough of a monument or attraction in itself.
Number seven: Cómpeta
Another Málaga-province village you can't reach the beach from without a car, Cómpeta has been one of the top choices in the area for non-Spaniards seeking to buy a home for several years now. The scenery is likely to be a huge draw, given that the municipality sits at the gateway to three vast, verdant, forest-covered mountain ranges untouched by development.
And at 630 metres above sea level, panoramic views are guaranteed from anywhere within the town.
Completely white, with around 3,800 residents, Cómpeta's location means it's often known as 'the Cornice of the Costa del Sol', and one of its particularly unique features bears striking resemblance to a much more famous version: The 'hanging houses' are similar to those in the centre-eastern province of Cuenca, but are far lesser known. They are, in reality, very solidly rooted, but one side of them is on a cliff-edge with a seemingly-bottomless ravine in the 'back garden', giving them the appearance of 'dangling'.
Number eight: Ses Salines
Any town with 'Salinas' or, in the catalán-based languages, 'Salines' in the name is normally close to salt flats or natural salt marshes, some of which are working 'water mines' whose minerals are part of a traditional and lucrative trade. But they are usually home to an array of wildlife, from flamingoes to wading birds and birds of prey through to rare species of crustaceans and fish, and in the heart of natural rural landscape.
It's also common to find pink lakes in salt flats. Only a small number on earth are widely known about – including Lake Retba in Sénégal, and the Uyuni salt flats in Bolivia – attracting visitors from every continent. Yet Spain is home to several; they just haven't been discovered by global tourists.
One of the biggest and most-visited is in Torrevieja (southern Alicante province), and another is in Ses Salines, on the Balearic island of Mallorca.
This quaint village of around 5,000 residents is also blessed with paradisical beaches – huge expanses of pale sands with bright turquoise waters, as well as more remote, rocky bays surrounded by dense woodland, one of which is home to the iconic rocky arch of Es Pontàs – and an exotic botanical garden, the Botanicactus, populated with monkey-puzzle trees, palms, cacti and similar sub-tropical species is, with its flame-red soil, like taking a trip to the Wild West, albeit without the saloon bars.
Number nine: Ponga
This key foreigner homebuying destination bucks all trends seen so far. It's not on the Mediterranean or in the south, and it's nowhere near the coast – although it's in a region with some truly dramatic, raw and rugged shores, as well as popular seaside towns and fishing harbours much acclaimed by Spaniards living in northern and inland areas.
The emerald-green region of Asturias, along Spain's northern coastal strip and wedged between Galicia to the west and Cantabria to the east, is not a traditional expatriate community. It's very rare to meet anyone there who wasn't, in fact, born in Asturias – even during holiday season.
But for many foreign movers and holiday-home buyers, this is exactly what they want: Total immersion, 'real Spain', and a taste of the parts of the country that appear continents away from the more famous Costas.
Most northern Europeans, when first visiting Asturias or its neighbouring regions, immediately liken the area to Scotland, Ireland, or similarly bright-green, grassy, hilly parts. Water meadows, grazing cattle, wood-beamed chalets, dairy farms, and no palm trees or cacti in sight, Spain's northernmost stretch is possibly easier for new European residents to adapt to, despite being far less geared up to cosmopolitan communities: It looks much more like their home nations.
The climate can be an added attraction in summer – it's still very warm and you're guaranteed months of beach weather and sunshine, but it's milder and less humid than the south, Mediterranean and islands. In autumn and winter, it's slightly colder than farther south, but although it rains much more frequently, this tends to be intermittent drizzle or regular light showers rather than sudden, torrential downpours.
Ponga, with its dazzling-green Peloño woodland and its Alpine-looking Casielles nature reserve, is around an hour and a half south of the nearest beach, which is in the regional capital city of Oviedo.
In fact, it's closer to the province of León in the centre-northern region of Castilla y León. Here, León city is world famous for its cathedral, the top-rated attraction in the entire province.
Exploring Ponga's vast natural landscape is the main reason people visit this tiny village of just 200 inhabitants, and it's easy enough to do: Numerous rural tourism companies can take you on organised hikes, cycling trips, 4x4 safari truck outings, or even send you flying through the hills at speed on a zip line.
Number 10: Alcossebre
One of the two 'hubs' that make up the Castellón-province town of Alcalà de Xivert – along with Capicorp – Alcossebre and its 2,000 inhabitants are spread out along around 10 kilometres (about 6.5 miles) of coast, made up of five beaches and numerous untouched coves. Relatively low-density and with large swathes of undeveloped, green countryside right along its shores, Alcossebre's nearest large town is the lively seaside hotspot of Vinaròs.
Most of Alcossebre's newer builds are found on the urbanisations, or residential complexes, of Las Fuentes and El Pinar.
Local heritage includes the majestic, turreted castle in Alcalà de Xivert's historic quarter, and as well as Alcossebre's beaches – quiet, rarely crowded, practically unknown outside of Spain and southern France and with no trace of package tourism – the rural landscape is one of its greatest visitor magnets.
The last totally-virgin mountain range in the western Mediterranean, the Sierra de Irta nature reserve is well-loved by hikers, cyclists, birdwatchers, and also scuba-divers and snorkellers thanks to the marine reserve at its foot.
Numbers 11 to 15
Two neighbouring villages in the far north of the province of Alicante, bordering that of Valencia, come in at 11 and 12 – one, Els Poblets, with a small beach close to a river delta, and slightly inland, El Verger. The former has around 3,000 inhabitants, a large portion of whom are non-Spanish Europeans, but who tend to blend into their friendly, very local community. Newcomers will easily be able to meet other native speakers of English and German – most expatriates are from the UK and Germany – but village life is very traditionally Spanish and Valencian, making the experience authentic. Like El Verger next door, with its 4,400 residents, foreigners live very much in the thick of local life, have usually been there for many years or even decades and are fluent in valenciano as well as Castilian Spanish.
Both villages are famed for their summer fiestas, which include the colourful costumed pageant known as the Moors and Christians – particularly because the parades, although spectacular, last little more than an hour. Just long enough to go home star-struck, but not enough for young children to get bored and fidgety.
These two villages are part of a long string of coastal municipalities of varying sizes, where holidaymakers are usually Spaniards on 'staycations' and own second homes.
At number 13 is the idyllic-sounding Mallorca district of Cala d'Or – which translates as 'Golden Bay' – not only a Mecca for fans of paradise beaches, but right next door to Ses Salines, with all the attractions described above. Cala d'Or is one of the coastal hubs of the village of Santanyí, a mature visitor destination of around 12,300 inhabitants.
One of the key sights for day-trippers to number 14, Busot, is the vast and awe-inspiring Canelobre Cave, an underground grotto dating back millions of years, replete with stalactites and stalagmites, and accessible via guided tours that currently cost around €8.
Although Busot does not have a coast of its own, this village of around 3,000 residents is just seven kilometres (less than five miles) from the nearest beach town, the vibrant holiday hub of El Campello, and is about 19 kilometres (approximately 12 miles) north of the city of Alicante. This makes it convenient for international flights, retail therapy – Alicante is home to a huge El Corte Inglés department store – and sightseeing, at the city's hilltop Santa Bárbara castle and Lucentum Roman settlement.
Close to the highly-cosmopolitan southern-Alicante province municipalities of Torrevieja and Orihuela Costa – where urbanisations the size of entire towns are occupied almost exclusively by northern European expatriates – Algorfa is much smaller, more rural and less frenetic, but every bit as multi-cultural. Among the most popular activities in this village of 3,500 residents are the Sunday morning flea market – selling everything from shoes to fresh fruit, and with ample free parking – the Montemar castle, and local tapas bars.
Rounding off the top 15 towns in Spain for foreign home-hunters this year, Algorfa is ideally placed for the facilities, holiday atmosphere and visitor hotspots of the much larger coastal towns on its doorstep, but with a slower pace of its own.
If you're thinking of doing likewise, and buying a home in Spain – to live in permanently, or to spend your holidays in – perhaps these 15 most popular towns will serve as a guide to their wider areas – many municipalities very close to them may offer more of what you need or wish for. Inspiration is likely to come to you in droves as you search – and you'll certainly be spoilt for choice!
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