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Welcome ToLos Alcázares
Los Alcázares lies on the inland shore of the Mar Menor, surrounded on the east by the sea and in other directions by the municipalities of San Javier, Torre Pacheco and Cartagena, with a permanent population of around 19,000 inhabitants.
For the last 150 years its main activity has been tourism - the hotel of La Encarnación is one of the oldest in the Region of Murcia – and its location on the shore of the Mar Menor, Europe´s largest saltwater lagoon, brings a huge increase in the population every summer as holidaymakers are attracted by kilometres of soft sand, the warm, shallow water and countless opportunities to enjoy the superb water sports facilities.
The safe sailing conditions and afternoon thermal winds are perfect for kitesurfers and windsurfers of all levels, while more experienced sailors can head out into the Mediterranean or charter yachts to explore the Murcia coastline.
Los Alcázares is also the location of the only surviving Balneario or bathing station, which is still in use today as a restaurant, a vestige from the days when bathers wished to maintain their dignity by descending into the water from the privacy of a bathing hut on stilts rather than showing bare skin on the beach. The area alongside the Balneario is the focal point for one of the most important gastronomic traditions of the region: the annual fiesta in which the fish-based rice dish of “caldero” is prepared, once the staple diet of the fishing population but now a major boon for anyone visiting the area!
For many decades Los Alcázares was the chosen summer destination of residents of the city of Murcia, and this annual migration is celebrated in August un the vibrant and colourful Semana de la Huerta y El Mar, filling the town with the scent of tapas, the costumes of folk dancers and a selection of arts and crafts from across the Region.
Los Alcázares also hosts one of the best medieval markets in the region when it celebrates its annual Berber fiestas, commemorating the raids by Berber pirates from north Africa which were such a feature of its history during the 16th and 17th centuries.
The town is home to an established expat community with a wealth of social activities and organisations for the English-speaking population, and offers residential properties in established urban locations, as well as in newer urbanisations.
At only half an hour's drive from the Region of Murcia International Airport in Corvera, and under an hour from Alicante airport, there are also good motorway connections with the rest of the Mar Menor, the Region of Murcia and mainland Spain.
