What Alicante costs

Alicante is cheap in all the places a visitor looks at and costly in the one that cannot be avoided. The castle costs nothing to enter and a lunch menu feeds you properly. The centre can be crossed on foot, so the room takes most of the money. The table gives every figure in one place, with the hotel as an average.

Hotels: an average per class from one source (August 2026), lower in winter. The C-6 bus has its own fare and does not take city bus vouchers.

The bill leaks in three places. The first is the room, because the gap between the budget class and the luxury one is wide and the average comes from a single source. Treat it as a middle line and not as a quote. One source names February the cheapest month for a room. The second is the rice, because a dish for two in a mid-range place is the priciest item on the food list. The third is the airport taxi, which costs more than the C-6 bus. That bus runs round the clock from the terminal to Puerta del Mar and the other stops in the centre.

Where to save

Lunch is the lever, because a set menu covers a full meal. Eat the big meal at noon and spend the evening on a few tapas rather than a second dinner. The castle is free to enter and only the lift costs money, while the path up from Postiguet beach takes about half an hour on foot if you want to save even that. The market breakfast counter is an easy start to the day. Inside the centre you will rarely need transport, because the Explanada, the old quarter and the beach lie within a walk of each other. Beyond it the TRAM line 1 to Benidorm runs on a multi-zone ticket, with the price shown at the machine, and line 3 reaches San Juan. In town a single fare covers the TRAM and the city bus alike, so a day of short hops adds up to very little next to the room.

2 daysThe itinerary page spends this money in order, from the market at nine in the morning to dinner after half past eight in the evening.Alicante in 2 days →

Where to stayThe room is the biggest line, and the page on where to stay shows which quarter gives most for it.Where to stay in Alicante →

FoodThe food page explains why rice at lunch is the way to eat it, and what to order beside it.What to eat in Alicante →

Getting aroundThe page on getting around gives the C-6 stops and the tram lines behind the fares above.Getting around Alicante →

When to goRoom prices move with the season, and the page on when to go shows how the year looks.The best time to visit Alicante →

Day tripsThe day trips page covers Tabarca and Elche, whose tickets are not in this table.Day trips from Alicante →

BeachesThe beaches page lists which sand is free to reach by foot and which needs a tram.Beaches in Alicante →

MistakesOverpaying is a mistake with several forms, and the mistakes page names them.Mistakes everyone makes in Alicante →