Local overview
Santa Pola is a coastal town and municipality located in the comarca of Baix Vinalopó in the Valencian Community, Spain, by the Mediterranean Sea.
The town has an important salt evaporation pond known as the salines which remains in business, additionally, most of it is recognized as the Natural Park of Salines de Santa Pola, an important Ramsar site. The town was settled over the ruins of a Roman village called Portus Illicitanus (literally, "Harbour of Elche"); after being abandoned for decades, then a castle was constructed in the 16th century which marked the repopulation of Santa Pola. The town has an archeological museum covering these phases.
Santa Pola is, at present, a coastal fishing and tourist town. Population more than doubles during the summer, with people coming mostly from the rest of the Alicante province, and also from the Basque Country, Madrid, France and the UK, just to mention some. The nearby island of Tabarca (part of Alicante) can be visited by ship.
Next to it is the Carabasi area, a nature reserve. Gran Alacant lies only a few kilometres from Alicante Airport and a few hundred metres from the town of Los Arenales which is located in the Elche district.
In June 2009, the Valencian Government announced that the Alicante Tram system will be extended southwards via Alicante Airport and El Altet, to stations in Gran Alacant and Santa Pola and then onwards to Guardamar and Torrevieja before terminating in Murcia.
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