Alicante, Spain

Alicante (Valencian: Alacant) is a popular tourist city of 332,000 people (2018) in the Valencian Community of Spain. It is the capital of Alicante province and a historic Mediterranean port. The city has become a hub of tourism directed to the beaches of the Costa Blanca.

The city is believed to have been founded by the Carthaginian general Hamilcar Barca, who established the fortified settlement of Akra Leuka (Greek: Ἄκρα Λευκή, meaning 'White Mountain' or 'White Point'), where Alicante stands today. It was later conquered by the Romans who renamed it Lucentum. In mediaeval times, Alicante became a major Mediterranean trading station, exporting rice, wine, olive oil, oranges and wool.