Llíber & Xaló
Our hamlet and the village close by.
Towns and villages
The Vall de Pop is dotted with small villages with a rich history. You wander through narrow streets towards the square. By the church you will nearly always find a café. Older gentlemen play dominoes or a card game. And time always seems to move more slowly here. Just over an hour's drive away is Valencia, a large, buzzing city, and to the south Murcia, a lively student town.
Around the corner
From Llíber to Benigembla
Llíber is our own village, within walking distance, 2 km through the vineyards; allow half an hour. Two cafés around a beautiful open square at the foot of the church.
Xaló (Jalón) is slightly bigger, with plenty of shops and several bakers, butchers and supermarkets. On Tuesdays there is an ordinary market, and every Saturday the rastro and the organic market, often with live music.
Alcalalí and Parcent lie further along, where the almond trees feel at home. Both have their own village square with a church and a café. All the villages are linked by pleasant walking paths through the countryside, ideal for a walk with a terrace as your reward.
Benigembla lies at the foot of the Cavall Verd. The road past Benigembla leads to Castell de Castells, the last village that counts itself part of the Vall de Pop.
Throughout the year the Spanish celebrate. Every village has its fiesta week, organised together with the eighteen-year-olds. All sorts of saints' days are also reason enough for a day off and a village celebration.
In brief
Saturday market
Flea market, fresh produce and music in Jalón.
Mountain villages
Senija, Parcent, Fleix, Benimaurell
Terraces
The church on the square, and a cup of coffee
Ben je al overtuigd ?
Reserveren →Downpipes in Xaló | Jalón
valencia is alive
Visit Valencia before you settle into the quiet
Before your stay at Finca Llíber, book 2 or 3 nights in Valencia. From the airport a metro ride puts you right in the middle of the city. On the day you leave you can pick up the hire car at the airport and then come here to rest.
Valencia is many things at once: art and culture, sport and students, mountains and sea, historic and new. You cannot see everything in 2 days, but you can soak up the atmosphere completely. You can do that by bike or on the hop-on hop-off bus tour. But the centre and the various neighbourhoods, each with its own character, are very walkable.
Turia Park
After a devastating flood in 1957, 9 km of river bed were turned into a recreation area.
Santiago Calatrava
Praised and reviled architect who designed the City of Arts and Sciences.
noise guaranteed
Hundreds of metres-high, often satirical creations made of synthetic material go up in smoke.
the bat
... appears on the city's coat of arms, because it helped drive out the Moors in the 13th century.
The many sides of Valencia speak for themselves
"Valencia is a diamond flowing in a river full of pearls.
She is a young and beautiful lady made by Allah".
Valencia is beautiful, and "diamond" still suits this swinging, buzzing and in many ways very liveable city full of sights. It has a long history, founded in 138 BC by the Romans, and has been home ever since to a great many different cultures, religions and rulers, right up to today.
The city of Valencia wants to be known as a destination that combines three things: authenticity, Mediterranean quality of life and sustainability. You can see that in its tourism policy. This city means the Fallas, paella, the Turia park, the beaches and a buzzing city with a relaxed way of life.
Visit the Romanesque temple that became a mosque and then today's Cathedral of Valencia, and then stroll on to the strikingly contemporary architecture of the City of Arts and Sciences (the Ciutat de les Arts i de les Ciències). In an hour you effortlessly bridge more than 2,000 years.
Paella Valenciana is a delicious rice dish with pork, chicken, rabbit and vegetables. The original recipe also calls for snails. These are the ingredients found right there in the woods beside the city.
The rhythm of the night here seems to run faster than the pace of the day. A serious siesta on the Playa de las Arenas, and trendy, chic shopping around the Plaza del Ayuntamiento and the Plaza de Toros: here they lie only a few kilometres apart.
Enjoy this beautiful, lively, fascinating 'lady' on the Mediterranean.
Alicante, the export harbour of central Spain
Alicante is the capital of the province of the same name in the Generalitat Valenciana. The city has more than 300,000 inhabitants and is an important port for exports from central Spain. The beautiful sandy beaches draw many tourists from the region. Just outside the city Alicante has an excellent airport, reachable directly from Amsterdam, Eindhoven and Rotterdam.
The city is big enough to stay in for a few days. The sea, the restaurants, the castle of Santa Bárbara. This castle is one of the largest fortresses in Spain. From it you look out over the beautiful historic city. Everything lies fairly close together, so it is easy to explore on foot. But of course you can also hire bikes.
In the Santa Cruz quarter you feel the city's history, not least on a visit to the basilica of Santa María, the oldest church in the city. Take your time to wander through this quarter and see how the residents decorate the streets around the fiestas.