Alicante's Soul: Historic Old Town & Authentic Tapas Tour

Excellent tour - well organized by the company, Isaac our guide was great. The company sent several preparatory emails describing in detail the meeting place and what to expect from the tour They even sent photos of the meeting place so we had no question that we were in the right place. The group was a small size, 8 people. The itinerary was great. First, we learned about the history of the market and had several tastings. Then we took cabs ( included in the tour price) up to the castle when Isaac showed us the best view and briefly explained the history of the fortress. We then walked downhill through the old town and finished at a small tapas bar. Isaac knew the town’s history, had excellent English and was proud to tell us about this beautiful city. At the tapas bar we were served a small sandwich and a drink. I enjoyed the sangria. This was an outstanding tour and guide. If we are here in the future we will use this company again for sure. Very highly recommend!

This two and a half hour tour was well organized and presented in excellent English by a fabulous guide, Isaac. The tour company sent several emails beforehand carefully explaining the exact meeting place location, even attached photos so we had no worries about finding it. The group was 8 people. The itinerary is arranged so you are driven up to the castle/fort from the market and then you walk down through the old town. The walking was pleasant and easy, you do go down a number of stairs. Our guide, Isaac, was great. He explained everything we tasted, at the market and the local tapas bar. He knows the history and is proud to share it with you. The tour description in the Viator/TripAdvisor website is accurate. The sangria was very good and the tapas small and tasty. We loved the several tasting we had in the market as well. Highly recommend this company, this tour and, especially, Isaac as the tour guide.

Our guide was Francisco and he was outstanding! He was extremely informative and had the right personality for being a guide. We learned a lot in the food market about ham. He did a great job promoting Alicante as a destination. The tour ended at a small restaurant with a small sandwich tapas and a drink. We stayed and ordered more. He left us after the food came, in total I think it was about 3 hours.

Met Isaac at the central market along with two other guests. He was instantly likeable and really knows his stuff. This was a great tour giving the highlights of Alicante so you can pinpoint the best places to visit.

Well organised. Guide was very knowledgeable and was a really nice chap. Would definitely recommend. You need to be good on your legs for this one

Flor was a caring, most competent tour guide during our recent 10-25 tour of Alicante. Professionalism along with in-depth knowledge of the area and a friendly approach make her unimprovable. Nelson and Miriam Dopico

This wasn't a terrible excursion, nor was it very exciting. We did 'tour' the meat market (fish market was closed) and sample some meats and cheese. Not much of a sample was given, but at least it was something. I think this tour would be a lot better with a little more 'tapas' experiences mixed in. The tour of the castle was nice, but we didn't get to go in since there wasn't enough time. Walking down the hill was fun and we got to hear some history of the area. The tour ended at a little restaurant where we all got to eat a small sandwich with a beverage of our choice. All in all not a bad tour. Nothing too exciting, but at least we got a little history of the area and a taste of some of the foods.

Our tour guide did not have a license. When I questioned why she didn’t have a badge like the other guide she said that Spain is slow and lazy to get paperwork done. She said she graduated, but I don’t know that this is true. She was dressed unprofessionally with a crop t-shirt that she kept pulling down because when she moved her arms, it showed her sports bra. When she pulled it down, half her stomach still showed. She constantly put down other cities in Spain, mocking them and trying to portray Alicante as the best of the best in everything. She dismissed the Paella in Valencia as being terrible to the rice dishes in Alicante. Things she was saying were not true. Therefore I totally question her being a professional guide. Your tour description must include information that there are steep, uneven , stairs that have no railings. I have been through fall prevention workshops and an important part of that training is to always use a railing. The guide offered her arm as we descended these stairs that I greatly appreciated. As we started the tour at the market, I asked if that would be the ending spot so it would be convenient to shop. She said yes. Unfortunately that was not true. We were abandoned at the tapas restaurant. She gave very confusing directions on how to get to the market so I just left and got back to the shuttle bus to get back to the ship. Overall, it appeared the other group had an excellent tour—I saw them giving nice tips to their guide. Our guide did not receive any tips from any of the 11 on our tour. She is not representing your brand very well at all. If I belueved everything she said, I would never go back to any other city in Spain but Alicante. This is not a good representation of the country and the many beautiful cities in Spain.

Guide arrived on time. Explained what to expect. At times a little hard to understand when she talked to fast. Good explanation of what we were seeing. Bubbly & friendly. Overall a good tour.

We had a wonderful tour with Nadia who was so informative about the history of Alicante and the region as well as the important landmarks in the area. Her English was excellent and she tried to slow down even for those who had English as their second language. We visited the Mercato Central and were able to taste some of the local Jamon and Manchego. We then visited Castel de Santa Barbara which we accessed via Taxi paid for by Nadia. My only complaint here is that the way the tour description reads you get an hour to explore the Castel but in fact we only spent around 15mins here and would’ve liked more time to look around. We then walked back down from the Castel through the Santa Cruz area and down to the old town. The tour finished with a drink and a Montadito each. We learned a lot from Nadia and really enjoyed the tour just would’ve liked to have more time at the Castel for five star review which is not at fault of Nadia who did a five star job.