Resorts for first family holiday? Honest Advice appreciated

Hi

Are you thinking hotel or self-catering?  If you are looking for self-catering then this forum has legal holiday lets available.  There is a requirement for all rental properties to be licensed so that protects you.  In Alicante the license number is VA or VT followed by 6 numbers and the letter A - if it isn't licensed don't book it!  There are some safe sites to look on that only allow licensed properties, such as spain-holiday.com, homeaway.co.uk and theholidaylet.com  

What dates are you looking for?  No reason why travelling on a Sunday should be an issue if you are self-catering as there are plenty of legal companies offering family transfers at reasonable cost regardless of the day of the week - once you have sorted your accommodation just come back onto the forum and ask for the info.  A heated pool is not common as the pools in the height of summer are warm enough to use without being heated, but there are a few communities and hotels that have them.  If you are looking for the summer holidays then you will need to book sooner rather than later - our own holiday rental is booked for August 10+ months in advance and I know others are too, but there will be some available.

Guardamar de Segura and Torrevieja are traditional coastal towns.  The different areas of Orihuela Costa are all family friendly - but I would not call OC traditionally Spanish by any means - Villamartin, Playa Flamenca, Cabo Roig, La Zenia etc and you wont be sort of things to do.  There are no hilltop white villages in this area but there are plenty of interesting and historic places to see on a bus route, many free or cheap places to visit, and there are coach tours that again are very reasonable to visit further afield places.  Beaches in south Costa Blanca are great too.

I think you will have to make some fairly big compromises on your wish list as I can not think of anywhere in the Alicante region that ticks all your boxes. (I hope someone else proves me wrong).

Not having a car will seriously limit your options if you want to get away from the areas with high rises and a bar/nightlife culture.

The beautiful authentic villages where families and young children are outside all evening chatting, playing and enjoying cheap local food are found a little inland from Alicante airport. Only 40 minutes driving or so, but they are a different world to the coastal resorts. You could get there by taxi, but you really need your own transport to make the most of these areas. Buses are available, but often with very limited ie once a day services.

I think you will struggle with a heated pool as well, and in April an unheated pool will be cold.

Finally the weather can be a bit unpredictable in April. Last year the UK had brilliant weather at Easter, whereas in Alicante we had torrential rain and flooding ! This will not necessarily happen this time around, but I thought it worth mentioning.

Im sure you will have a fantastic memorable holiday, just work out what is most important on your wish list and book accordingly.

Try working through these hotels but I would suggest contacting them directly to confirm that the indoor pools are heated. https://www.tripadvisor.com/HotelsList-Province_of_Alicante-Hotels-With-Indoor-Pools-zfp10849364.html  Otherwise most towns have indoor public swimming pools but I have never used them so can't comment on them. Very few villa rentals will have heated pools so I think hotels are going to be your only option.

As others have said, it is going to be very difficult to meet all your requirements especially as the weather can be so unpredictable at this time of the year so water sports are going to be very limited as the sea will be freezing.

Alicante itself could be an option, especially with the tram running up the coast to Benidorm etc and there are easy transfers from the airport. Unfortunately where the facilities are, so the tourist numbers are higher, as are the buildings.

Unrealistic expectations I'm afraid.