Alicante Summer Artisan Fair in Paseo de la Explanada
Discover traditional, handmade arts and crafts at the Summer Feria Artesanía in Alicante City
Summers in Alicante city wouldn’t be the same without the Feria Artesanía located along the beachfront of Playa del Postiguet in the Paseo de la Explanada, attracting both locals and tourists who are drawn to the vast display of colourful and unique handmade products for sale.
The market stalls usually open from 19:00 until midnight between the 1st July and 25th September, although some traders keep their stalls open throughout the duration of the day during the busiest weeks of the peak season to welcome the crowds of tourists who enjoy meandering along the explanada and purchasing souvenirs.
The artisan market was organised by the Alicante Chamber of Commerce who decided that it was important to promote the small craft businesses in the area and develop and expand the artisan sector in the community, so that the traditional arts and crafts that have been made for years can continue to be passed down through the generations.
80% of the stalls belong to craftsmen from Alicante or from the Comunidad Valenciana.
Along the Paseo de la Explanada there are 40 artisan huts, 39 of which sell handmade products and another is used as a workshop stall where craftsmen can demonstrate their handiwork.
The stalls sell a range of local handicrafts from ceramics, glass art, gemstones, woodcarvings, silverware, textiles, fans, leather, and natural soaps to shoes, hats and souvenirs. There are also stalls selling classic sweet treats such as ‘pan de dátiles’ (bread made from dates) and ‘pipas garrapiñadas’, which are sugar -coated sunflower seeds. These irresistibly sweet and crunchy sugared seeds are very popular amongst Alicante locals and tourists, who can watch them being made on the spot as they are mixed with sugar and water in a machine, which then heats and turns the mixture before the seeds are then served hot in folded paper, sometimes (if you’re lucky) for free, as a taster.