44°C on Wednesday: where to stay cool in the Marina Alta

Today's essentials (5 key points)

• AEMET has activated the first red heat alert of the summer for the Marina Alta, with maximum temperatures of 42 to 44°C forecast for Wednesday 19 August.
• Today, Tuesday 18 August, Open-Meteo already shows 33°C in Alicante city and up to 36°C inland around Alcoy under a mostly clear sky.
• The elperiodic outlet reports that the Valencians sobre rodes programme is cycling the first stage of the Vía Verde del Xixarra this week, a greenway laid over a disused railway line.
• Torrevieja is expanding its police recruitment drive from 44 to 63 posts to reach 200 officers by early 2027, according to Informacion.
• Two hikers were rescued on the Montgó above Dénia on Tuesday with signs of exhaustion and dehydration, Informacion reports, a reminder of how dangerous the trails are in this heat.

Today's essentials

44°C on Wednesday: where to stay cool in the Marina Alta. AEMET has activated its first red heat alert of the summer for the Marina Alta, in force on Wednesday 19 August from 13:00 to 20:59, with maximum temperatures forecast at 42 to 44°C.

The red level is the highest AEMET issues, and it covers more than the Marina Alta: El Español reports the agency has also placed the full coast of Valencia province and the northern Alicante coast on red, with the same 42 to 44°C ceiling, and calls Wednesday the hottest day of the episode. The two accounts differ slightly on where the peak will land: La Marina (eldiario.es) points to the north and interior of the comarca, near the neighbouring Safor, while El Español leans towards the coastline. Either way, Dénia, Pego and the surrounding towns are squarely inside the warning.

The heat is not the only risk. El Español, citing AEMET, warns of an extreme wildfire threat over the period, driven by the mix of heat, a persistent poniente wind and very low humidity that lets fire spread fast. More than 300 firefighters have been drafted in across the Valencian Community for the peak, including 135 professionals, a roughly 30% rise in deployed staff. On the health side, the Conselleria de Sanidad has stepped up its 'Que el calor no te la pegue' prevention campaign, flagging older people, children and people with chronic illness as most at risk, with an information line on 012.

If you want to escape the worst of it, the cool water is inland, up towards the mountains of the province. Les Fonts de l'Algar, in Callosa d'en Sarrià (Marina Baixa), are a well-known run of natural pools and small waterfalls fed by spring water off the sierra, easiest to reach by car. In the heart of the Marina Alta, the Barranc de l'Infern above La Vall de Laguar holds shaded river pools between high rock walls, again a car trip and a walk in. For woodland shade rather than swimming, the Font Roja natural park above Alcoi sits high enough to stay noticeably fresher than the coast, while the reservoir at Guadalest (Marina Baixa) offers mountain air and views without the beach crowds.

Go early in the day, carry more water than you think you need, and treat any long walk with caution: the Montgó rescue on Tuesday shows how quickly exhaustion sets in when the trails bake. Shaded, spring-fed spots stay cool because the water comes off altitude, but the roads to them are quiet and phone signal can be patchy, so tell someone your plan.

What this means for you: build Wednesday 19 August around the heat, keep the midday hours (roughly 13:00 to 21:00) indoors or in shade, hydrate steadily and check on elderly neighbours. There is relief in sight: La Marina (eldiario.es) says the alert drops back to yellow on Thursday 20 August, with temperatures easing gradually from Friday 21 August.

Weather today

Weather today: hot and clear across the Costa Blanca. Open-Meteo forecasts a hot, mostly dry Tuesday 18 August across the Costa Blanca, with Alicante city between 26 and 33°C under light cloud, no rain and a breeze of up to 12 km/h.

In Alicante city the day stays clear and calm, a good afternoon for the beach if you keep to the shade and drink often. Inland the contrast is sharper: around Alcoy, Open-Meteo gives 21 to 36°C under an overcast sky, with wind up to 20 km/h, so the interior is already the hottest corner before Wednesday's peak. On the southern coast, Benidorm sits between 25 and 34°C with light cloud and only a gentle 9 km/h breeze.

With highs at or above 34°C in several spots, treat today as a full heat day: light clothing, water on you, and the hardest activity kept to early morning or evening rather than the middle of the afternoon.

Transport & traffic

• Alicante-Elche airport, the region's front door. Alicante-Elche airport remains the Costa Blanca's main gateway, a scale AlicanteOut underlines by recalling that it once passed the twelve-million-passenger mark. That volume is why the airport matters to anyone living here, not just visitors: a dense network of routes keeps flights to northern Europe frequent and, outside peak season, affordable, which shapes how easily friends and family can come and go. For residents in the Marina Baixa and Vega Baja in particular, it is the practical link home, and its year-round traffic helps sustain the buses and transfers that feed it.
• Riding the old Xixarra railway line. The Valencians sobre rodes programme is cycling the first stage of the Vía Verde del Xixarra this week, a greenway built on the route of a train that once linked the inland towns for decades, according to elperiodic. Greenways like the Xixarra turn abandoned rail track into flat, traffic-free paths, which makes them an easy option for walking or cycling with children away from the coast road. For expats keen to see the interior of the province without a car for the day, they are a low-effort way to reach villages and countryside that the beach crowds never see.

Local news to know

• Torrevieja adds police posts to reach 200 officers. Torrevieja is expanding its current recruitment process from 44 to 63 Local Police posts, aiming to bring its force up to 200 officers by early 2027, Informacion reports.
• Elda leads the province for shop density. Elda is nearing 17 shops per thousand inhabitants, the highest commercial density in the area, according to TodoAlicante.
• Benidorm's weekends stay packed. Benidorm keeps filling its weekends with sport, music and open-air events, from futsal tournaments like the Costa Blanca Cup to live shows, as Life in Benidorm regularly lists.
• Visitors keep asking about Novelda. On the r/Alicante forum, a family planning a stay in Novelda is asking locals where to eat and what to see in the town and around the province, a sign of steady interest in the inland Vinalopó.

Tonight and tomorrow, the Costa Blanca

• August nights out in Benidorm. Benidorm's August nightlife rolls on with names such as BRESH and the Summer Urban Fest at Penélope, part of the packed agenda Life in Benidorm tracks.
• Two hikers rescued in the heat on the Montgó. Two hikers were rescued on Tuesday on the Montgó above Dénia after showing signs of exhaustion and dehydration on a walking route, the Consorcio Provincial de Bomberos told Informacion. With a red heat alert landing on Wednesday 19 August, the message is blunt: keep mountain walks to the early morning, carry plenty of water, and postpone the harder routes until temperatures ease later in the week.
• Rubbish still piling up in Calp. In Calp, the concessionaire Acciona has not filed the report meant to end its strike and waste is still building up in the streets, with the town hall now demanding a plan to normalise the service, La Marina Plaza reports.

See the full agenda, tonight and tomorrow