Alicante homes at €80,000: old shops turned into flats

Today's essentials (5 key points)

• Homes carved out of former shops are on sale in Alicante for about 80,000 euros, roughly half the price of a standard flat nearby, though with poorer living conditions, according to Informacion.
• Open-Meteo forecasts an overcast Monday across the Costa Blanca, with highs of 30 degrees in Alicante and a 40% chance of rain inland around Pinoso.
• Alicante-Elche airport handled more than 2.3 million passengers in July, an 11.1% rise on the same month last year, operator Aena reported.
• The head of Alicante's veterinary association, Juana Molina, warned that pet abandonment still affects hundreds of thousands of animals in Spain each year.
• In Elche, neighbours' complaints led police to a house where cocaine was being sold directly from the garage.

Today's essentials

Alicante homes at €80,000: old shops turned into flats. Homes fitted out inside former commercial premises ('bajos comerciales') are selling in Alicante for around 80,000 euros and renting for about 600 euros a month, roughly half the going rate in neighbourhoods where standard flats rarely drop below 160,000 euros to buy or 850 euros to rent, though with poorer living conditions, according to Informacion.

Weather today

An overcast, muggy Monday on the Costa Blanca. Open-Meteo expects a grey, warm day across the Costa Blanca today, Monday 24 August 2026, with highs around 30 degrees and only a modest chance of rain near the coast.

In Alicante city, temperatures sit between 24 and 30 degrees under a covered sky, with just a 15% chance of rain and a light breeze reaching 16 km/h. It feels muggy rather than scorching, so a thin layer for the evening is plenty and there is little need to plan the day around showers.

Inland around Pinoso the range is similar, 21 to 30 degrees, but the rain risk climbs to 40% and the wind stiffens to 22 km/h, so keep an eye on the sky if you head into the interior. On the northern coast at Javea it stays milder, 25 to 28 degrees, with a 20% chance of rain and a stronger sea breeze of up to 27 km/h that will be welcome on the beach.

Transport & traffic

• Alicante airport, the region's twelve-million gateway. Alicante-Elche airport has long been the Costa Blanca's main gateway, having welcomed its twelve-millionth annual passenger back in 2016, according to AlicanteOut. That milestone underlined how central air links are to everyday life here, whether you are flying home to see family, picking up visitors, or planning a break from the region. For residents it is a reminder that the airport's health shapes flight choice and connections, and that the Costa Blanca's steady tourism pull keeps routes plentiful across the year rather than only in peak season.
• 2.3 million passengers through Alicante in July. Figures from operator Aena, relayed by the Olive Press, show Alicante-Elche airport handled more than 2.3 million passengers in July, an 11.1% jump on the same month a year earlier, putting it on course to break its annual record. For anyone flying to or from the Costa Blanca, the surge means fuller terminals and longer check-in and security queues through the peak weeks, so arriving early remains the safe bet. The record pace also shows airlines see strong demand on Alicante routes, which tends to keep the choice of destinations wide, even if it does little to soften fares in high summer.

What's changing for you

• Vets warn: a pet is not a gift or a whim. Pet abandonment still affects hundreds of thousands of animals in Spain every year, warns Juana Molina, president of Alicante's College of Veterinarians, who insists that a pet 'is not a gift or a whim'. The practical takeaway if you are thinking of taking in a dog or cat here is to treat it as a commitment of many years, to budget for vet care, and above all to have the animal microchipped and registered, which is a legal requirement in the Valencian Community and the main way a lost pet is returned to its owner rather than lost for good. If circumstances change and you genuinely cannot keep an animal, contact a shelter or your town's protectora instead of letting it go.
• Objections filed over the Monnegre green corridor. The Valencian Community's College of Environmental Scientists (COAMBCV) has filed formal objections to Phase 1 of the Monnegre River Green Corridor project during its public consultation, according to elperiodic. A public consultation ('tramite de informacion publica') means residents and local groups near the Monnegre, in the Alicante area, can also lodge their own comments while the window is open. If the green corridor affects your neighbourhood, it is worth checking the official project notice on the regional environment portal to see exactly how, and by when, to have your say.

Local news to know

• Cocaine sold from a garage in Elche. Neighbours' complaints in Elche, as elperiodic reported, led police to a house where cocaine was being sold straight from the garage, with buyers driving in to swap cash for drugs out of sight of the street.
• Alicante pitches itself as a smart city. TodoAlicante reports that Alicante is positioning itself as one of Spain's most advanced smart cities, showcasing a series of urban transformation projects.
• A huge branch falls in Dénia, no one hurt. A large tree branch crashed down on Marqués de Campo in Dénia without injuring anyone, and crews had to saw the trunk into sections before they could haul it away because of its size, according to La Marina Plaza.

Things to do today

• Benidorm keeps its August nights going. Benidorm has kept its packed August programme running, mixing symphonic and electronic music with club nights such as BRESH and the Summer Urban Fest at Penélope, according to Life in Benidorm.
• Club nights fill Benidorm's summer bill. Benidorm's August calendar has leaned heavily on club nights, including BRESH and the Summer Urban Fest at Penélope, according to Life in Benidorm.