Moraira

Moraira is a small, upmarket Spanish coastal town, part of Teulada municipality, in the Marina Alta comarca, 80 km north of Alicante and 100 km south of Valencia. It is a tourist resort on the Costa Blanca strip, with 8 km of coastline backed by mountains and vineyards.The permanent population of Moraira in the northern Costa Blanca, Spain is around 10,000, although this rises to 36,000 in summer. There is a high proportion of expatriates living here permanently, and the area is very popular with affluent retirees, especially British. The majority of visitors to Moraira are Spanish, British, German, Dutch, and French.Moraira's historic roots as a fishing village are still in evidence; its fish market is one of the most popular in the Costa Blanca region and the port has five fishing boats in operation. The Moraira region is also famous for the growing of Muscatel grapes for wine-making.However, the economy of Moraira is now built around tourism and Spanish property sales that have transformed the coastline over the past 30 years. Strict planning regulations have prevented over development and high rise buildings, making it a highly desirable destination. Little remains of the fishing cottages that once made up the little port that serviced the town of Teulada that stands at the head of the valley. To preserve the heritage of the area, the Teulada council passed laws protecting the abundant pine trees and limited the height of buildings. It has a privately owned marina built in 1985, operated by Club Náutico Moraira. Moraira is also seen as a culinary destination, with many restaurants. Moraira has three sandy beaches popular with families, and many rocky coves and inlets frequented by snorkellers and scuba divers.