Area to stay in?

[magentastardust]

We have flights booked to alicante next summer - we will be hiring a car and renting a villa ideally with private pool-can anyone recommend a nice area to stay in within around an hours drive of Alicante?

I will be watching with interest as we have just booked flights to Alicante too. Plan to hire an apartment on a complex (don't want a private pool with young DCs)
We have been looking at the Costa Calida / Mar Menor region.

Love the area around San Pedro del Pinatar, really 'spanish' and sea at Mar Menor warmer than open sea.

We stayed near Torrevieja but very british and if you get a villa its usually on an area called an 'urbanisation', lots of villas owned by expats, lovely scenery & accomodation but very little spanish 'flavour' IYKWIM.

What about Javea or Denia?.

Few years ago we stayed in a villa near Javea (might have been somewhere around Teulada.., can't remember the exact place..). But around and in Javea is nice, lovely drives around hills and coastline, little hidden restaurants in small villages.. we only visted Javea in the mornings to have breakfast (lovely cafes with fresh pastries, yummy!), went back to villa for lunchtime hide from the sun and spent afternoons driving around discovering the area. We had 3 month old DD with us, so long evenings drinking out didn't happen but it was still the nicest holiday i've been.

My friend raves about La Torre - they hire a villa there most summers. It's in Murcia though and I'm not sure how far from Alicante that is.