Los Arcos (Calpe)

Anchor near the rock on the north side of the Ifach and drop to about nine metres, where the main arch opens up. It rewards unhurried finning: gorgonians cling to the shaded walls, and a two-banded seabream or two often hold station near the entrance. From there the route follows the rock's natural drop across a sandy patch, working southeast toward the tip of the Ifach formation, before turning back along the wall. The return leg holds smaller arches around eight metres, pocked with cavities and holes worth a torch and a slow look. Moray eels and grouper tuck into the smaller ones. Nothing here goes much past nine or ten metres, so there's no need to rush the swim-throughs to manage gas.

Alicante's coast has at least four different dive sites called some version of Los Arcos, and this is only one of them: Calpe's, on the north face of the Ifach, separate from the sites of the same name off Benidorm, off Tabarca, and near Jávea. This one is defined by its arches rather than depth or drama, a shallow circuit built for training, photography, and an easy swim through rock architecture. Where the wall dive on the Ifach's south side chases depth, Los Arcos stays under ten metres throughout, trading challenge for a route a new diver can manage on a certification dive.

A torch turns the return leg's smaller arches from a swim-past into something worth stopping for. The cavities hide moray eels and the odd grouper that direct light picks out. Boat access means booking through a Calpe-area dive center rather than walking in; anchoring happens right at the site. Spring and autumn bring calmer weather and thinner crowds across this stretch of coast, though the shallow, sheltered profile keeps the site diveable most of the year. As with any boat dive here, bring standard safety gear and keep an eye on surface traffic.