Torre de les Paulines

Torre de les Paulines is a stone watchtower in the municipality of Mutxamel, in the province of Alicante, standing along the road to Tangel (CV-818) a few kilometers from the town center.

What is Torre de les Paulines?

It is one of the 16th-century watchtowers built across the coastal countryside of Alicante, the so-called Huerta de Alicante, to defend farms and hamlets from Berber pirate raids. A date of 1560, carved into one of the entrance arches, points to when construction took place. The tower has a square floor plan roughly 5 meters per side and rises through a ground floor plus three upper stories. Its walls were built from stone and mortar, and the facades still show loopholes and windows typical of coastal defense architecture from that era.

What was the tower used for?

Towers like this one formed a signaling chain running along the coast and inland. When a lookout spotted pirate ships, the warning was passed to the next tower using smoke by day or fire by night. The signal traveled from tower to tower, giving residents time to take shelter before raiders could reach further inland. This relay system was a core part of coastal defense around Alicante for several centuries, at a time when corsair raids posed a real threat to local people and their crops.

Where exactly is the tower located?

Torre de les Paulines sits on the CV-818 road heading toward Tangel, about 3 km from the urban center of Mutxamel, close to the small hamlet of Las Paulinas, which gave the tower its name. The surrounding area is a typical stretch of the Alicante huerta — historic farmland once irrigated through a network of channels, now partly built up but still retaining a rural feel.

Can visitors see the tower today?

The tower has survived in very good condition thanks to a past restoration. It now stands within the grounds of Restaurante Juan XXIII, which uses the tower as a backdrop for events and as part of its rural accommodation offering. That means visiting usually goes hand in hand with visiting the venue itself — it is worth checking beforehand whether the site is open to casual visitors or booked for a private event on a given day.

Why is Torre de les Paulines worth seeing?

For anyone interested in the history of the Alicante region, the tower is a tangible trace of an era when the threat of piracy shaped daily life along the coast and its hinterland. Unlike many similar towers that have fallen into ruin, this one has been preserved well enough to show the proportions and construction typical of a 16th-century watchtower — a square plan, thick walls, and small openings built for both observation and defense. It also makes a good stop for a short outing that pairs local history with the huerta landscape, especially for travelers moving between Mutxamel and Sant Joan d'Alacant.

How do you get there?

The easiest way is by car along the CV-818 toward Tangel — the tower sits right along this route, about 3 km from central Mutxamel. The distance is also manageable by bike or on foot for those who enjoy walking the trails connecting Mutxamel with neighboring towns.

Frequently asked questions

When was Torre de les Paulines built? The tower was built around 1560, a date carved into one of the arches at its entrance.

What was the tower originally used for? It was part of a chain of watchtowers warning residents of the Alicante huerta about Berber pirate raids, relaying smoke and fire signals between observation points.

Can the tower be visited today? The tower stands on the grounds of the Juan XXIII restaurant and events complex, so access usually depends on that venue's availability — it is best to check before visiting.

What does the tower's architecture look like? It is a square structure about 5 meters per side, with a ground floor and three upper stories, stone masonry walls, and loopholes and windows characteristic of 16th-century defense towers.