The small town of Jalón is capital of the Jalón Valley and just a 20 minute drive from Calpe, Spain. It’s a beautiful little town that’s visited during the year for its famous wine bodegas, restaurants, handicraft shops, and famous sweets and desserts and, on Saturday mornings, is invaded by thousands of Spaniards and tourists who arrive in town for the amazing Jalón Market.
Jalón Market (the Rastro of Jalón) is held almost every Saturday throughout the year and is known for its enormous array of antiques, old furniture, handicrafts, clothing, pottery, paintings, ornaments and flea market-style items. You’ll also find many stalls selling clothing, shoes, books, food, jewelry, handmade traditional Spanish clothing and lots more.
On my visit this month, I came away with two gorgeous second-hand dresses that I only paid €2 each for, a wooden bowl that was €5, a €1 book, and a pair of €3 reading glasses.
My aunt and uncle, meanwhile, bought a gorgeous English porcelain platter and a stunning antique Spanish dressing table with an enormous mirror. They were also thrilled as they managed to knock the seller down by 25 percent for the platter and more than 20 percent (€350 to €275) for the dressing table.
Jalón Market begins around 8:30am on Saturday mornings and is very busy until 2pm when the stalls begin to be taken down. If you’re looking for truly unusual items, Jalón Market is the best place in the area to find them as you’ll see things here you haven’t seen anywhere else in the area.
Don’t miss a visit to the famous Bodegas Xaló while you’re here either . It’s right across the street from the market and you can sample as much wine here as you like, as well as buy a large bottle for less than €3.
