Ephemeral constructions in wood: the spas of the Alicante seafront (19th and 20th centuries)

Abstract

During the 19th and 20th centuries, throughout the European geography spas spread, buildings designed to facilitate sea and thermal baths as a source of health, so fashionable at that time. As a case study, those of the beach of Alicante, the first seaport connected to the Spanish capital by rail and one of the first attraction hubs of the tourism coming from the interior of the peninsula, are analyzed. The Levantine spas were simple wooden structures, composed of covered platforms on the sea, supported on foundation piles stuck in the sand as sophisticated piers. In a paradigmatic way, the construction and typology of one of these spas is analyzed. This article aims to demonstrate the relevance of these buildings that, despite their marked seasonal character, formed part of the landscape of Alicante seafront for more than a century.