La Torre de la Horadada is a coastal town located by the sea, a hamlet belonging to the municipality of Pilar de la Horadada (22,000 inhabitants), in the province of Alicante, Spain. This coastal village has recently experienced development thanks to tourism. Its name is due to two factors: firstly, the 16th-century watchtower; and secondly, the location of said tower: Punta de la Horadada (the "horadada" is due to the fact that this land projection into the sea has small caves created by water, that is, it is perforated or holed). La Torre de la Horadada has several Blue Flag beaches. Among its beaches, Los Jesuitas, El Conde, El Puerto and the unique and small Cala de la Lombriz with fine sand and crystal-clear waters are noteworthy. Legend, known only to the locals, tells that the beaches and their inhabitants were the target of frequent pirate attacks, and that thanks to the system of watchtowers and the use of sea shells as a warning system, it was possible to put an end to them. The pirate chief had his hand perforated with a red-hot iron, piercing his hand, and thus giving the area its name: La Torre de la mano Horadada, which later evolved to "La Torre de la Horadada", the current name. The watchtower belonged to the coastal surveillance system and was built in 1580 on top of a previous tower. It marked the traditional southern limit of the Kingdom of Valencia, and during the 19th century it was used to send signals with the optical telegraph. It is very well connected to the airports of San Javier (15 km) and Alicante (60 km) via the A7, and has several shopping centers nearby, such as Zenia Boulevard or Dos Mares.