La Marina Alta
This northermost comarca of the province of Alicante features a more rigged coastline than the regions to the south, resulting in some spectacular views and smaller, blue flagged high quality beaches.
Rugged and Stunning
La Marina Alta features some of the most stunning terrain in the Costa Blanca due to the rugged nature that the mountains in the area meet the Mediterranean sea. This coming together of land and water result in some beautiful, and in some areas secluded, beaches with soft white sand and clear blue water.
Main Urban Centers
The larger cities in the marina Alta consist of Denia (pop ~32000), Calpe (pop ~24000), Javea (pop ~20000) and Altea (pop ~17000), some of which, though historically fishing villages, rely largely on tourism as their main industry; and for good reason!
Denia
Denia is the capital of La Marina Alta, and has a cosmopolitan feel like that of Benidorm, perhaps due to the many expatriats that live in the area. Located relatively close to the main A7 highway between Alicate and Valencia, Denia also has ferry service to the Balereac Islands, Ibiza, Mallorca and Menorca.
Inland
Moving inland from Denia brings you to the Jalon Valley, which much like the inland area of La Marina Baixa has small mountain villages scattered here and there. Many people - including expats - enjoy living inland away from the hustle and bustle but still close to the coastline.
More Information
There are many other pages available about the Marina Alta, however most offer only a cursory overview, much like this page. Some examples: hiptravelguide.com's "Costa Blanca and the Marina Alta of Spain".