Vacation in Alicante in Spanish

Quick Answer

¡Hola!Learn how to vacation in Alicante in Spanish in this article and the lessons above! Specifically, learn how to do the following in Spanish:

• use the imperfect to talk about repeated actions in the past

• talk about a popular tourist destination

• discuss typical Spanish food

Vocabulary

Let's start off with the vocab words in these lessons!

Adjectives

Spanish	English
calmado	calm
eterno	eternal, forever

examples
El viaje en coche se hacía eterno. The car trip seemed to go on forever.
El mar casi siempre estaba calmado. The sea was almost always calm.

Adverb

Spanish	English
constantemente	constantly

examples
Nos aplicaba crema solar constantemente. She was constantly putting sunscreen on us.

Nouns

Spanish	English
Alicante	Alicante
el castillo	castle
el conejo	rabbit
la crema solar	sunscreen, sunblock
la heladería	ice cream parlor
la menta	mint
la orilla	shore
la paella	paella
el sabor	flavor
la siesta	nap
la toalla	towel
el turrón	nougat

examples
De pequeños, siempre íbamos de vacaciones a Alicante. When we were little, we always went on vacation to Alicante.
Un día, visitábamos el castillo. One day, we visited the castle.
Mi padre adoraba la paella de conejo. My father loved rabbit paella.

Alicante, Turrón, and Paella

Alicante, located on Spain’s Mediterranean coast, is a vacation and retirement hotspot for folks from around Europe.

Turrón, Spain’s beloved Christmas candy, is made in Alicante. There are two traditional types of turrón: soft and hard. Both are made with honey, egg whites, and almonds.

Depending on the recipe, paella, a rice-based dish, can include seafood, pork, chicken, vegetables, rabbit, or snails!

Noun Phrases

Spanish	English
la ensalada mixta	mixed salad
el libro electrónico	e-book

examples
Mi madre siempre pedía una ensalada mixta. My mother always ordered a mixed salad.
También leía en mi libro electrónico. I also read on my e-book.

In Spain, an ensalada mixta typically contains lettuce, carrots, tomatoes, and onion, as well as hard-boiled eggs and tuna.

Prepositional Phrase

Spanish	English
por aquel entonces	at that time

examples
Por aquel entonces, mi madre era vegetariana. At that time, my mother was a vegetarian.

Verbs

In this skill, you learn the following verbs!

Aplicar

Aplicar(to put on, to apply) is an -ar verb that is regular in the imperfect.

Pronoun(s)	Conjugation	Translation	Notes
yo	aplicaba	I put on, I applied
tú	aplicabas	you put on, you applied	informal singular you
vos	aplicabas	you put on, you applied	informal singular you (in parts of Latin America)
él, ella	aplicaba	he, she put on; he, she applied
usted	aplicaba	you put on, you applied	formal singular you
nosotros, nosotras	aplicábamos	we put on, we applied
vosotros, vosotras	aplicabais	you put on, you applied	informal plural you (in Spain)
ellos, ellas	aplicaban	they put on, they applied
ustedes	aplicaban	you put on, you applied	plural you (in Latin America), formal plural you (in Spain)

Bañarse

Bañarse(to swim) is an -ar reflexive verb that is regular in the imperfect.

Pronoun(s)	Conjugation	Translation	Notes
yo	me bañaba	I swam
tú	te bañabas	you swam	informal singular you
vos	te bañabas	you swam	informal singular you (in parts of Latin America)
él, ella	se bañaba	he, she swam
usted	se bañaba	you swam	formal singular you
nosotros, nosotras	nos bañábamos	we swam
vosotros, vosotras	os bañabais	you swam	informal plural you (in Spain)
ellos, ellas	se bañaban	they swam
ustedes	se bañaban	you swam	plural you (in Latin America), formal plural you (in Spain)

Comer

Comer(to eat) is an -er verb that is regular in the imperfect.

Pronoun(s)	Conjugation	Translation	Notes
yo	comía	I ate
tú	comías	you ate	informal singular you
vos	comías	you ate	informal singular you (in parts of Latin America)
él, ella	comía	he, she ate
usted	comía	you ate	formal singular you
nosotros, nosotras	comíamos	we ate
vosotros, vosotras	comíais	you ate	informal plural you (in Spain)
ellos, ellas	comían	they ate
ustedes	comían	you ate	plural you (in Latin America), formal plural you (in Spain)

Comprar

Comprar(to buy) is an -ar verb that is regular in the imperfect.

Pronoun(s)	Conjugation	Translation	Notes
yo	compraba	I bought
tú	comprabas	you bought	informal singular you
vos	comprabas	you bought	informal singular you (in parts of Latin America)
él, ella	compraba	he, she bought
usted	compraba	you bought	formal singular you
nosotros, nosotras	comprábamos	we bought
vosotros, vosotras	comprabais	you bought	informal plural you (in Spain)
ellos, ellas	compraban	they bought
ustedes	compraban	you bought	plural you (in Latin America), formal plural you (in Spain)

Conducir

Conducir(to drive) is an -ir verb that is regular in the imperfect.

Pronoun(s)	Conjugation	Translation	Notes
yo	conducía	I drove
tú	conducías	you drove	informal singular you
vos	conducías	you drove	informal singular you (in parts of Latin America)
él, ella	conducía	he, she drove
usted	conducía	you drove	formal singular you
nosotros, nosotras	conducíamos	we drove
vosotros, vosotras	conducíais	you drove	informal plural you (in Spain)
ellos, ellas	conducían	they drove
ustedes	conducían	you drove	plural you (in Latin America), formal plural you (in Spain)

Construir

Construir(to build) is an -er verb that is regular in the imperfect.

Pronoun(s)	Conjugation	Translation	Notes
yo	construía	I built
tú	construías	you built	informal singular you
vos	construías	you built	informal singular you (in parts of Latin America)
él, ella	construía	he, she built
usted	construía	you built	formal singular you
nosotros, nosotras	construíamos	we built
vosotros, vosotras	construíais	you built	informal plural you (in Spain)
ellos, ellas	construían	they built
ustedes	construían	you built	plural you (in Latin America), formal plural you (in Spain)

Dar

Dar(to give) is an -ar verb that is regular in the imperfect.

Pronoun(s)	Conjugation	Translation	Notes
yo	daba	I gave
tú	dabas	you gave	informal singular you
vos	dabas	you gave	informal singular you (in parts of Latin America)
él, ella	daba	he, she gave
usted	daba	you gave	formal singular you
nosotros, nosotras	dábamos	we gave
vosotros, vosotras	dabais	you gave	informal plural you (in Spain)
ellos, ellas	daban	they gave
ustedes	daban	you gave	plural you (in Latin America), formal plural you (in Spain)

The phrase dar un paseomeans to take a walk.

Discutir

Discutir(to argue) is an -er verb that is regular in the imperfect.

Pronoun(s)	Conjugation	Translation	Notes
yo	discutía	I argued
tú	discutías	you argued	informal singular you
vos	discutías	you argued	informal singular you (in parts of Latin America)
él, ella	discutía	he, she argued
usted	discutía	you argued	formal singular you
nosotros, nosotras	discutíamos	we argued
vosotros, vosotras	discutíais	you argued	informal plural you (in Spain)
ellos, ellas	discutían	they argued
ustedes	discutían	you argued	plural you (in Latin America), formal plural you (in Spain)

Disfrutar

Disfrutar(to enjoy) is an -ar verb that is regular in the imperfect.

Pronoun(s)	Conjugation	Translation	Notes
yo	disfrutaba	I enjoyed
tú	disfrutabas	you enjoyed	informal singular you
vos	disfrutabas	you enjoyed	informal singular you (in parts of Latin America)
él, ella	disfrutaba	he, she enjoyed
usted	disfrutaba	you enjoyed	formal singular you
nosotros, nosotras	disfrutábamos	we enjoyed
vosotros, vosotras	disfrutabais	you enjoyed	informal plural you (in Spain)
ellos, ellas	disfrutaban	they enjoyed
ustedes	disfrutaban	you enjoyed	plural you (in Latin America), formal plural you (in Spain)

Dormir

Dormir(to sleep) is an -ir verb that is regular in the imperfect.

Pronoun(s)	Conjugation	Translation	Notes
yo	dormía	I slept
tú	dormías	you slept	informal singular you
vos	dormías	you slept	informal singular you (in parts of Latin America)
él, ella	dormía	he, she slept
usted	dormía	you slept	formal singular you
nosotros, nosotras	dormíamos	we slept
vosotros, vosotras	dormíais	you slept	informal plural you (in Spain)
ellos, ellas	dormían	they slept
ustedes	dormían	you slept	plural you (in Latin America), formal plural you (in Spain)

Escoger

Escoger(to choose) is an -er verb that is regular in the imperfect.

Pronoun(s)	Conjugation	Translation	Notes
yo	escogía	I chose
tú	escogías	you chose	informal singular you
vos	escogías	you chose	informal singular you (in parts of Latin America)
él, ella	escogía	he, she chose
usted	escogía	you chose	formal singular you
nosotros, nosotras	escogíamos	we chose
vosotros, vosotras	escogíais	you chose	informal plural you (in Spain)
ellos, ellas	escogían	they chose
ustedes	escogían	you chose	plural you (in Latin America), formal plural you (in Spain)

Escuchar

Escuchar(to listen) is an -ar verb that is regular in the imperfect.

Pronoun(s)	Conjugation	Translation	Notes
yo	escuchaba	I listened
tú	escuchabas	you listened	informal singular you
vos	escuchabas	you listened	informal singular you (in parts of Latin America)
él, ella	escuchaba	he, she listened
usted	escuchaba	you listened	formal singular you
nosotros, nosotras	escuchábamos	we listened
vosotros, vosotras	escuchabais	you listened	informal plural you (in Spain)
ellos, ellas	escuchaban	they listened
ustedes	escuchaban	you listened	plural you (in Latin America), formal plural you (in Spain)

Hacerse

Hacerse(to become) is an -er pronominal verb that is regular in the imperfect.

Pronoun(s)	Conjugation	Translation	Notes
yo	me hacía	I became
tú	te hacías	you became	informal singular you
vos	te hacías	you became	informal singular you (in parts of Latin America)
él, ella	se hacía	he, she became
usted	se hacía	you became	formal singular you
nosotros, nosotras	nos hacíamos	we became
vosotros, vosotras	os hacíais	you became	informal plural you (in Spain)
ellos, ellas	se hacían	they became
ustedes	se hacían	you became	plural you (in Latin America), formal plural you (in Spain)

There are a number of possible translations for hacerse. For example, in the phrase se hacía eterno, hacerse roughly translates as felt or seemed to.

examples
El viaje en coche se hacía eterno. The car trip seemed to go on forever.

Leer

Leer(to read) is an -er verb that is regular in the imperfect.

Pronoun(s)	Conjugation	Translation	Notes
yo	leía	I read
tú	leías	you read	informal singular you
vos	leías	you read	informal singular you (in parts of Latin America)
él, ella	leía	he, she read
usted	leía	you read	formal singular you
nosotros, nosotras	leíamos	we read
vosotros, vosotras	leíais	you read	informal plural you (in Spain)
ellos, ellas	leían	they read
ustedes	leían	you read	plural you (in Latin America), formal plural you (in Spain)

Nadar

Nadar(to swim) is an -ar verb that is regular in the imperfect.

Pronoun(s)	Conjugation	Translation	Notes
yo	nadaba	I swam
tú	nadabas	you swam	informal singular you
vos	nadabas	you swam	informal singular you (in parts of Latin America)
él, ella	nadaba	he, she swam
usted	nadaba	you swam	formal singular you
nosotros, nosotras	nadábamos	we swam
vosotros, vosotras	nadabais	you swam	informal plural you (in Spain)
ellos, ellas	nadaban	they swam
ustedes	nadaban	you swam	plural you (in Latin America), formal plural you (in Spain)

Preferir

Preferir(to prefer) is an -er verb that is regular in the imperfect.

Pronoun(s)	Conjugation	Translation	Notes
yo	prefería	I preferred
tú	preferías	you preferred	informal singular you
vos	preferías	you preferred	informal singular you (in parts of Latin America)
él, ella	prefería	he, she preferred
usted	prefería	you preferred	formal singular you
nosotros, nosotras	preferíamos	we preferred
vosotros, vosotras	preferíais	you preferred	informal plural you (in Spain)
ellos, ellas	preferían	they preferred
ustedes	preferían	you preferred	plural you (in Latin America), formal plural you (in Spain)

Quedarse

Quedarse(to stay) is an -ar pronominal verb that is regular in the imperfect.

Pronoun(s)	Conjugation	Translation	Notes
yo	me quedaba	I stayed
tú	te quedabas	you stayed	informal singular you
vos	te quedabas	you stayed	informal singular you (in parts of Latin America)
él, ella	se quedaba	he, she stayed
usted	se quedaba	you stayed	formal singular you
nosotros, nosotras	nos quedábamos	we stayed
vosotros, vosotras	os quedabais	you stayed	informal plural you (in Spain)
ellos, ellas	se quedaban	they stayed
ustedes	se quedaban	you stayed	plural you (in Latin America), formal plural you (in Spain)

Salpicar

Salpicar(to splash) is an -ar verb that is regular in the imperfect.

Pronoun(s)	Conjugation	Translation	Notes
yo	salpicaba	I splashed
tú	salpicabas	you splashed	informal singular you
vos	salpicabas	you splashed	informal singular you (in parts of Latin America)
él, ella	salpicaba	he, she splashed
usted	salpicaba	you splashed	formal singular you
nosotros, nosotras	salpicábamos	we splashed
vosotros, vosotras	salpicabais	you splashed	informal plural you (in Spain)
ellos, ellas	salpicaban	they splashed
ustedes	salpicaban	you splashed	plural you (in Latin America), formal plural you (in Spain)

Verb Phrases

In this skill, you learn the following verb phrases!

Pasarse Volando

Pasarse volando(to fly past, to fly by) is an -ar pronominal verb phrase that is regular in the imperfect.

Pasarse volando is typically used in the third person singular (se pasaba volando) or third person plural (se pasaban volando).

Tener Lugar

Tener lugar(to take place, to happen) is an -er verb phrase that is regular in the imperfect.

Tener lugar is typically used in the third person singular (tenía lugar) or third person plural (tenían lugar).

Tomar El Sol

Tomar el sol(to sunbathe) is an -ar verb that is regular in the imperfect.

Pronoun(s)	Conjugation	Translation	Notes
yo	tomaba el sol	I sunbathed
tú	tomabas el sol	you sunbathed	informal singular you
vos	tomabas el sol	you sunbathed	informal singular you (in parts of Latin America)
él, ella	tomaba el sol	he, she sunbathed
usted	tomaba el sol	you sunbathed	formal singular you
nosotros, nosotras	tomábamos el sol	we sunbathed
vosotros, vosotras	tomabais el sol	you sunbathed	informal plural you (in Spain)
ellos, ellas	tomaban el sol	they sunbathed
ustedes	tomaban el sol	you sunbathed	plural you (in Latin America), formal plural you (in Spain)

Imperfect Verbs: Introduction

The imperfect tense, or pretérito imperfecto, is one of the two tenses used to talk about the past in Spanish. We use it to talk about descriptions in the past, like past habits, repeated actions, feelings, and beliefs held in the past, or to set the scene when talking about an action that was interrupted.

In these lessons, you learned some common expressions that indicate that the imperfect tense should be used. These expressions include:

• cada día

• casi siempre

• casi todos los días

• constantemente

• de pequeños

• después de comer

• durante una hora

• por aquel entonces

• por las tardes

• siempre

• todos los días

• una vez a la semana

• un día

Imperfect Verbs: Regular Verbs

Conjugating verbs in the imperfect tense is simple! Just take the infinitive ending (-ar, -er, or -ir) off the verb and add one of the following endings. Don’t forget the tildes(accents)!

Subject	-ar Verbs	-er and -ir Verbs
yo	-aba	-ía
tú	-abas	-ías
vos	-abas	-ías
él, ella, usted	-aba	-ía
nosotros	-ábamos	-íamos
vosotros	-abais	-íais
ellos, ellas, ustedes	-aban	-ían

Imperfect Tense: Irregular Verbs

Like any other tense in Spanish, the imperfect tense is, well, imperfect! However, it’s far more user-friendly than other Spanish tenses; there are just three irregular verbs! Here’s how you conjugate all three irregular verbs in the imperfect tense:

Subject	Ir (to go)	Ser (to be)	Ver (to see)
yo	iba	era	veía
tú	ibas	eras	veías
vos	ibas	eras	veías
él, ella, usted	iba	era	veía
nosotros	íbamos	éramos	veíamos
vosotros	ibais	erais	veíais
ellos, ellas, ustedes	iban	eran	veían

Quiz Yourself!

Want more practice with the vocabulary you learned in these lessons? Click here!

Spanish Conversation

Fantastic! Let's put the grammar and vocab from above to the test in the following example of a conversation in Spanish.

Julia:

De pequeños, siempre íbamos de vacaciones a Alicante. Siempre nos quedábamos en el mismo apartamento.

When we were little, we always went on vacation to Alicante. We always stayed in the same apartment.

Pau:

¡Me encanta Alicante! ¿Ibas mucho a la playa?

I love Alicante! Did you go to the beach a lot?

Julia:

Sí. Cada día, conducíamos a la playa. Todos los días, nos bañábamos en el mar. El mar casi siempre estaba calmado.

Yeah. Every day, we drove to the beach. Every day, we swam in the sea. The sea was almost always calm.

Pau:

El Mediterráneo casi siempre está calmado. ¿Comías paella en Alicante?

The Mediterranean is almost always calm. Did you eat paella in Alicante?

Julia:

Sí, pero mis padres siempre discutían por la paella. Mi padre adoraba la paella de conejo, pero mi madre prefería la paella de verduras.

Yeah, but my parents always argued about the paella. My father loved rabbit paella, but my mother preferred vegetarian paella.

Pau:

¿Comías helado en Alicante? ¡Los helados de Alicante son los mejores de España!

Did you eat ice cream in Alicante? The ice cream in Alicante is the best in Spain!

Want to learn more about how to vacation in Alicante in Spanish? Check out the following articles!

• Spanish in Spain

• Book a Trip

• Plan a Trip to a Spanish-Speaking Country