Paseo del Mar: Torrevieja's New Waterfront Is Open (2026)
Torrevieja's old port just became the social heart of the city. What's actually at the new Paseo del Mar waterfront complex, and whether it's worth your time.
Torrevieja just got the biggest change to its seafront in a generation, and it is worth a look whether you live nearby or you are down for a few days. Paseo del Mar, the new waterfront leisure complex built into the old port, opened on 11 June 2026 after years of work. It turned a chunk of the harbour that used to be fishing sheds, car parks, and general no-go area into the social centre of the city. Here is what is actually there and whether it is worth your time.
What it is
This was not a tidy-up. The whole port redevelopment runs to more than 100 million euros, with the leisure complex itself a private investment of around 60 million. It covers about 20,000 square metres of the former port, with roughly 27 shops, restaurants, bars and entertainment spots, a cinema, a bowling alley, and more than 650 underground parking spaces. They reckon it has created around 400 jobs. For a city the size of Torrevieja, that is a serious piece of infrastructure, not a pop-up.
What is actually there
The line-up is a mix of well-known chains and a few better names. You will find the usual suspects (McDonald's, KFC, Foster's Hollywood, 100 Montaditos) alongside more interesting Spanish brands like Lateral, Saona, Sibuya for Asian fusion, Santa Gloria for coffee and bakery, Casa Carmen, and Amorino for gelato. Entertainment-wise there is a Neocine multiplex and a bowling alley, which finally gives the city a proper rainy-day or after-dinner option that is not a drive away.
Honest take: do not come expecting a food revolution. A lot of this is reliable chain dining. What makes it worth going is not the brands, it is where they are. These are terraces sitting right on the water, looking over the marina, in a part of the port that was closed off for decades. The setting is the product. Grab a coffee or a drink on a sea-view terrace at sunset and you will get why the city is excited.
Why it matters for Torrevieja
The bigger point is what it joins up. Paseo del Mar is the missing link between the city centre, the seafront promenade, and the marina, which never really connected before. It is the first proper entertainment complex that sits in the port itself rather than in a retail park on the edge of town. For evening life in Torrevieja, that is a real shift. Expect it to become the default meet-up spot, especially in the cooler months when the beach is not the obvious move.
When to go and how to do it
Go at golden hour. The terraces face the water, and that is when the place is at its best. Parking is sorted now with the big underground car park, so you do not need to circle the port hunting for a space like the old days. If you are making a day of Torrevieja around it, the salt lakes and the seafront promenade are both close, and you can stretch it into the evening here easily.
Want more of the area? We have a guide to the best chiringuitos in Torrevieja for proper beach-bar days, and you can browse places to eat across the city on our restaurants directory. If the new port has you thinking about the area more seriously, our guide to Costa Blanca estate agents covers the southern coast too.