Visiting museums is an amazing leisure option at any time of year, but it’s even better during an untypical month of May, especially if the unusual situation of cloudy and rainy weather persists into early June. Finestrat has an iconic museum in the centre of the beautiful urban park of Font de Carrè, featuring displays that look back at the town's extensive history since the first human settlements were known to have been established here in the Upper Palaeolithic. In the museum you can see archaeological remains dating back thousands of years and divided into four historical periods: Prehistory, Ancient History, the Middle Ages and the Modern and Contemporary Age.

Finestrat's long history is no surprise, given its location on the shores of the Mediterranean. Although the waters surrounding the municipality are the westernmost, this is a small sea and human beings soon demonstrated their urge to search for new places to expand. Babylonian king Nebuchadnezzar (604-562 BC), who dominated this entire region and its Phoenician city-states, would surely be amazed at how thousands of years later, these coastal towns would create a powerful industry, all because 20th and 21st century settlers like to spread out their towels and soak up the sun's rays. Back in the 7th century BC these lands were Phoenician colonies, with ships arriving from Carthage into Gadir (Cadiz) before setting sail for the Atlantic in search of tin.

Evidence shows that the municipal area of Finestrat was one of the most important Iberian settlements in the province of Alicante from the 4th century BC. The promontory of Tossal de La Cala is a fine example of the town’s importance, alongside other significant sites that have also been documented in recent years. It's looking increasingly certain that this small town in the Marina Baixa region was one of the major gateways to the eastern world. This flourishing of Iberian culture is also evidenced by the proliferation of Roman sites in the area. Structures and materials dating back to the 2nd century BC and related to the Romanisation of the municipal area have also been documented.

Archaeological finds and descriptions of all these historical periods can be seen in the Museum of Finestrat. This is a great leisure activity to do with the family on these spring days when the weather is unseasonable. Museum visiting times are Thursdays from 4 pm to 8 pm; Thursdays and Fridays from 10 am to 2 pm, and Saturdays and Sundays from 10 am to 2 pm. The museum closes on the first weekend of each month.