Holidays with children in Alicante and other resorts of this Spanish province are very popular. That may be why there are so many museums of dolls and toys on the Costa Blanca. One is located in Onil, where many toy factories are concentrated. The manufacturers decided to create an exposition that would present the history of the manufacture of dolls, cars, designers and other things, without which not a single children's game can do. This is how the Museo de la muñeca was born.
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The museum collection occupies three floors of the beautiful old Casa l'Hort building. You won't see any toys on the ground floor — just individual pieces, parts, wigs, eyes... Here you can learn about the stages of doll-making and compare modern ways of making toys with ancient ones. Who were the faces of the dolls copied from? How did the toys learn to walk and talk? Using a guide, you can hear a lot about the first Spanish dolls.
On the first floor is a vast collection of dolls: almost 1,500 of them. The dolls, made in the 18th, 19th and 20th centuries, do not always look smart — some have not been restored to preserve the old techniques of creating bodies, faces and hairstyles. You can also find famous dolls that almost every girl dreams of having. In the showcases, you can also see baby dolls, Barbies and Spanish toy beauties. The bedroom of the Three Kings looks especially festive — in Spain and other Catholic countries, these biblical characters bring presents to children on 6 January.
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The halls of the Muzeo de la Muneca puppet museum are visited not only by visitors, but also by animated puppets. Actors in puppet costumes entertain children and tell them funny stories (although you need to know Spanish to understand them).
On the third floor, there are temporary exhibitions about the toy industry. There are also workshops where children create dolls out of different materials. If pre-made toys are more to your liking, check out the museum shop, where many well-known toy brands are on sale.
You can come to the museum without an appointment. If you sign up for a guided tour, however, the program will be completed by a visit to the dolls' hair and makeup factory and the plastic toy factory.
Do you fancy continuing the toy theme? Among the family-friendly hotels on the Costa Blanca is the Hotel del Juguete, where every room is like a bright and cheerful playroom.
