The Cap de la Nau () or Cabo de la Nao (), literally Cape of the Ship, is a headland located central-eastern coastal Spain on the

Gulf of Valencia The Gulf of Valencia ( ca-valencia, Golf de València, va, es, Golfo de Valencia), is a gulf or inlet of the western Mediterranean Sea, on the eastern coast of Spain. Its limits are the Cap de la Nau headland in the south, while the northern lim ...

, Mediterranean Sea. In English, it is also known as Cape Nao.

Geography

Cap de la Nau is in the municipality of Xàbia, within the Mediterranean province of

Alicante Alicante ( ca-valencia, Alacant) is a city and municipality in the Valencian Community, Spain. It is the capital of the province of Alicante and a historic Mediterranean port. The population of the city was 337,482 , the second-largest in th ...

, in the comarca of Marina Alta, and is the easternmost point of the Valencian Community. It marks the southern limit of the

, and points towards the nearby island of

Formentera Formentera (, ) is the smallest and most southerly island of the Pityusic Islands group (comprising Ibiza and Formentera, as well as various small islets), which belongs to the Balearic Islands autonomous community (Spain). It covers an area of ...

in the

Balearic Islands The Balearic Islands ( es, Islas Baleares ; or ca, Illes Balears ) are an archipelago in the Balearic Sea, near the eastern coast of the Iberian Peninsula. The archipelago is an autonomous community and a province of Spain; its capital is ...

. The cape is rocky, steep and mostly composed of limestone. Beneath the headland there is a large cave, known as ''Cova dels Orgues'' (or ''Cueva de los Órganos'' in Spanish) that can only be approached from the sea. ;Lighthouse Atop the headland, at an elevation of , stands the Cap de la Nau

lighthouse A lighthouse is a tower, building, or other type of physical structure designed to emit light from a system of lamps and lenses and to serve as a beacon for navigational aid, for maritime pilots at sea or on inland waterways. Lighthouses mar ...

, providing an important aid to navigation.

Geography

See also