  We review some of the features of Type IIA compactifications in the presence
of fluxes. In particular, the case of $T^6/(\Omega (-1)^{F_L} \sigma)$
orientifolds with RR, NS and metric fluxes is considered. This has revealed to
possess remarkable properties such as vacua with all the closed string moduli
stabilized, null or negative contributions to the RR tadpoles or supersymmetry
on the branes enforced by the closed string background. In this way, Type IIA
compactifications with non trivial fluxes seem to constitute a new window into
the building of semi-realistic models in String Theory.
