Benidorm

Introduction

Benidorm is a tourist town on the Spanish Costa Blanca. The once small fishermans village you will find at the rock outcrop in the middle of the town. To the north you will find the more family orientated Poniente beach and to the south you will find the beach of Levante, where you will find most of the bars and clubs were you can go out until sunrise. This a town where you either retire or where you go to have one big long party. If you are looking for a dive into Spanish culture you have picked the wrong town for your vacation.

Sights and Activities

• Levante beach - Stretching for more than 2 kilometres, this is one of the most popular beaches in Europe, even in the world. Lined with a large walkway punctuated by restaurants, bars and shops, it allows vacation all year around, divided between a warm sea and a lively nightlife. The beach offers some differences to the general standards of Spanish beaches - the wide sand stripe is clear, but ends a few meters after entering the water, replaced by a rocky platform. Covered by thin algae, walking on that softened rock it's easy, but you may be attempt to the irregularities and isolated small rocks. Another difference is the ease to rent a shade on the beach - hundreds of hammocks and umbrellas cover most of it, empty most of the time. People disputes each inch in the first line by the water, and that is all. That's the reason why the hammocks are a little cheaper than usual in Spain - €4.50 each, the same as the umbrellas. Covering a large area of the sea, there's a wise solution to provide water ski - a large square with cables in continuous motion. You just have to rent the equipment (45 € a day, 39 € half day), and do your best. A boat collects those who fall.
• Bars and Clubs
• Terra Mitica - Theme park
• Aqualandia - Water park
• Mundomar - Marina animal park

Events and Festivals

• Low Cost Festival

Getting There

By Plane

If you want to arrive by plane, you can best fly into Alicante Airport, which is located a good 40 kilometres to the south. Another option is to fly into Valencia Airport which is located a good 120 kilometres to the north.

By Train

There is a regional train that runs from Alicante to Benidorm. It takes forever to get to Benidorm as it stops at all possible station between the two towns.

By Car

Benidorm lies along the A7 highway that runs along the coast from the French to the Portuguese border. When coming from Madrid you can follow the A3 highway (towards Valencia), and then change to the A7, or alternatively the AP-7 the toll road which is in better shape and much faster to Benidorm. An alternative is to follow the A31 highway to Alicante, and then drive north to Benidorm on the A7.

By Bus

Benidorm has a good local bus service which connects to local towns such as Altea, Alicante and Calpe. A new coach and bus station opened in 2008 with International routes to many European countries such as Bulgaria, Romania, Italy and France is situated at the far west end of town. Most visitors pre-book with the many transfer companies who offer cheap transport from Alicante airport direct to recognised Hotels.

Getting Around

By Public Transport

There are city busses running across town, and at night taxi's are readily available.

By Foot

If your holiday has the tempo of party - beach - party - eat - beach and repeat you can probably get around by foot. Just make sure you book a hotel or apartment at the Levante part of the beach not too far from the sea.

By Bike

Surprisingly there is even a bike plan in Benidorm, these are not the best bikes in the world, but apart form the old bit of town and the northern part of la Poniente the town is reasonably flat, especially if you stick to the boulevard.

Eat

There are many of restaurants all over town. In between the restaurants belonging to fat food chains there are actually a couple of good ones like Pizzeria Va Bene (found in both part of town.)

Take away is a common solution in Spanish beaches, not very well served in Benidorm. Fast food is suitable to it, but regular food is not easy to find. In Av. del Mediterrâneo 51 there's a buffet (another rarity) that supplies the food of the buffet to take away. It's called Isidro Restaurant buffet, and a regular meal will cost less than €15.

Drink

There are bars and pubs all along the boulevard, especially at the Levante beach you will find all kind of bars, with all kinds of music. Some turn into clubs at night, other have bands playing.

Sleep

Benidorm offers over 240 Hotels and holiday apartment complexes from 1 to 5 star rating. Everyone will find a room to fit their budget. It should be remembered that hotels have daily maid service and apartments have a less frequent maid service (once or twice a week). Competition is massive therefore prices are some of the lowest in Spain especially out of season. Shop around for good deals. Be aware that you may have to pay €50 to €100 deposit before check-in. The most popular places to stay are the lively Levante; ideal for families and groups. The old town is preferred by couples and more mature visitors offering a less frantic holiday. The Poniente is ideal for beach holidays and peace and quiet. Also La Cala Finestrat on the outskirts of Benidorm is preferred by those who want a relaxed holiday away from the late nights and discos.

Keep Connected

Internet

Internet is widely available within Spain. Most airports have wifi-zones and in most towns there are internet cafés or shops where you can use internet for a fixed price. Wi-Fi points in bars and cafeterias are available after ordering, and most hotels offer Wi-Fi connection in common areas for their guests.

Phone

See also: International Telephone Calls

The international access code for Spain is +34. The emergency number for police, ambulance and the fire brigade is 112.

In cities you can find plenty of public phones, and 'locutorios'. The latter are small shops where you can use the phone and use internet. Most of them also sell prepaid cards for mobile telephones. These shops are used a lot by foreigners to call to their mother country.

The main mobile network operators in Spain are Yoigo, Vodafone, Movistar and Orange, as in most of Europe voice and data coverage is generally good in urban areas however it can be patchy in rural locations. Cheap mobile phones (less than €50) with some pre-paid minutes are sold at FNAC or any phone operator's shop (Vodafone, Movistar, Orange). Topping-up is then done by buying scratch cards from the small stores, supermarkets, vending points (often found in tobacco shops) or kiosks.

Post

If you want to post a card, you can head to the post office (Correos). The Spanish post is not yet as efficient as colleagues in other countries so receiving a card can take a bit longer than the number of days that it should take. On the website of Correos, you can find the locations of nearby post offices.
Post offices are generally open from 8:30am to 2:00pm, although times will vary according to the size of the city/town and the main post offices might be open until the early evening. Most will also open again on Saturday mornings, but in the smaller towns will close as early as 12 noon. When posting a letter, look for a yellow box and, if possible, post at the post office itself where there will also be divisions for local, national and international mail. Be prepared for long queues at the post office. This is why tobacco shops sell stamps and many will also have the facility to weigh packages. Standard letters/postcards of up to 20 grams sent within Spain are €0.34. However, non-standard letters/postcards of up to 20g are €0.39. Letters/postcards of 20 to 50 grams are €0.45. In the case of international shipping, the price is €0.64 to most countries within Europe for standard envelopes (letters/postcards) up to 20g, for a few European countries and outside Europe it is €0.78. If you want to send a package you are probably better off with a private courier company like TNT, DHL or UPS, as they offer quick and reliable services against competitive prices.

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