Luxurious Villa Venetcia in the Old Town

My my my..... I nearly choked on my croissant this morning when I read today´s two page piece in The Sun on Sunday (pg 52 & 53) under the headline "Benidorm Reborn"! Why it was less than 4 months ago that they ran that infamous piece "Benidoom" which caused outrage, both here and in the UK from regular Benidorm visitors.

Me enjoying a drink in the Venetcia bar

The article was written by Ian Mayhew and I totally agree with everything in the piece, which is virtually the opposite to the aforementioned Sun feature. My guess is that he stayed at the fabulous Villa Venetcia boutique hotel in the Old Town... possibly courtesy of Thomas Cook Holidays, as they are advertising a 7 night break at the bottom of the piece. I wrote an article "Benidorm - the new Marbella" about this extraordinary hotel with breathtaking views back in April 2011. Unfortunately I didn´t get any complimentary perks... I even bought my own drink at the bar, yet I thought it certainly opened up the market to a new breed of upmarket traveller - the ones that have been labelled "The Marbella Set".

Ian Mayhew´s piece certainly proved that he had been to the resort and he praised all the positive aspects that the resort had to offer. Things that those of us who live here and regular holiday makers already know about and why we were all so incensed when the "Benidoom" article was published... not once but twice! The beautifully peaceful Mal Pas beach, the 5 theme parks which Benidorm has to offer, Peacock Island and places to visit outside of the centre such as Jalon valley. There are so many more, all within easy reach such as Altea, Calpe, Fonts D´Algar, Guadalest, Calpe... all these are accessible by public transport from the centre of Benidorm.

Famous Tapas Alley ... a must for all visitors

He has cleverly written how Madge and the Garvey clan, of the hit comedy series would certainly not recognize this Benidorm to the one they keep returning to year after year - the all inclusive Solana resort, with the catch phrase "If you want to get pissed, show them your wrist" (referring to the all inclusive wrist band entitling them to free drinks all day). He is trying to show that Benidorm isn´t just all about Stag & Hen parties, cheap booze and karaoke bars but can also cater to the upmarket cultured clientele. There are other upmarket boutique and 5 star hotels in addition to the Venetcia, such as Asia Gardens and Villaitana, Tapas Alley which offers a gastronomical feast of typical Spanish cuisine and beautiful clean beaches.

Villaitana hotel with Benidorm skyline as a backdrop

Yolanda, Head of the Benidorm Tourist Board is working tirelessly to promote the positive side of Benidorm and all that it has to offer, particularly the gastronomy. Yes there are plenty of all day breakfasts and fish & chips for those that want it, but many have never sampled true Spanish cuisine. Tapas Alley is certainly a great starting point - and Im even posting a weekly Spanish recipe, which you can find to the right of the articles under the banner "Gastronomy recipes from Benidorm". They are simple dishes with a picture guide.

OK, the Sun never apologised for the previous article or admitted that they got it totally wrong (they never do - by which I include all newspapers not just them) but this certainly goes some way to making amends.
ps Ian... the Villa Veneticia is a 5 star not 4 star as per first picture in above article