Benidorm is hosting its first outlet fair, located on the square underneath the Town Hall in the Old Town. The 3 day fair started today - Friday 1st November and is on until Sunday 3rd, from 11am until 10pm.Around 40 local shops and businesses have joined together and are offering discounts of around 50%. A lot of the merchandise is end of season stock so a good opportunity for both retailer and the consumer to benefit.
This afternoon will be one of the busiest traffic wise as an estimated 4.4 million people take advantage of the long weekend, ahead of tomorrows Bank Holiday - so be warned if you are on the roads. Most supermarkets will be shut (the smaller ones will have Sunday opening hours) and banks or any government run offices will be shut. This week coincides with the UK half term and the resort is already fairly busy with holiday makers.
User Rating: 5 / 5
Spanish supermarket chain "Mercadona" are going back to basics!Some 10 years ago the chain withdrew its tradition of dealing with local farmers and growers and everything came pre-packed, which in the words of Juan Roig, the owner "was one of the biggest mistakes of his career".It´s refreshing and most unusual for someone to admit something like that.
The ITF (International Taekwon-Do Federation) World Championships take place every 2 years - and this year they were held here in Benidorm. The four day event took place at the state of the art sports centre - the "Palau dÉsporte L´llla de Benidorm" with weigh-in´s taking place at the Gran Hotel Bali on the Wednesday and the actual competition heats starting on Thursday.
Next Sunday, 3rd November the legendary 60´s pop phenomenon "The Merseybeats" will be performing at Benidorm Palace - and I mean the real ones not a tribute band which are the norm here!I had the privilege of talking to Tony Crane, the original founder member of the group during the week and admitted straight away that I hadn´t even been born when they formed, instead growing up with the Bay City Rollers and Osmonds.
I have often spoken about the great work that ex-pats here do for local Spanish charities and often wonder what would happen if it was not for the generous nature of the British. The recent incredible fundraiser at Showboat highlighted the kindness lavished here by many. No matter how small the donations they are always most gratefully received.
The Brits in Benidorm are now use to seeing television cameras around - obviously the most popular and recognised being the Benidorm series. Currently the Channel 5 film crew are back at the Hospital Clinica Benidorm filming another two series of Benidorm ER - the first of six episodes from series 3 will be broadcast tonight on C5, 8pm UK time/ 9pm Spanish time.
User Rating: 5 / 5
Benidorm City Council are due to discuss and propose legislation on the growing problem of mobility scooters in the resort - on the draft for November, but with the towns fiesta at the beginning of the month it will most probably be towards the end.The
!Benidorm is experiencing its warmest October in years - in fact, Wednesday of last week was the hottest recorded day in October for over 100 years with the mercury hitting well over 30 degrees and still remaining in the 20´s at night! Everyone is revelling in it - the locals, businesses and especially the holidaymakers, who could only have wished for slightly better weather than back home on landing at El Altet.
User Rating: 5 / 5
I agree with the adage "If you can´t find something which you like in Benidorm then you are impossible to entertain". With the number of performers here, you could easily stay for an entire week - in fact make that a fortnight and never see the same act twice. One group that you should make a point of watching are "Shoe Waddy Waddy" - you can´t fail to see them, dressed in the requisite bright teddy boy suits and thick crepe soled shoes!
Click on "Read more" button below to read full article
Well they certainly made an impression on the Levante front.....and what a wonderful sight it was too. The Standard Bearers, Pipers and Drummers assembled well ahead of time and attracted a lot of attention from the crowds that had gathered, with everyone trying to take photographs. Even the Spanish Press came out in force.
Well Benidorm certainly surpassed itself yesterday afternoon for the charity fundraiser at Levi´s Showboat.The event was organised by Wayne and Tad of the Yorkshire Pride - and would not have been possible without the superb entertainers who turned up on their afternoon off to support this worthwhile and much needed cause, the Emaus children´s home in Relleu.
With the resort attracting more foreign tourists each year it is essential to focus attention on the things that the town does well - and cuisine comes high on the list. Many of the Brits coming over are only just discovering tapas, which is probably the thing most associate with Spain after sun, sand and euro pints. It is quite easy to come on holiday here and never sample any Spanish food, especially with so many British pubs in the area.
According to a Police report, complaints about noise levels - in particular along the Levante seafront area, have soared from 3% to 30% - threatening to escalate to the levels of the nineties, when control levels were virtually non existent. The implementation of sound limiters in bars and clubs saw the levels drop dramatically in 2009. But since 2011 the number of complaints have mushroomed.