Christmas in Benidorm. Activities for everyone

Another year Christmas comes to Benidorm and with it, time to enjoy the good weather and the various activities offered in the city.

Benidorm is one of the most requested destinations for this date. For those looking to spend a different Christmas holiday and, of course, for those who want to enjoy the New Year’s Eve in Benidorm and its wide range of leisure activities for a special night.

  

Christmas village

Installed in Gambo street until Christmas Day (December 25). Especially designed for the kids; visit Santa Claus's house, take pictures with him and get some gifts.

Christmas Square

The Town Hall Square becomes one more year in the center of Christmas in Benidorm. From the 5th of December, when the lighting was inaugurated, this area is the definition of Christmas: snow slide, ice rink, rides and daily performances by children's characters. and a large Christmas tree that will delight young and old.

Also at the Christmas Square, every day until the end of the holidays, children's workshops and on December 23 at 18:00  the Christmas decorations workshop entitled " Christmas Values in the in Municipal library.

Performances and concerts

In addition at the Town Hall Square, where you will be able every day to enjoy performances of children's character, music and theater have their place in Benidorm during the holidays.

  

On December 28, in the City Hall will be the representation of the theatrical musical "Beauty and the Beast" at 18:00.

Also in the Auditorium of the Library the smallest of the house can come to have a good time with the storytelling "Dime por qué" on Wednesday December 30 at 18:00 hours and the magic show "Mag Malastruc" Monday January 4 at 18:00.

New Year's Eve in Benidorm

Benidorm is synonymous for  fun, and New Year's Eve, even more. On the last night of the year Levante Beach will be the meeting point in Benidorm with a performance organized by the radio station 40 Principales, which will feature DJs, eight giant screens to follow the chimes and fireworks for start the year in style.

Not only at the Playa de Levante, many other areas of the city say goodbye the year with parties: the pubs in the Playa de Levante area, the Old Town ...

Galas are a highlight for the "core" of these celebrations nights - Christmas Eve, New Year's Eve and Night of  the “Roscón” - they have been organized in  “Benidorm Palace”, a quasi iconic place regarding parties in Benidorm.

Bethlehem, the Three Kings

There is no Christmas in our Mediterranean region without a nativity scene. Benidorm´s nativity scene, which is traditionally hosted by the “Casa del Fester”, this year moved to “Boca Calvari Museum” (Paseo de la Carretera S / N) until January 6.

The day before, on January 5, from 18:00, Benidorm will dress up to receive Their Majesties the Kings of the East and subsequent parade through the city streets. Departure: Elche Park. Tour: Avenida Almendros, C / Mars C / Venus, C / Ruzafa, C / Herrerias, Plaza Doctor Fleming and Plaza Reyes of Spain.

A complete program for all ages and all tastes.

There is no better way to spend the holidays!

Hotel Don Pancho

Hotel 4 Star Benidorm

http://www.hoteldonpancho.es

Navidad en Benidorm. Actividades para todos los gustos

Un año más la Navidad llega a Benidorm y, con ella, tiempo para disfrutar de su buen clima y de las diferentes actividades que se ofrecen en la ciudad.

Benidorm es uno de los destinos más demandado para esta fechas. Para aquellos que buscan pasar Fin de Año en Benidorm y de toda su amplia oferta de ocio para una noche tan especial.

unas fiestas diferentes y, por supuesto, para los que quieren disfrutar del

Poblado de navidad

Instalado en la calle Gambo hasta el día de Navidad (25 de diciembre). Especialmente pensada para los más pequeños de la casa; en él se puede visitar de manera gratuita la casa de Papá Noel, hacerse fotos con él y pedir algún regalo. 

La Plaza de Navidad

La Plaza del Ayuntamiento se convierte un año más en el epicentro de la Navidad en Benidorm. Desde el día 5 de Diciembre, cuando se inauguró la iluminación, esta zona es la definición de Navidad: tobogán de nieve, pista de hielo, atracciones y actuaciones diarias de personajes infantiles. y un gran árbol de navidad que hará las delicias de grandes y pequeños. 

También tendrán lugar en la Plaza de Navidad, cada día hasta final de las fiestas, talleres infantiles entre los que destaca el taller de adornos navideños titulado “Los Valores de la Navidad”, el día 23 de diciembre a las 18:00  horas en la Biblioteca Municipal. 

Actuaciones y conciertos

Además de en la Plaza del Ayuntamiento, donde a diario se va a poder disfrutar de actuaciones de personaje infantiles, la música y el teatro tienen su espacio en Benidorm durante las fiestas navideñas. 

El día 28 de diciembre, en el Salón de Actos del Ayuntamiento tendrá lugar la representación del musical teatral “La Bella y la Bestia” a las 18:00 horas.

También en el Salón de Actos de la Biblioteca los más pequeños de la casa podrán acercarse a pasar un buen rato con el cuentacuentos “Dime por qué” el miércoles 30 de diciembre a las 18:00 horas y el espectáculo de magia “Mag Malastruc” el lunes 4 de enero a las 18:00 horas.

Nochevieja en Benidorm

Benidorm es sinónimo de diversión y, en Nochevieja, aún más. En la última noche del año la Playa de Levante será el centro de la fiesta en Benidorm con una actuación organizada por la emisora de radio 40 Principales, que contará con discjockeys, 8 pantallas gigantes para seguir las campanadas y un castillo de fuegos artificiales para recibir el año a lo grande. 

Además de la Playa de Levante, otras muchas zonas de la ciudad despedirán el año con fiestas: los pubs de la Playa de Levante, la zona del Casco Histórico… 

Destacan las galas que, para las noches “centrales” de estas fiestas – Nochebuena, Nochevieja y Noche del Roscón – se han organizado en el Benidorm Palace, un lugar cuasi icónico en cuanto a fiestas se refiere en Benidorm.

Belén y la Cabalgata de Reyes

No hay Navidad, sobre todo en nuestra zona mediterránea, que se precie si no tiene un belén. El de Benidorm, que tradicionalmente acoge la Casa del Fester, este año se traslada al Museo Boca del Calvari (Paseo de la Carretera S/N) hasta el día 6 de enero.

El día anterior, el 5 de enero, a partir de las 18:00 horas, Benidorm se vestirá de fiesta para recibir a SSMM los Reyes Magos de Oriente y su posterior Cabalgata por las calles de la ciudad. Salida: Parque de Elche. Recorrido: Avenida Almendros, C/Marte, C/Venus, C/Ruzafa, C/Herrerías, Plaza Doctor Fleming y Plaza Reyes de España.

Un programa completo para todos los públicos y para todos los gustos.

¡No hay una opción mejor para pasar estas fiestas!

Hotel Don Pancho

Hotel 4 Estrellas en Benidorm

http://www.hoteldonpancho.es

Museums in Benidorm?

Benidorm and its surroundings always attract tourists and visitors due to its sun, its beaches and its great weather.

In every season, spending your holidays in Benidorm is a guarantee of a special atmosphere for outdoor activities, sports and excursions… But Alicante region and the city of Benidorm have other attractions.

This time, we review the most interesting museums around Benidorm area:


Museo Agrícola de Benidorm

Centro de Ocio y Esparcimiento, Parque de L’Aigüera – Next to the Bull Ring
Opening times: open every day
Tickets: free

In this museum, visitors can clearly understand the agricultural history of Benidorm and how it became the city it is now, although it seems a distant age.

Farming implements, agricultural tools and elements from everyday routine of those residents who lived off the land.

As Mediterranean people, the star attraction is a mill and a water wheel, key element for the agriculture in this area.

Casa Museo

Paseo de la Carretera
Opening times: daily, 10:00- 20:00 (winter), 10:00 – 01:00 (summer)
Tickets: free

The perfect place for art lovers. This mansion from the late XIX century houses the main Benidorm’s contemporary art gallery right in the centre of the city.

Inside, it shows a permanent painting and sculpture exhibition, as well as itinerant exhibitions all year round. Its own architecture and its surroundings are also very interesting.


Museo de Soldaditos de Plomo

Avda. Mediterráneo, 8
Opening times: daily, 10:00- 20:00 (winter), 10:00 – 01:00 (summer)
Tickets: free

Having more than 2000 figures, the Benidorm’s little lead soldiers museum attracts more and more visitors, collectors or not, who can enjoy battle and war mockups or figures which recreate the vast majority of armies throughout history.

For enthusiastics, its big brother, L’iber (Valencia), just 1 hour by car from Benidorm, is the biggest museum of this kind in the world, with 95000 figures exhibited.

Centro Cultural Marítimo

Paseo de Colón, no number (next to Benidorm’s Harbour).
Opening times: (SUMMER: from the 21st of June until the 21st of September) Monday to Friday from 09:00 to 15:00. (WINTER: from the 22nd of September until the 20th of June) Monday to Friday from 09:00 to 13:30 and from 16:00 to 19:00.
Tickets: free

As a sea city, Benidorm’s history is rooted in the sea.

A collection of naval and nautical motif mockups is permanently shown in the maritime cultural centre. Fishing boats, tunny fishing skills, reef knots, etc.


Benidorm sea, history and life welcome travellers and take them to another time.



As you can see, a very interesting list of places you cannot miss during your next break in Benidorm.

Hotel Don Pancho
Hotel 4* Benidorm
http://www.hoteldonpancho.es

Benidorm, film set

A tour of the films shot in Benidorm

When one thinks of this city, the typical image that always comes to our mind is the one of a tourist in a hotel in Benidorm or the one of an overcrowded beach, but, Benidorm is also a city of 'film': its light, its culture, its urban landscape ... there are many attractions in the city to become a movie set. Movie magic and the possibilities that the city of Benidorm offers have combined and Benidorm appears as the leading or as the supporting role in countless Spanish and foreign films.

'El destape' and the Festival of Benidorm

During the 60s, the city of Benidorm was the birthplace of tourism development, of the open-mindedness and a clear example of the 'destape (nudity) films', which has many detractors today but that was all the rage then.

'Festival en Benidorm' (1961) with Conchita Velasco recreates the atmosphere of the festival that made Benidorm a world-renowned city ; or 'Verano 70' (1969) with Juanjo Menéndez, in which all the 60's holiday topics are treated: bikinis, foreign tourists, beach, beach bars (chiringuitos), paella ...

The partying Benidorm, with beach and alcohol, will never cease to be an incentive for our national filmmakers, even recently:  for example, 'Fin de curso' (2005), in which the characters have to decide where to travel for their end-of-year trip, Paris (as an example of culture) or Benidorm (for freedom).

Benidorm stage for musicals

With the great reservoir of musical culture which then owned the Festival of Benidorm, there were many movies where the music was just one of the main characters. Manolo Escobar repeated several times in the city with films like 'Relaciones casi públicas' (1968) with Conchita Velasco or 'Préstamela esta noche' (1978), which reached one million viewers.

Bigas Luna and Benidorm

The Spanish director Bigas Luna has used the city of Benidorm as the setting for some of his blockbuster films such as 'Di Di Hollywood' in 2010, starring Elsa Pataky and with several scenes recorded in Terra Natura or the successful film 'Huevos de Oro' 1993, that marked the rise to fame of Javier Bardem.

Benidorm is reflected in this film through the building under construction at the time, Hotel Bali. In the film Bardem's character wanted the hotel to become the tallest building in Spain. Other locations used by Bigas Lunas' team were 'Hotel Don Pancho', a legendary hotel in Benidorm and the restaurant 'La Pergola'.

Benidorm, also present in the TV series

The city of Benidorm is the main character of the British series of the same name. In this series the 'life' of an imaginary hotel in the Levante beach is displayed and shows a poignant and funny view of the English people, tourists and workers. The complex where the series develops, the 'Solana Resort', is the result of two real locations, the Sol Pelicanos hotel and Buenavista hotel.

Otra serie que ha tomado como escenario a Benidorm es la famosa Cuéntame. Benidorm en
Another series that has taken Benidorm as a scene is the famous 'Cuéntame'. Benidorm is the setting for some holiday trips for the Alcantara which is reflected in several episodes of the series as "the place to escape."

Party at the Don Pancho this October

Festivities before Refurbishment closing -  Party at the Don Pancho this October

Free cava every evening, extra entertainment and other special surprises are in store for all the guests who join us the last week of October 2015, before the hotel closes for our massive refurbishment.  A fun-filled and entertaining atmosphere will surely be present around the Don Pancho as we celebrate the past 43 years and look onward to our future along with the loyal guests who have given us their longstanding support.

All of us here at the Don Pancho will continue to work hard to keep you coming back another 43 years and invite you to join us for the celebrations during the last week of October. Make sure you are here between the 25th and the 31st of October so you do not miss the special events we have planned! Furthermore, guests who check-out on October 31st will obtain a special keepsake of this version of our property.

Notwithstanding, the Don Pancho will host an auction of its existing furnishings and artefacts for all whom are interested in a memento.  Keep an eye out for more information coming soon!

Recipe Gazpacho

Recipe for Gazpacho for 4 people

Ingredients

1 kilo of red ripe tomato

1 red pepper

1 green pepper

1 cucumber

1 clove of garlic
1 Slices of bread

200 ml extra virgin olive oil

4 tablespoons vinegar

Salt (to taste)

Recipe

Wash vegetables and cut them into small pieces. Put all of the cut vegetables in the blender.

Add the remaining ingredients. 

Blend well and strain. Test the gazpacho and if it is too thick you may add water.  Place in refrigerator and serve when cold.

Our Upcoming Refurbishment

The iconic Hotel Don Pancho has never closed for a renovation yet will be saying adios - but just for a few months, in order to overhaul its spaces.  The Don Pancho is scheduled to close on November 1st, 2015 and reopen in spring 2016. The refurbishment will be extensive; it will encompass the restaurant, ball room, pool area, guest rooms and bathrooms. The façade of the hotel will be changed to reveal a refreshed look as well.  The hotel will also update technology throughout.
But rest assured that the character of the Don Pancho will remain; it is paramount for management and ownership to keep the beloved identity of the hotel with its Aztec motifs.  The famous gardens in front of the hotel which display an incredible variety of flowers and trees will remain as they are, as well as the lobby area, which was recently refurbished.

The Hotel Don Pancho is grateful for its faithful guests and counts on them to help with the refurbishment plans.  The hotel holds daily walk-throughs of pilot rooms and surveys on other materials they may use for the renovation in order to assure that they do not lose that special uniqueness that the Pancho guests have felt for decades.

When the Hotel Don Pancho reopens in spring 2016, there will be a sea of fans awaiting the inauguration as the hotel has an unheard of 60% repeat customer business.  Fear not, the hotel isn’t planning any significant hike in prices due to the refurbishment and invites all its customers who have been loyal for so many years to join the hotel for a massive inaugural bash upon opening.

For questions or comments about the upcoming refurbishment and/or to schedule a walk-through of the pilot guestrooms, please contact Ana Laborde alaborde@hoteldonpancho.es or call 96 585 2950.

Tourism in Benidorm, over a hundred years of history

Since tourism leisure spread, the coast has always been a powerful attraction for tourists. The east coast and, by extension, Benidorm has a long history of over one hundred years of relationship with tourism, which is why today has a large infrastructure ready for the many visitors who continually receives. Hotels in Benidorm, apartment complexes, campsites, the wide range of daytime and evening entertainment ... an entire infrastructure to serve the tourist.

The custom of "taking baths" perhaps copied from the wealthy and renowned families of Europe that used to travel to Baden Baden or Biarritz, is one of the first manifestations of tourism of which there is evidence in Benidorm.

The first known tourist brochure dating from 1893 in Benidorm is about the Baths of Virgin of Suffrage. At this time visitors came to the coast to take advantage of the medicinal and healing properties of sea water baths, which were so popular in Europe.

And that is how the tourist history of Benidorm begins...

Infrastructures, key in the history of tourism in Benidorm
As in many other attractive areas for visitors, tourism development in Benidorm is accompanied by the construction of infrastructure, especially roads. During the early years of the twentieth century the Silla-Alicante road opens, which improves communication with Benidorm, and, above all, the arrival of the railroad to Alicante occurs.

In 1914 the narrow gauge railroad, the Trenet of the Marina, links Alicante with Altea, Benidorm, and Villajoyosa and, shortly after, Denia. The arrival of the train makes the first collective movements of tourists appear; the so-called "train jug", which transports tourists from Alcoy, Alicante or even from Madrid. The curious name "train of the botijo" starts by the custom of these first tourists of carrying earthenware pitchers with fresh water to bear better the long journey in those slow and uncomfortable trains.

Another infrastructure that contributes to the arrival of mass tourism to Benidorm is the city itself. In 1956 the City Council approved urban planning that directed the city in a definitive way towards tourism. Wide avenues, respect the natural orientation of the beaches, accessibility and vertical growth of the city (hotels, apartments) foster tourism growth that occurs in Benidorm from this decade.

Today Benidorm is "the Manhattan of the Mediterranean", the town with more skyscrapers per capita in the world, behind only the US city in number of skyscrapers per square meter.

Foreign tourism, the key to growth in Benidorm
With the arrival of foreign tourists...bikinis came too. But, for Franco's Spain this bath wear was far too provocative. A fine of 40,000 pesetas made the visionary mayor, Pedro Zaragoza, who saw the future of tourism in Benidorm, climb on his Vespa and drive the 400 kilometres to Franco’s residence to ask him to legalize bikinis. The "mayor of the Vespa" got his prize and Benidorm was the first city in Spain in which people could wear bikinis while in the rest of Spain was banned.

The 60's were the years of the boom of tourism, especially foreign tourism, in Benidorm.

A fully vertical city, specially prepared to welcome visitors, sun, beach and great weather make Benidorm an international tourist centre. During that time the population living in Benidorm multiplied itself, from around 3.000 at the late 50s to over 12.000 in 1970. This increase in the population consists mainly of the large number of tourists coming to the city not only in summer; Benidorm has become a resort town throughout the year.

The Festival of Benidorm, a tourist attraction in itself
Perhaps the most widespread song from the Benidorm Festival is the one of Julio Iglesias in 1968 when he won the competition with the song "La vida sigue igual", since Iglesias becomes the image of the Festival for the following years.

The Spanish Song Festival started in 1959 based on the Festival of San Remo in Italy, its main target was to present Spanish artists. Its stage has hosted stars like Julio Iglesias, the Duo Dinámico or Raphael in those 60s when the Festival had a deserved international reputation.

Nowadays Benidorm is the tourist town par excellence of the Spanish Mediterranean coast. Its mild climate throughout the year, its infrastructure and good communication both by air and land makes it a desired destination by both domestic and foreign tourists looking to enjoy their holidays in Benidorm.

But surely there are some moments in the history of Benidorm that are not popularly known, which one would you highlight in the history of Benidorm?

Hotel Don Pancho
Hotel 4* in Benidorm
http://www.hoteldonpancho.es