Benidorm 

Before the 1960s, Benidorm was a little village. Now it stands out for its tourist industry, beaches and skyscrapers, established as a result of its tourist-oriented economy. It is one of the main holiday resorts in Spain. Due to the unparalleled skyline shaped by its many tall hotels and apartment buildings it's occasionally referred to as the "Manhattan of Spain". According to the Urban Age project, Benidorm has the most high-rise buildings for each person in the world!

The city is split into two halves, Poniente and Levante, each fronted by a beach of the same name. Between the two beaches lis a rocky headland. The old town occupies this headland and the area directly inland, whilst nearly all of the hotels fill the more recently developed parts behind the two beaches. A couple of miles off shore is an unoccupied island which supplies an impressive centerpiece to the bay.

In 1954, the young Mayor of Benidorm, produced the Plan General de Ordenación (city building plan) that guaranteed, via a complex building formula, every construction would have an area of ‘leisure’ land, assuring a future free of the overabundances of cramped building seen in some other areas of Spain. It is the solitary city in Spain that still holds fast to this rigid rule. Ascend to the peak of the Sierra Helada, the headland at the end of the Rincon de Loix, for a perspective of how green the city is and how close it is to the mountains.

Benidorm features an exceptional micro-climate all year round thanks to these mountains which surround the city. With around 3,400 hrs of sunshine a year and an average yearly temperature of 18°C. Between Dec and Mar the temperature of the sea is around 15°C.

Benidorm is of course popular with tourists from northern Europe, especially those from the United Kingdom. Benidorm's first growth in popularity can be attributed to the package tour explosion, and keeps going year round, owed to the night-life established around the central concentration of bars and nightclubs. The multitude of free cabaret acts that begin about 2100 hours and carry on into the early hours set Benidorm apart from similar resorts.

Benidorm has 3 major beaches: Llevante, Poniente and Mal Pas; each of them have had a blue flag since 1987, the highest quality standard recognized by the European Union.

The Gran Hotel Bali, a four-star hotel located in Benidorm since 2002, is a 186-meter-tall building which endured as the highest skyscraper in Spain for 5 yrs, until it was transcended by the CTBA towers in Madrid.

Each summer the city celebrates the Benidorm International Song Festival, a song contest where international or Spanish celebrities like Julio Iglesias, Raphael or the Dúo Dinámico became famous.

Benidorm features 3 family-oriented theme parks: Terra Mítica is located inland from the city, at the base of the mountain and Aqualandia and Mundomar are located along the outskirts of the city on the Llevante side.