AS PART of their planned national tour to promote tourism and check in with their public, King Felipe VI and his wife, Queen Letizia's latest stop this week was in Benidorm (Alicante province).
The monarchs have set themselves a goal of visiting every one of the country's 17 autonomously-governed regions – plus the Spanish cities of Ceuta and Melilla on the northern Moroccan coast, which effectively mean the country has 19 regions – and have so far been to the Canary Islands and Andalucía.
This means they still have plenty of official visits to get through.
Typically, a Royal trip to a given region with no specific destination town would have focused on its capital city – in this case, Valencia – and one or two of its other large metropolitan areas, but as their post-lockdown Spain tour is focused on the summer holiday industry, Benidorm is more representative.
It remains a favourite mainland destination for Brits seeking sunshine breaks – although UK nationals living permanently in the region tend to make it a day-trip or weekend getaway once or twice a year to 'let their hair down'.
The King and Queen met with the Costa Blanca's hotel, catering and tourism business association, HOSBEC, as well as the regional trade confederation CEV and with one of Spain's main unions, the labourers' commissions (CCOO) at Hotel Belroy.
They were greeted by various authorities including Valencian regional president Ximo Puig and his justice minister Gabriela Bravo, and also Spain's national science minister Pedro Duque, who has a house in Jávea, Alicante province, about an hour north of Benidorm.
Felipe VI and Letizia listened with great empathy to HOSBEC's concerns, relating both to Brexit and Covid-19, given that their main market is British tourists – until autumn and winter, when Spanish pensioners are among their largest and most faithful client base.
HOSBEC is concerned the summer is 'written off' in tourism terms, and is clutching at the hope that an increase in visitor traffic in August will help save the industry.
The monarchs have since said Spain needs to play a key rôle in the future of civilisation, which is 'in jeopardy', when speaking at the National Innovation and Design Awards today (Saturday).
Benidorm's reputation crosses continental boundaries as a fun, free and easy destination with great beaches and an excellent nightlife, very geared up to a British customer community – but even for travellers who think this is not really their cup of tea, it is an excellent base for exploring the marvels of the region, especially the province of Alicante, due to its reasonably-priced accommodation and regular airport connections.
Stepping just half a kilometre outside Benidorm will find you in 'the real Spain', with stunning countryside, olde worlde streets, domed churches and numerous attractions, and on the edge of Benidorm outside the main high-rise hub, five-star hotels and spas near golf courses offer a peaceful alternative to the liveliness and high-jinks of the town.
