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Mention the “B word” and you’ll think of cheap high rise hotels. Fish and Chips and the lager crowd, kids and families. All this is a miss and Benidorm is the most popular gay destination for Spanish gays during July and August and becoming increasingly popular with over 35’s from all over Europe because of its great value.
Let start with the beaches. The Playa Levante is the main town beach with arguably the best sand of any Mediterranean beach in Spain. It can get very crowded but the area in front of the Don Caesar Café is the gay section. There are two other gay popular stretches as you head along the Poinente beach near the Café Bar Refuel and over the hill at the far end to La Cala Beach. There are also a number of coves which attract gays seeking an all over tan. Mal Pas Beach is close to the Old Town square and is quite a sun trap in winter.
It is said that Benidorm is the friendliest little gay village in Spain with a couple of dozen gay businesses of bars, restaurants, clubs and saunas in the Old Town area. Some have been established for nearly thirty years and attract the same customers, year in year out. Incognito and JJ’s are popular with the 35+ crowd whereas Peppermint and Peoples are popular with Spaniards.
Benidorm’s scene varies depending on the time of year of your visit. During July and August, its very much outdoors and the mega-dance club scene which although ostensibly straight, in practice, attract a lot of gays. During the Spring and Autumn, its an early evening i.e up to midnight, street scene with the bars and restaurants in the Old Town serving drinks and meals from their terraces and everyone strutting their stuff for all to see. During the winter – and that’s really too severe a word to describe the mild December and January climate, it’s more indoors in the small discos and bars.
Benidorm offers a real alternative to other Spanish gay destinations whatever time of year and at less than two hours flying time from a range of regional UK airports as well as Gatwick; it offers a value which is hard to beat.