Benidorm

The beach is the reason Benidorm exists. Levante and Poniente, two long crescents of fine, groomed sand either side of the old town headland, run for several kilometres in front of the towers, with shallow, clear water and a promenade along each. Levante is the livelier, closer to the bars, while Poniente is longer, broader and favoured by Spanish families. The little Mal Pas cove sits under the old town, and rocky coves below the Serra Gelada cliffs and the pebble beach at Albir are a short trip away.

The sea reaches about 26°C in August and stays swimmable into October; in winter it drops to around 14°C, and the beaches become a place to walk and sunbathe rather than swim. In high summer the sand is crowded from morning to sunset.

Eating in Benidorm splits in two. Along the seafront and in the Rincón de Loix, menus are built for package visitors: full breakfasts, roasts, pizzas and generic grills, cheap and filling rather than good. The better eating is in the old town, where a narrow lane of tapas bars fills with Spanish visitors in the evening, and in the rice restaurants that serve paella, arroz a banda and arroz negro the way the Alicante coast cooks them. Fresh fish, turrón from nearby Xixona and local wines are there for anyone who looks, but the town rewards a little searching rather than offering depth everywhere.

Benidorm is a resort town and its sights are modest. The old fishing village survives on the headland between the two beaches: a few whitewashed lanes, the blue-domed church of Sant Jaume i Santa Anna, and the Balcón del Mediterráneo, a lookout over both bays that is the town's best-known view. The rest is the skyline itself, a dense cluster of residential and hotel towers that is striking in its own way, especially at sunset. A small local museum covers the town's archaeology. Visitors who want history and heritage find it in the inland villages and the cities along the coast, not in Benidorm.

Going out is a central part of Benidorm and the town runs late in summer. The British quarter around the Rincón de Loix and the streets behind Levante beach is a dense knot of themed pubs, karaoke and drag cabaret bars, with stag and hen groups in fancy dress filling the pavements long after midnight. The old town has a different, more Spanish night of tapas bars and terraces, and the big clubs on the edge of town keep going until dawn.

It is loud, cheap and unpretentious, and it suits people who want an uncomplicated party. Those looking for cocktail craft, underground music or a varied city scene find little here, and outside high season the pace drops sharply.

Behind the towers the land rises fast. The Serra Gelada natural park runs along the headland north of Levante beach, with a path along cliffs that drop sheer to the sea, a lighthouse and views back over the town. Inland, the jagged peak of Puig Campana, the Sierra de Bernia ridge and the Aitana range give proper hiking and climbing within half an hour by car, along with the green Algar waterfalls and the reservoir in the Guadalest valley.

On the water there is snorkelling and diving around the small island off the beach, kayaking under the cliffs and sailing. Spring and autumn are the seasons for walking; high summer is too hot for the mountains.

The coast and hills around Benidorm are full of places worth an afternoon. Altea, with its blue-domed church and white old quarter, is a few minutes north, and Villajoyosa's painted fishermen's houses are just as close to the south. The hilltop village of Guadalest, its castle perched on a rock, is the classic inland outing, and the coastal tram reaches Alicante, with its castle and seafront, in about an hour.

Further out, Elche's palm grove, a UNESCO site, is about an hour by car, and Calp, Xàbia and Dénia lie up the coast. Valencia, with its old town and City of Arts and Sciences, is about two hours away and makes a long but rewarding day. A boat to the small island of Tabarca is another option.

Benidorm is one of the easiest seaside towns in Spain to visit with children. The beaches shelve gently into calm water, the promenades are flat and stroller-friendly, and Spanish families make up a large share of visitors, so restaurants and hotels expect children and stay welcoming late into the evening. On the edge of town sits a cluster of parks: a large theme park built around the ancient Mediterranean civilisations, one of Europe's longest-running water parks, a marine park with sea lions and dolphins, and a zoo.

Parents should know that some streets behind Levante beach are given over to adult nightlife, which is easy to avoid by staying near Poniente. July and August are hot and crowded; late spring and early autumn are calmer.

Most of what a visitor uses in Benidorm lies along the two beaches and the old town between them, and the long flat promenades make walking the natural way around. Local buses run along the seafront and out to the theme parks, and the coastal tram links the town with Alicante to the south and Altea and the coast to the north. The hills behind Levante can be steep if your hotel sits high up. Inland villages, the mountains and the Algar waterfalls are much easier with a car or an organised excursion, but a car is a burden in the town itself, where parking is scarce.

Shopping here is practical and geared to the beach. The streets behind the beaches are lined with souvenir shops, beachwear, sunglasses, cheap electronics and tobacco and drinks stores, and the weekly open-air markets on the edge of town sell clothes, leather goods and fakes in quantity. The old town adds a few gift shops with local ceramics and turrón. There are no fashion boutiques, luxury streets or department stores of note; for serious shopping, people take the tram to Alicante.

Benidorm is built for budget travel. The huge supply of hotel rooms and apartments keeps rates low for much of the year, all-inclusive packages are the norm, and drinks, breakfasts and set lunch menus cost noticeably less than in most Spanish resorts. Winter is especially cheap, which is why so many retirees stay for weeks at a time. July, August and Spanish long weekends push room prices up considerably, and a family day at the theme and water parks adds up quickly, but day to day eating, drinking and local transport stay inexpensive.

Live entertainment in Benidorm is light and constant rather than serious. A large dinner-show venue stages song and dance spectaculars, and dozens of bars put on drag cabaret, comedians, tribute acts and singers every night, many of them performers with long-running followings among regular visitors. There is no opera, orchestra or theatre of note, and anyone wanting classical music or drama needs to look to Alicante or Valencia.

There is no bathing tradition in Benidorm; wellness means hotel spas, many with indoor pools, saunas and massage, and a handful of larger spa hotels aimed at longer stays. The pace depends on the season. In summer the town is loud and crowded, but from November to March it slows to a mild, sunny routine of promenade walks and long lunches that suits people who come to rest, and Poniente is consistently the quieter side of town.