Alicante vs. Benidorm: which one is for you?

Forty kilometres lie between them, but the difference is bigger than many a border. Alicante is a Spanish provincial capital with an airport and an old town. Benidorm is a resort city that revolves entirely around holidays, with the best-known skyline on the Mediterranean. Which one suits you?

The character

Alicante lives all year round. Offices, a university, a harbour, a market hall: the city works without tourists too. You walk from the Castillo de Santa Bárbara through the El Barrio quarter to the Explanada, the promenade with the wavy mosaic. Outside summer the city simply feels Spanish.

Benidorm was built for guests and is honest about it. High-rises next to two big beaches, entertainment from breakfast until deep into the night, and staff who speak a bit of every language. If you want sun, ease and buzz, you will be waited on hand and foot. If you want authentic Spain, seek out the old core or travel on.

The beaches

Benidorm wins on beach comfort: Levante and Poniente are kilometres long, wide and kept immaculate. Alicante has the city beach Postiguet and, a little further, the bigger Playa de San Juan, more popular with locals. For hidden coves neither will do; for those, read our beach guide.

Practical

• Getting there: the airport sits near Alicante. Benidorm is another 45 minutes or so by bus or car. The TRAM line links the two cities along the coast.
• Prices: hotels and apartments in Benidorm are strikingly cheap outside high season; supply is enormous. Alicante is somewhat pricier on average but more constant.
• Winter: Benidorm keeps going, even in January. Alicante then becomes an ordinary Spanish city; for winter visitors who need liveliness, Benidorm is oddly enough the safer bet.

The choice

City break with culture, tapas bars and a genuinely Spanish feel: Alicante. Beach holiday without having to think, with children or with a group: Benidorm. And if you live nearby or stay longer, you need not choose; the tram puts you in the other city within the hour. More outings in the area are in our guide to day trips from Alicante.

About the authorMilo Schuijt

Milo Schuijt is an entrepreneur and DJ on the Costa Blanca. He writes about the places where he lives, works and plays: from beach bars to the housing market.