My visit to Benidorm, Spain had 100% been motivated by the hit ITV series 'Benidorm', becoming a cult watch during its long reign depicting the life and times of the British holiday-maker. Alongside 'Benidorm', Channel 5's own 'Bargain Loving Brits In The Sun' also influenced by reason for choosing that Spanish resort on the Costa Blanca. More than a TV show? Yes, yes!
The iconic swimming pool at the Sol Pelícanos Ocas Hotel featured on every running episode of the series 'Benidorm' as a key anchor for the guests to be part of the everyday drama during their scripted holiday. After checking into the same hotel, we made our way from the hotel reception to find that iconic poolside view, catching a glimpse of that swim-up pool-bar had to be accomplished. Being out of season and taking the travel restrictions set by the UK Government, the 'Benidorm' pool looked really quiet but the lack of life didn't stop me from feeling the fantasy. Managing to locate the Garvey's former sun-loungers in the very same location wasn't a difficult task, with a brief sit down in that area it allowed me to see the same view. Taking in every single sight allowed us to put those iconic scenes from the series into our heads, that was a moment indeed! From a distance, catching those views of that pool felt very correct! Sure it did!
Even though the hotel rooms at Benidorm's Sol Pelícanos Ocas Hotel were not used to film the interior room scenes from the series, the hotel itself as majorly gained a heightened level of popularity. Our hotel room definitely didn't look like the ones that were featured in the series, in actual fact those interior filming settings could be viewed from the balcony. Darren Little's Costa Blanca based production used the nearby 'Acuariam II Apartments', judging from those interior scenes, those rooms served 1970s package-holiday Realness! With the series making this Benidorm hotel an attraction in itself, choosing it for our chosen accommodation was a no-brainer! The staff at the Sol Pelícanos did not resemble those in the series, our real-life 'Melía Group' employees were all Spanish. The time spent staying at 'Benidorm's' own hotel had me experiencing two sides to the series in one location! Yes, I stayed at the real-life 'Solana Hotel!'
Those opening credits would always feature the golden sands of the Levante Beach with the towering skyscraper-like hotels in full view. Many iconic scenes from the 'Benidorm' show have been featured on the Levante, like Mel & Madge's beachfront nuptials with all of the drama it served up for us to watch. That over-the-top wedding scene beside the sea had stunts and tricks pulled with the usual throng of people who were sunning themselves on the beach at the same time. To have walked along that beachfront felt quite bizarre, watching out for those mobility scooters had us both cautious yet curious because had those people lost the ability to walk once their plane had landed at Alicante? We did wonder, like who needs a double mobility scooter? More importantly, the beachfront views served to us looked even more amazing in person, Benidorm's Levante Beach had a calming yet chaotic nature. Those opening credits don't lie, B!
It wasn't all loutish belly-baring Brits Abroad along that beachfront because we found some great places to eat delicious Spanish foods. No pints of British beers or Full English Breakfast beside the sea because it was all about bottles of local red wine and bowls of freshly caught mussels. Changing the narrative allowed us to experience a slice of something Spanish with that ocean true-blue view in front of us. Walking further along the beach towards the 'Old Town' allowed us to see the panorama of those famous towering beachfront structures, giving us the nature of the 'Old Town' with a show-stopping view of the trademark 'Benidorm' series vista. Marrying the local Spanish nature with the undeniably popular British comforts, elements of the former 'Brits Abroad' series could be appreciated from both sides of the cultural divide. Of course, those 'Bargain Loving Brits In The Sun' love the Levante Beach without any shame! Ay!
To Neptunes? Now, Neptunes didn't exist but Morgan Tavern did! That nautical 'Pirates Of The Caribbean' themed tribute performance bar allowed me to piece together the personalities from the 'Palladium' from the previous night. Sure, those 'Palladium' patrons reminded me of the 'Garvey's' and many of the other 'Benidorm' characters from the show. Noticing that Morgan Tavern wouldn't be serving food that night, I paid more attention to the operation comparing the TV show at all times. The would be 'Benidorm' karaoke stage at Morgan Tavern looked deeper compared to those camera shots on that former cult series. I definitely recognised aspects from the show at Morgan Tavern. The attention paid towards the musical acts definitely acted as a bridge between the show and real-life Benidorm in 2022. A similar energy could be felt, adding a living link with the many families who were sitting at the tables. Research had been done! Yes!
Just next-door in the 'Palladium', I paid great attention to observe the patrons during my second night out in Benidorm. It was like those writers and researchers had listened and observed the customers because the humor depicted in the show could be seen by my very own eyes at Benidorm's Palladium. Marrying up with the experiences met at Morgan Tavern, witnessing those happening at that former filming locations allowed me to add context. Sure, food might not be served in either the Palladium nor Morgan Tavern but the entertainment on offer and nature observed had me looking into my own episode of a whole new kind of 'Benidorm!' Absolutely, the night-outs spent at those establishments gave me a slice of 'Brits Abroad' nature but with certain health measures present at the time, people didn't make a show of themselves. Well, some didn't anyway. Benidorm is more than the television show! There I said it! C'mon, B!
Being on previous 'All Inclusive' style holidays in the past, I know full well that leaving the hotel may not have been on my former list of priorities. Featured in the series, the 'Algar Waterfalls' served the guests at the Solana with a 'free' day-out during their 'free' week in the sun. Usually tourists who stay in Benidorm would take a coach from the resort town to the nearby waterfalls, we rewrote that textbook 'transfer coach' journey with our own 'ALSA Bus' trip from Benidorm to the nearby town of 'Callosa D'en Sarrià'. Already, the usual 'Benidorm' style tourists probably wouldn't be aware of Callosa's existence in the first place! Getting it right, we broke those tourist faux pas because we wanted more to show for our visit to Benidorm. The falls were beautiful, just like they were depicted in Series 3 of the famous 'Benidorm' show. Having the chance to experience that natural wonder out of season, surely no mistakes were made! Get it right, Beni!
Known in Spanish as 'Las Fuentes del Algar' and in the local Valencian dialect 'Fonts del L'Algar', we took things from a local flex with a taxi from nearby Callosa in order to reach the falls. Scaling the steps and navigating the steep inclines had us snatching amazing views, finding those uninterrupted scenes had us feeling very lucky because nobody has time for beauty spots looking all messy and crowded! That wasn't a mood for us to consider! Getting to grips with that 'Benidorm' scenic spot allowed us to tick off another place visited during our Costa Blanca trip! Getting to grips with every single aspect of our trip had us viewing several 'Benidorm' television series filming locations. Making my observations where they were due, the experience had us learning about those locations with a live portrayal played out in real-time. From the hotel to Levante, the evening brought Morgan Tavern and outside of Beni served us Callosa's waterfalls!
More Than A TV Show!
Joseph Harrison
