Best start to summer iin 15 years

Benidorm reports figures unseen since 2001

FORECASTS of summer 2016 becoming one of the best on record for Costa tourism were confirmed this week with the best figures since 2001 for bookings in Benidorm over the first fortnight in July.

According to hoteliers association Hosbec, hotel occupancy reached 92.5% from July 1 to 15 - the best rate in the past 15 years for that period.

By comparison to last year (90.7%), the figure is up by almost two percentage points.

NO BREXIT EFFECT

These were the first post-Brexit figures to be issued, and far from a negative result, the report shows an increase in bookings from the UK by up to 9% compared to July 2015.

The British market accounted for 46.4% of the total figure in the first half of July, while the Spanish market stood at 41.2%.

The expectations for the domestic market have not been fulfilled and it appears Spanish holidaymakers are still not fully recovered from the economic crisis.

LESS SUNBEDS

A new five-year contract for beach funiture, cleaning, mobility areas and lifeguard service is up for debate in Benidorm town hall on Monday.

The most noteworthy aspect of the new contract is the reduction in the number of sunbeds that will be allowed on Levante, Poniente and Mal Pas beaches.

The total figure has been reduced by 700, from 7,000 to 6,300.

Opposition councillors regret that some key proposals, such as mobile phone charging posts and a massage area, have not been taken into consideration.