Yesterday was San Telmo, Patron saint of sailors, and we wished to make a small tribute to the harbour and to the Yacht Club of Benidorm, which is now turning 50 years.

The Benidorm Harbour is located between the small beach of Mal Pas and the Parque de Elche (Doves Park), where the Poniente Beach begins.

In the first half of the 20th century, Benidorm was a fishing village. In the past, it was an area that had been inhabited by the Iberians, Phoenicians and Romans. It was part of the Byzantine territory, and even belonged to the Kingdom of Castile.

There is reason to believe that, at the very beginning, the first thing to appear was a secondary Roman road which intercommunicated the settlements of the Mediterranean coast, known as the ‘Dianorium’ route. The path was traced from the area that today is known as the Plaza Triangular to what is now the Filipinas street, in the Rincón de Loix, and continued along the old road to Altea. Subsequently the castle was built, and then, the area became populated.

With the establishment of a stable population and the beginning of the fishing and commercial activities, boats anchored at the beginning of the Poniente Beach. Originally, these departed from the current Cala de Finestrat, and Benidorm was only a step area for ships which needed refuelling or shelter before continuing their journey.

To protect them from storms, in 1920 a stone breakwater was built facing west. This gave them shelter, and improved the working conditions on shore, apart from it triggering the construction of the harbor.

The tourist boom of the 60s brought the arrival of visitors in sailing and motor boats, and the practice of nautical sports.

As a result, the Benidorm Yacht Club was founded in 1963. At present, almost 50 years later, it actively participates in 30 regattas per season and has a Sailing School. It counts with Optimist boats for the children and, for adults, Snipe, 420, Láser, Europa, Raqueros, Gambas and Patinacas.

Elite sportsmen such as Angel Gutiérrez, Miguel Soldevila, José Marcet, or Antonio Mayor initiated themselves into nautical sports in the Benidorm Yacht Club.

Today, the port is located on Paseo Colón, 1, 03501. It has 150 moorings and a draught of 1.8 meters. He has water service, electricity, crane and showers. There are two buildings, the first onas has a restaurant, the office, a room for members, and a bar located on the top floor overlooking the sea. In the other building we can find the locker of seamanship, in addition to the locker room, Sports store, and the school.

For further information, you may call them to (0034) 965 853 067 or send an email to info@cnbenidorm.com