Gay Benidorm 2026

The honest summary: Benidorm has one of the densest gay bar scenes in Spain, and almost all of it fits into a few old-town streets around Calle Santa Faz, which Spanish speakers call "la calle del ambiente". In one evening you can walk between more than twenty gay bars, a drag cabaret, bear bars with darkrooms and a fetish club, then sleep two minutes away. The crowd is mostly British and Spanish, older than in Madrid or Sitges, and very loyal. There is one gay sauna, no big club, and Pride is in early September, not November as some older guides still say.

Where the scene actually is

Benidorm is a town of about 77,000 people (INE, January 2025) that swells many times over with tourists. The old town (Casco Antiguo) sits on the small headland between Levante and Poniente beaches, and the gay bars are packed into its lanes: Calle Santa Faz, Calle Alicante (Carrer d'Alacant), Calle San Vicente, Calle Quatre Cantons and Plaça de la Constitució. Everything there is within three or four minutes' walk.

Two other clusters matter. Calle de la Palma, just north-west of the old town, has the fetish club Copper and the dance pub Almirante. Avenida de Uruguay, a 10 to 15 minute walk further north-west, has New Incognito, a cruise disco for older men. Rincón de Loix, the British strip at the far end of Levante, is not a gay area; the drag cabaret West End Showbar is out there, about 3 km from the old town.

Bars

Realbenidorm's 2026 list, which we used as our main checklist, counts around 30 gay and mixed venues. These are the ones we could confirm with at least two current sources.

Early evening and terraces. Bar 69 on Plaça de la Constitució is a cocktail terrace with drag and a weekly drag bingo. Company Bar (Calle Alcalde Jaume Ferrer Nomdedeu 16) opens around 17:00. Sensations (Calle Alicante 41) is a camp pop bar from 16:00. Betty Boo's (Calle Alicante 13, the old King's Bar) is a lounge bar from 17:00. DD's (Santa Faz 23) has the biggest terrace on the street. Casper's is an English-run café-bar that has served food for about 20 years and runs a weekly cabaret, and Refuel on Calle Sant Pere has a sea-view terrace over Poniente.

Talking bars. Gspot (San Vicente 3) is a small cocktail bar whose owner hangs his own art. Jimmy's (Calle Alicante 11) is a Spanish-run local, Barcode Secret 2 (Calle Alicante 8) is known for cheap drinks, Secret Encounter (Sant Roc 11) is a pub for blokes and bears, and Pepita Dinamita (Calle Alicante 24) is a newer neon cocktail bar that calls itself a gay LGBT bar. R'Peet (Santa Faz 10) is a tiny bar run by its two owners.

Late and dancing. Spirit (Quatre Cantons 9, the former Men's Bar) runs to 03:30, later at weekends. Mercury (Calle Alicante 10) is a late disco pub. Escape (Calle Alicante 18) is a loud late bar, closed Tuesday and Wednesday. New People (Santa Faz 29) does drag, bingo and dancing from about 23:30. Poco Loco (San Vicente 10) is the drag show bar, and Brief Encounter (Santa Faz 21) reopened under new owners in 2024. Off the main strip, Almirante (Calle de la Palma 13) is a Spanish dance pub with drag, Thursday to Sunday.

Drag. Kafee Klee (Calle del Pal 9) has run a drag cabaret since 1994. The Rincón de Loix cabaret West End Showbar is free to enter and plays to mixed holiday crowds.

Mixed, check first. Papagayo (Santa Faz 31) is a Dutch-run daytime terrace that calls itself straight-friendly; Google showed it as temporarily closed in November 2026.

Bear, cruise and fetish bars

Several bars have darkrooms. KUMA (Santa Faz 5) is the biggest bear and leather bar, closed Tuesday. Bears Bar (Santa Faz 12) is a few doors along and celebrated 20 years in 2024. Dark Room (Calle Alicante 12) took over the DYMK unit and has a darkroom, glory hole and cabins.

Copper Private Club (Calle de la Palma 9) is a men-only fetish club with a sling, cabins and theme nights, Thursday to Sunday from 23:00, about €14. Its website says it is closed from 1 to 25 November 2026. New Incognito (Avenida de Uruguay 8) is a men-only disco and cruise club for mature men, nightly from about 21:00, €10. Two other names are uncertain: JJ Private Bar next to New Incognito (one guide marks it closed), and Lib Club on Calle de la Palma, which we found in only one current listing.

Sauna

H2O (Calle Tomàs Ortuño 46) is the only gay sauna in Benidorm. It's men only, with a dry sauna, steam room, jacuzzi, video room, cabins and a bar. It's an afternoon place: its website lists Tuesday to Friday and Sunday 15:00 to 21:00, Saturday 15:00 to 20:00, and closed on Monday.

Beaches

None of Benidorm's town beaches is a gay beach. Levante and Poniente are long family beaches, and the gay crowd simply uses the stretch nearest the old town. For naturism, the nearest beach with a gay section is Racó del Conill, an official naturist cove just south of town in La Vila Joiosa. On the other side, under the Serra Gelada cliffs, the small coves of Cala Ti Ximo and Almadrava are mixed naturist spots. Sex in public places can bring a public-order fine in Spain, and families use both areas; the bars above are the legal option.

Where to stay

We found no gay-owned hotel in town in 2026. The two places gay visitors use most are Hotel Queens, an adults-only hotel on Plaça de la Constitució whose Royal Queens Bar is a gay meeting spot, and Casa Don Juan, a small guesthouse above its own bar on Santa Faz. For a quieter night within walking distance, Gastrohotel RH Canfali on Plaça de Sant Jaume and Villa España by the market are both under five minutes from the bars. Our Benidorm hotels guide compares walking times and noise.

Pride and events

Benidorm Pride takes place in the first week of September. It was first held in 2010; the 16th edition ran from 1 to 6 September 2026, with the parade on Saturday 5 September at 16:30, starting at the Rincón de Loix end, running along Levante and finishing at the Julio Iglesias auditorium in Parque de l'Aigüera. The organisers and the council estimate more than 20,000 visitors, mostly from the UK; there's no independent count. The organiser's Instagram gives 1 to 5 September 2027, and the website hadn't published the programme when we checked. The town hall also raises the rainbow flag every 28 June.

The rest of the year, events are bar-based: drag bingo at Bar 69, cabaret at Casper's, nightly shows at Kafee Klee and Poco Loco. Many bars cut their hours between November and February, and some close for a few weeks, so check social pages in winter.

Community and health

ALGTB Benidorm y Marina Baixa, founded in 2010, is the local LGTBI association, with an office at Calle Castellón 5 (despacho 8). It offers support and runs activities through the year. Benidorm's town hall also has an LGTBI safe-space service under Social Welfare. For PrEP and sexual health, the nearest specialist clinics are in Alicante.

Getting there and around

Benidorm is about 38 km north-east of Alicante city and about 60 km from Alicante-Elche airport (ALC). ALSA runs a direct airport bus roughly every hour, taking 45 to 60 minutes for about €10. The TRAM d'Alacant L1 runs from Luceros in Alicante in about 70 to 75 minutes. Once you're in town, the old town is walkable, and a taxi to Avenida de Uruguay or Rincón de Loix costs a few euros.

Closed or changed: gone but still Googled

• DYMK Dancebar (Calle Alicante 12) has closed; the unit now trades as Dark Room.
• Lovers Pub (Quatre Cantons 3) is listed as closed and has no 2025–26 activity.
• Incognito relaunched under new management as New Incognito.
• King's Bar is now Betty Boo's, and the old Men's Bar is now Spirit.
• Hades Private Club (Santa Faz 35) says on its own website that it has closed for good.
• Eagle appears on no 2026 list, and El Tano and Bourbon's, which some AI-written guides mention, aren't gay venues we could find at all.



Practical tips

• Bars open late by Spanish standards; the old town is busiest from about 23:00 and the late bars run to 04:00 or later.
• Benidorm is busy in winter too, but hours are shorter, and Copper and some bars close for a few weeks.
• Darkroom bars and Copper are men only. Bring your own condoms; staff will expect basic etiquette.
• Pickpockets work the old-town crowds in summer, so carry only what you need.

A few words in Spanish

Ambiente means the gay scene ("un bar de ambiente" is a gay bar). Una caña, por favor: a small beer, please. ¿A qué hora abrís?: what time do you open? Orgullo: Pride.

At a glance

FAQ

Where are the gay bars in Benidorm?

Almost all are in the old town, on Calle Santa Faz, Calle Alicante, Calle San Vicente and around Plaça de la Constitució. Copper and Almirante are on Calle de la Palma just outside it, and New Incognito is on Avenida de Uruguay.

When is Benidorm Pride?

Early September. In 2026 it ran from 1 to 6 September with the parade on Saturday 5 September. The organiser's Instagram gives 1 to 5 September 2027.

Is there a gay sauna in Benidorm?

Yes, one: H2O on Calle Tomàs Ortuño, men only, open in the afternoon and closed on Monday.

Is there a gay beach?

Not in town. The nearest naturist beach with a gay section is Racó del Conill in La Vila Joiosa, just south of Benidorm.

Is Benidorm good outside summer?

Yes. Many bars stay open all year because of long-stay British visitors, but hours shrink from November to February and a few places close for some weeks.

Is Benidorm safe for LGBTQ+ travellers?

Spain has strong legal protections and the old-town scene is open and busy. The usual risks are pickpocketing and late-night drinking, not hostility.

Last verified: November 2026.