Benidorm on the Costa Blanca in Spain is known as a popular fun place to take a holiday with all the great weather and entertainment that is on offer but according to a woman who was mugged in Benidorm, the popular holiday resort is a dangerous place to take a holiday.
A woman from South Tyneside who went to Benidorm with her sister has said Benidorm is a dangerous place to visit and wants to warn other holidaymakers who are thinking of visiting the popular Costa Blanca resort to be on their guard.
The woman who does not wished to be named wants people thinking of taking a holiday in Benidorm to be careful after she was mugged in the early hours while walking back to their Rio Park Hotel on a path which is known as the Yellow Brick Road.
The sisters were looking forward to their holiday in Benidorm and heard of great things about the Rio Park Hotel and were looking forward to a nice relaxing break, what they were not aware of was the increase in muggings and pickpockets which is destroying the reputation of Benidorm.
The woman from South Tyneside told Gazette she and her sister were walking down the Yellow Brick Road at around 1am in the morning and were heading to their hotel when the attack happened.
‘Benidorm Is Not Safe Says Woman Who Was Mugged’
She said: “The path is just about 100 yards from the hotel. It’s lined with trees and isn’t very well lit. I’ve heard since that it has quite a bad reputation for things like this happening.
“We were just walking along when a man jumped out and grabbed my handbag. It happened so quickly that I wouldn’t be able to identify him, but it was terrifying. I clung on to my bag out of instinct, but he punched me in the face and pushed me on to the ground.”
The victim added: “I smashed three of my teeth on the pavement and have scratches and bruises on my knees, arms, wrists and face.
“I thought I’d broken my wrist. The next day, I started to feel a pain in my chest and still feel as if I can’t breathe properly.”
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The woman said her travel agent did not mention about the rise in crime in Benidorm and neither did the reps when she arrived in the popular Spanish resort. She now wants to warn other holidaymakers who are tempted to visit Benidorm about the dangers that could be waiting for them.
She said: “I want to warn people about this. After it happened, I was told that it is common.
“The manager of the hotel said he has seen it happen quite a few times, but that he has never seen anyone with injuries as bad as mine.
“If it had been an old lady, she might not have got up again. I’ve been told that they use Stanley knives to cut the handles on people’s bags.
“I’ve also heard they use chloroform on people as well. It’s just terrifying.”
She added: “I was taken to hospital and given an X-ray and then just told to leave.
“I was supposed to be on holiday until Saturday but we came back as soon as we could. I just want to tell people about it because I don’t want anyone else to get hurt.
Recently police in Benidorm had begun a crackdown on the increase in crime but according to the number of muggings that is taking place and the number of people being pickpocketed, the police crackdown has done nothing to resolve the issue.
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Businesses in Benidorm as well as hotels in the area do not seem to be interested in the problem that is causing the reduction in repeat holidaymakers to Benidorm.
Terry Hall from Manchester said:” If the business owners in Benidorm were interested in sorting out the muggings and the crime in the area then they would go to the authorities and complain. If this was happening in a seaside resort in the UK then the local business community would come together and complain and campaign to get the problem sorted but it seems the ex-pats in Benidorm are not interested.”
Sarah Jones from Birmingham who has been going to Benidorm for over ten years said the muggings will not stop her from going to the holiday resort she loves but she said she now has to be more careful and more aware of what is going on around her.
She said: “Benidorm was a safe place to visit but now it has become a dangerous place to take a holiday in but I will not let these criminals stop me from taking my holiday in Benidorm. What I am annoyed about is the local business community in Benidorm. The ex-pats who live and work there and who have pubs and clubs there do not seem to be interested in the safety of the British Holidaymaker. If they were interested then they would campaign to get this problem sorted but they are only interested in making money.”
Nicola Williams from Salford in Manchester has been going to Benidorm for over five years now but has said she will not go back until the problem is sorted out.
She explained: “Benidorm is a fun place to visit, the entertainment is amazing but the crime has got out of control. Local business owners are complaining that all inclusive hotels are doing them out of business while others are saying they are struggling to survive with the lack of trade but if they looked at the real problem which is the crime and got together to sort it out and spoke to the people in charge then they may find business would pick up.
We spoke a manager at a popular high street travel agent who admitted that Benidorm had become a bit of a problem for them. She explained that some loyal customers who would visit Benidorm each year have now decided to book elsewhere because of what they have read on Trip Advisor about the crime and what they have experienced themselves while on holiday in the popular Spanish resort.
It seems Benidorm has a real problem with crime which the local business owners and the local police are not sorting out and if this continues then Benidorm could lose all of its loyal holidaymakers and turn into the resort that nobody wants to visit.