Benidorm skyscrapers and skyline

Benidorm's skyline is the result of a deliberate choice: in 1956, under mayor Pedro Zaragoza, the town approved a general urban plan that favoured building upwards over sprawling along the coast.

The plan zoned land for hotels, housing and public space, and a 1963 revision removed most height limits, freeing the ground around tall blocks for gardens, pools and avenues. The tourist board argues that towers use less land and fewer roads than low-rise sprawl. Only three buildings over 100 m were finished before 2000; a boom in the 2000s added most of the rest, and the 2008 crash then stalled several projects for years.

Today Benidorm counts 33 buildings over 100 m, more than Madrid, and with a resident population of only about 77,000 it is often described as having more skyscrapers per inhabitant than anywhere in the world. The skyline features in our things to do in Benidorm guide, and is best seen from the hills of Serra Gelada.

The ten tallest towers are all over 120 m, and all but one are apartment blocks. Heights vary.

Intempo is Benidorm's tallest building and is described as the tallest residential building in the EU: two towers about 20 m apart, joined near the top by an inverted cone, which gives it its distinctive M shape.

Designed by Pérez-Guerras Arquitectos, it was started in 2007 and should have opened around 2009–2010. Instead the financial crisis stalled it: the first contractor went bankrupt in 2009, the architects resigned in 2013 and the developer became insolvent in 2014. Work restarted in late 2019 under a new owner and it was finished in July 2021.

It was first measured at 187 m; an added floor slab took it to 202.5 m, and Visit Benidorm quotes 206 m. It holds 256 private apartments; its rooftop terrace is for residents only and there is no public observation deck.

Gran Hotel Bali, 186 m and 52 floors, was Spain's tallest building from 2002 to 2008.

It is also the one skyscraper you can easily go up as a visitor. The hotel's Sky Bar viewpoint on the top of the tower is open to non-guests for €10 (hotel guests €5, children under five free), and the entry fee does not include drinks. The hotel gives approximate hours of 09:00–19:00, varying with season and weather, with 360-degree views. For more high-up drinking spots, see our Benidorm rooftop bars guide.

Several other towers stand out, though all are private homes.

The best free views of the skyline are from the hills at each end of the bay and from the castle headland in between.

Most towers are private, so enjoy the skyline from viewpoints, rooftop bars and the promenades.