Benidorm, subject of the eponymous satirical sitcom, is to apply for UNESCO World Heritage Site recognition.
The town council of the Spanish resort announced its intention as the Visit Benidorm Foundation unveiled plans for new tourism branding following an online competition.
The ‘Benidorm by Talents’ challenge ran over six months with 20% of the 330 entries coming from outside Spain.
This runs alongside a study on repositioning the consumer image of Benidorm by focusing on beaches and other leisure attractions.
A new logo is now being introduced across all communication mediums, branding campaigns and promotional material.
The resort needs the formal support of the Valencia region parliament to progress to an indicative list for Spain compiled by the culture and education ministry before it is considered by UNESCO-accredited agencies over a two-year period during which they decide on their final list of recommended candidates.
Spain currently has 40 UNESCO World Heritage sites and Benidorm claims to fulfil six out of 10 conditions necessary for UNESCO eligibility for candidacy, although just one is necessary to apply.
With just 75,000 local residents, Benidorm offers 40,000 hotel beds plus 32,000 more in apartments, campsites and other accommodation.
The resort, known for its high rise buildings, attracts more than five million visitors a year, with UK numbers up 4% last year.
The former fishing village was selected as the ideal site to develop a resort for affordable and accessible sunshine holidays for millions of Europeans enjoying the economic success of the 1960’s and 1970’s.
It has attracted more than 250 million visitors over the last 50 years.