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Valencia and Alicante work to attract film tourism

The Ministry of Innovation, Industry, Trade, and Tourism, along with the City Council of Alicante and the Alicante Film Office, have agreed to work together to support the local film industry. They will support efforts to make film studios and the city of Alicante known as a place for shooting, while also sharing the cultural, scenic, and artistic qualities of the city and the surrounding area.

The agreement was signed this Thursday at the Fitur Screen 2025 Fair. The event was joined by Marián Cano, the Minister of Innovation, Industry, Trade, and Tourism, and Luis Barcala, the Mayor of Alicante. Both agreed to highlight the growing importance of travellers who are fans of the audiovisual world and who become viewers in search of the places they saw on screen.

They have noticed that this kind of tourism, focused on spots featured in movies and shows—especially those made by streaming platforms—attracts millions of people who want to visit the places they see on screen for their vacations.

“The minister said that tourists can visit Alicante and other areas in the Valencian Community because of the films made in its many interesting cultural and natural locations, especially with the new opportunities at the Ciutat de la Llum studios.”

Marián Cano explained that the Ciutat de la Llum studios, set up by the Generalitat, aim to build a strong film industry that stands out both in Spain and worldwide. This effort is meant to boost local businesses and services in the Valencian Community and improve its reputation internationally.

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Alicante’s mayor, Luis Barcala, said that “film tourism is important and a key part of our tourism plan. Alicante has everything needed to attract major national and international film productions that greatly benefit the city. We also want to attract tourists who love films and TV shows and are interested in visiting filming locations.”

“The mayor said we are successfully attracting production companies to work with the City of Light and promote Alicante as an ideal place for filming stories that will reach millions of viewers.”

Because of this and shared interests, the new collaboration plan expects Ciutat de la Llum and the Alicante Film Office to work together in their areas to encourage filming and other audiovisual projects in the city of Alicante and in film studios.

They promise to help production companies by sharing information about places, services, and facilities in Alicante that are suitable for filming. They will also assist with visits to check out these sites in Alicante.

They also agree to set up a platform for sharing information and communication between the two groups. This will allow them to share world data each year about film productions and other information to evaluate the economic impact of filming in Alicante.

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This protocol also provides that the Alicante City Council, through its unit specialised in meetings tourism (MICE), Alicante Convention Bureau, makes all its promotional tools available to the City of Light to publicise the spaces and facilities that allow this type of tourism to be attracted to the studies.

The two parties will create training programs for the audiovisual business to develop a group of skilled professionals. This will help production companies in the Valencian Community find qualified people for their projects.


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There will be fewer terraces, stricter opening hours, and no more 24-hour opening hours in the middle of Alicante at night.

Alicante Bar

This new Acoustically Saturated Zone (ZAS) will soon be in effect in Alicante. It will change the city’s nightlife, leisure activities, and traditions. It was just passed by the city council. This measure changes the times that bars, restaurants, pubs, and clubs close in some parts of the Old Town and the Centre, like Calle Castaños. It also gets rid of the well-known shops and bars that are open 24 hours a day.

Additionally, as part of the ZAS Master Plan, the Alicante local police will carry out a special surveillance operation on behalf of the Department of Security “to ensure compliance with closing times and the removal of terraces or tables and the dissolution of crowds of people in the vicinity of the premises once they are closed,” as agreed upon.

These rules say that bars, pubs, and restaurants in the city heart will have to close at midnight on Fridays, Saturdays, and the night before holidays in the Old Town and between Portal de Elche and Calle Castaños. For their part, discos will close at 3am. From Sunday to Monday, bars will close 30 minutes earlier, at 1:30am, and discos will close at 1am.

On Bonfire Night and holidays like Christmas Eve, New Year’s Eve, New Year’s Day, and Twelfth Night, these hours will not be in effect. The hours of operation on these dates will be set by a city decree. During the summer, the door will be opened a bit more. In half an hour, tables and chairs can be set up in the neighbourhood public space from 8 a.m. to 12:30 a.m., but all furniture on the terrace or table must be taken down at 12:30 a.m.


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Alicante Crime: Fewer cases but more Violence

With a 0.7% decrease in recorded offences over the previous year, crime in the province of Alicante had a minor overall dip in 2024. However, a recent Ministry of the Interior report found that robberies, sexual offences, and violent crimes have all climbed.

Increase in Violent Crimes and Murders

The 81.8% increase in homicides and murders, which went from 11 in 2023 to 20 in 2024, is the most concerning number. On the other hand, homicide attempts decreased by 19.7%. In the meantime, there were 1,413 recorded occurrences of attacks and rioting, a 20.1% rise.

Additionally, sexual offences increased by 5.1%, with 1,008 cases reported. Other sexual crimes rose 6.5% to 786 instances, whereas penetration-related rape cases (222) decreased by a small 0.5%. This increase, according to the Ministry, is partly due to victims’ increasing awareness and willingness to disclose crimes.

An increase in drug crimes and robberies

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Alicante province witnessed a 10.5% increase in robberies involving violence and intimidation, with 2,207 instances, while the country’s robbery rates decreased. The enhanced efforts by law enforcement against drug trafficking networks are reflected in the 3.6% increase in drug-related crimes, which reached 1,145 reported instances.

Trends in Cybercrime and Fraud

Overall, cybercrime decreased by 0.1%, remaining largely unchanged. However, following a significant spike in 2023, computer fraud incidents decreased by 1.9%. Other cybercrimes increased from 2,121 to 2,431 cases, a 14.6% increase.

Reduced Home Theft and Burglaries

At 5,699, there was a significant drop in residential burglaries, which was 9.2% lower than in 2023. With 26,416 recorded occurrences, thefts—one of the most frequent crimes affecting locals—also decreased by 2.2%.

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Crevillent and Petrer at opposite ends are crime hotspots.

Crevillent saw the largest increase in crime among the municipalities, with 1,057 reported offences, or a 15.6% increase. Petrer, on the other hand, experienced the biggest drop in crime, with 851 recorded cases—a 21.9% drop.

Alcoy (5.9%), Aspe (7%), Torrevieja (5.4%), Orihuela (0.3%), and Elche (1.4%) are some places where crime has increased. In the meantime, crime decreased in El Campello (-20.8%), Dénia (-5.2%), Altea (-13%), and Benidorm (-3%).

The increase in violent crimes and robberies is a major worry despite the general decline in crime, underscoring the necessity of ongoing watchfulness and law enforcement initiatives throughout

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This weekend, 250 riders from around the world will be in Elche for the International BMX Open.

BMX Elche

This weekend, Elche will be the site of the International Open BMX Racing. This is expected to be the best BMX competition ever, with some of the best riders in the world competing, including Malene Kejlstrup from Denmark, Ruben Gommers from Belgium, Thomas Maturano from Argentina, and Pablo García from Spain, who just won the Indoor de Tours.

The event is being put together by the BMX Alicante Race Team with help from the Unión Ciclista Ilicitana and with the City Council’s help. It will happen on February 15th and 16th at the BMX track at the Miguel Hernández University. The goal of this event, which has different races for kids, adults, and the best riders, is to get more people to play BMX in the city and help the local business and tourism.

People from Germany, the Czech Republic, Argentina, Brazil, Colombia, Slovakia, Venezuela, Portugal, France, Italy, Poland, the Netherlands, Ecuador, and Finland, as well as different parts of Spain, have already stated that they will be running.

Over the two days, the event will have a variety of categories and challenges. On Saturday, it will be open from 9:00 am to 10:30 pm, and on Sunday, it will be open from 9:00 am to 16:00 pm. A food area, a Fan Zone, and a place for shops and vendors will also be there. Through entreticket.es, you can get tickets.

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