Costa Blanca
Competition on Spain’s railways is driving down prices

Recently, Spain’s high-speed railways have experienced a significant transformation. The country’s railway network has been opened to private operators since market liberalisation in 2020, and the results have been dramatic: ticket prices have decreased, availability has increased, and rail is now surpassing air travel on certain critical routes.
For travellers, this new era entails an increase in the number of available seats, an improved value, and a decrease in the number of compelling reasons to fly.
Fares are reduced when markets are open.
Spain’s high-speed lines, which were previously dominated by the national operator Renfe, now offer various services as a result of the entrance of new players such as Ouigo from France and Iryo from Italy. With a combination of full-service and budget-friendly offerings, these newcomers have revolutionised the industry.
This shift has had an immediate and substantial effect on prices:
In comparison to pre-competition levels, the average fares on the Madrid–Barcelona route have decreased by as much as 40%.
Ouigo has provided tickets at a rate as low as €9. Additionally, it attracted well over two million passengers during its inaugural year in 2021.
The same competitive pressure has resulted in a 27.6% decrease in tariffs on the Madrid–Alicante line.
This reduction in costs has rendered high-speed rail a compelling alternative to domestic flights, not only in terms of price but also in terms of convenience.
Rail Revolution in Numbers
The percentage of travel between Madrid and Barcelona that is attributed to rail has increased from 59% in 2019 to 81.8%.
In response to the advent of new competition, Renfe’s own low-cost service, Avlo, has contributed to the expansion of the rail market as a whole.
In the most recent figures from the CNMC (Spain’s competition authority), Ouigo received the fewest customer complaints of all operators.
CNMC reports that nearly 90% of passengers use these services sporadically rather than on a regular basis. The affordability of high-speed rail is attracting a broader base of leisure travellers, rather than just business passengers, although the majority of travellers are still infrequent users of the service.
Renfe commences to address the demand
The increase in capacity has made rail cheaper and more accessible. Experts in rail travel assert that the competition has been long overdue.
“The competition from high-speed operators, including Ouigo and Iryo, has resulted in a significant increase in the number of seats available and a decrease in fares.” Trains were frequently overcrowded and prices were exorbitant prior to this. Renfe had been under-providing and over-pricing on routes such as Madrid–Barcelona, in my opinion.
The short scheduling windows of Renfe were previously one of the most frustrating aspects of booking train travel in Spain. Frequently, the publication of tickets just two weeks prior to travel restricted early-bird savings and forward planning.
Smith also mentioned that Spain has experienced an additional advantage. “For years, Renfe has been infamous for its tardiness in launching ticket sales, occasionally with as little as two weeks’ notice. Such behaviour is absurd.” This remains an issue on numerous Renfe routes; however, on routes where they now face competition, they have miraculously prolonged the booking horizon to numerous months.
Not without opposition
The new landscape has not been well received by all, despite the advantages it offers to passengers. Renfe is concerned that low-cost competitors are employing unsustainable models and receiving state support in their home countries. There are also broader concerns about whether aggressive price cuts can be sustainable without compromising quality or service.
However, passengers are currently exercising their right to vote by boarding the train.
An irreversible return to the rails?
Spain’s rail network is rapidly becoming a symbol of the advantages that liberalisation can provide consumers.
Trains are no longer the costly and rigid alternative. They have become increasingly popular among a broader variety of travellers, as they are a fast, affordable, and environmentally friendly method of travelling between major cities.
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Costa Blanca
Cloe’s ex-boyfriend admits that he killed her along with another suspect

Samuel, the 17-year-old (at the time of the incident) accused of killing 15-year-old Cloe on the Orihuela Costa last November, testified in Alicante’s juvenile court yesterday, Thursday May 15th.
A three-hour statement for a murder classed as gender-based violence because the victim and alleged murderer were a couple.
According to Juan Carlos Fuentes, the family’s private prosecution counsel, the boy admitted to killing the girl with a knife but refused to answer any questions other than those posed by the Prosecutor’s Office and his own defence.
The teenager’s brother discovered her with a cut on her neck at home shortly before nine o’clock that Sunday night and transported her to the Torrevieja hospital, where she died shortly afterward.
The suspected killer was apprehended two hours later. Apparently, she had broken up with him a few days before. There were no reported cases of abuse.
In addition, another minor has been arrested for alleged active participation in the crime. This boy, Dilan, is expected to testify later today and will use the same logic.
Given their proximity to age, both face the maximum term under juvenile law: eight years in detention, beginning in a juvenile centre and ending in a normal prison.
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Benidorm expects full accommodations to be packed this weekend due to Eurofans

Accommodations in Benidorm (Alicante) are expected to be nearly full, or “technically full,” this weekend due to the popularity of the Benidorm Fest, which has elevated the city to the status of a top-tier tourist destination for Europeans.
As a result, an increasing number of Eurovision fans are flocking to Benidorm to soak up the Eurovision vibe and watch the final on the large screens placed up throughout the town, as well as attend the many Euroclub events.
Israel Martínez, Director General of Tourism of the Generalitat (Catalan Government), revealed that there are “confirmed reservations for the weekend that exceed 85%,” but estimates that they will reach “100% in the city of Benidorm.”
Martínez, who travelled to Basel (Switzerland) with a delegation from the Benidorm Fest, highlighted the “deseasonalising effect” of both the music festival held in Benidorm between January and February, in the middle of the low season, and the Eurovision Song Contest itself, which many tourists choose to enjoy from Benidorm, transforming the Euroclub festivities into “a tourist phenomenon” and increasing hotel occupancy rates.
He also emphasised the “young” nature of the tourists who would visit Benidorm this weekend because of the Eurovision vibe it created in the city. In many cases, they are “new” tourists who were neither known nor devoted to the city but who, thanks to efforts like the Benidorm Fest or Eurovision broadcasts, discover the location and “get hooked,” he said. In reality, he emphasised that the Benidorm Festival and Eurovision are, in terms of visitor occupancy, “two phenomena that feed off each other and are closely linked” to the city.
The Benidorm Fest delegation has organised a gala for this afternoon at 8 p.m. in Basel to promote the Benidorm festival and attract a European audience for the next edition.
According to Benidorm’s Head of Major Events, Jesús Carrobles, the 300 available seats for the gala have been totally sold out. While many Eurofans in Basel have shown interest in attending, the venue is currently “full.”
This event, in addition to advertising the upcoming edition of the Benidorm Fest and tourism sites in the Valencian Community, will feature performances by previous editions’ performers, including Mawot, Kuve, and Kingdom.
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Six-year prison sentence for sexual assault of young woman upheld in Elche

The owner of a bar, sentenced to six years in prison for a sexual assault committed in his business against a 36-year-old drunken client, will remain in prison after the Criminal and Civil Chamber of the TSJ dismissed the appeal filed against the sentence of Section XI of the Elche Court that found him guilty, and sentencing him to a supervised measure for ten years to be executed once the sentence is served and not to approach the victim within 500 metres of the same.
The events took place in the early morning of May 31st, 2023. Hours earlier, the victim, her father, and some friends had gone to a bar after supper at another location, where they had consumed many glasses of wine and an alcoholic cocktail. She was enjoying a beer with her father when the incident occurred, and he then left. The proprietor and defendant in these proceedings then served her another one without her asking, at a table where she sat with three others. Finally, the young woman was left alone, and the bar closed. At the moment, the young woman was under the influence of alcohol, according to the verdict.
The owner opened the door again and asked her inside. “Taking advantage of the drunkenness she was in, which prevented her from effectively defending herself, and despite her telling him not to do that, the defendant knocked her to the floor and, saying ‘ I have to do it, I have to do it, ‘ he placed himself on top of her, without (the woman) being able to do anything to prevent him, other than putting her hands in front of her, as if trying to push him away,” as well as sexually assaulting her and ejaculating inside He then provided two beers and one to the woman, adding whisky and they both left the premises. He attempted to kiss her, but she declined.
The defence used security camera footage to dispute the victim’s testimony and determine that the evidence was misconstrued, claiming that the young woman was not inebriated. The Supreme Court rejected this claim, citing its own decision from Section XI, which stated that “viewing the recording allows us to corroborate the facts.” We can see that the complainant is not in very good shape, staggering, how she enters with her after closing the door, how the accused disappears from the screen and reappears without trousers (…) Also, as they say farewell, she rejects the accused’s kissing attempts.”
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