Journalist Adam Maidment felt like a “daylight robber” after ignoring warnings and ordering a €1 beer in Benidorm but the cut-price pint turned out to be far better than expected
While researching his trip to Benidorm, journalist Adam Maidment came across cautionary advice urging tourists to steer clear of the famously cheap drinks.
Many claimed these €1 offers at the popular Spanish resort were best avoided, describing them as subpar or suspiciously watered down.
Benidorm, with its beachside bars, themed pubs and sprawling expat scene, is a well-oiled machine when it comes to luring in tourists. More than 830,000 British tourists visit Benidorm each year, with many attracted by the number of sports bars, Irish pubs, and other themed venues offering lucrative deals.
However, many warn that the bargain booze may not be all it’s cracked up to be. In one popular TikTok video, viewed more than 450,000 times, creator Frank the Stag Man bluntly told 227,000 followers: “You get what you pay for”, labelling the drinks “absolute rubbish”.
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Still, not everyone heeded Frank’s warning. Adam, though, a true professional, decided to fall at the first hurdle in the name of journalism. In an article penned for the Manchester Evening News, Adam wrote: “I practically fell at the first hurdle and ignored all warnings after a very sunny afternoon stroll through Levante Beach, it’s perhaps the very exact reason why these bars have beer at such a ridiculous price point in the first place.”
Hoping to head into the Old Town, Adam spotted a venue advertising a too-tempting deal. “I spotted the La Parada lounge bar, which offered both €1 beer and even €1 Pintxos dishes. Whilst not feeling brave enough to try my chances with the culinary options, I was prepared to give the very cheap beer a go – all in the name of journalism, of course.”
The bar, located just up from the beachfront near Tiki Town Beach Club, was in a shaded spot and not too crowded. A scattering of locals were inside enjoying the calm. Adam said: “The very lovely server was happy to take my order for a €1 beer and, not quite knowing what I had set myself in for, I contemplated what would be arriving at my table and whether it would be as watered down or ominous as social media had suggested it would be.”
The beer arrived in minutes. “The dinky little glass of beer was pretty much as expected: certainly not a pint, and perhaps not even a half (maybe more of a third). But it was a freshly-poured serving of Amstel, so it certainly wasn’t the worst choice of beer.”
Most importantly, it tasted fine. “It was ice cold and it tasted normal – I didn’t get the impression it was watered down.”
And the price? Almost laughably low. Adam said: “Most impressively, it was an absolute bargain of a drink for what was the equivalent of essentially just 84p – a price that nowhere in Manchester [or anywhere in the UK] would ever consider charging.”
Curious how the economics worked, Adam asked the server why they bothered offering such a low price. Her response was basic marketing: “It gets people in.” Once through the door, people then order food and smoothies or become repeat customers.
The bar’s menu and signage promoted other items, like €3 hotdogs and €5 smoothies, far more than the beer, but perhaps what keeps the tills ringing.
After sipping his drink in a relaxed atmosphere, Adam faced a very first world problem. He said: “Then came the moral dilemma that has been playing in my mind ever since: how do you pay for an 84p beer without feeling like you’ve just committed daylight robbery?”
He considered ghosting the bar with a euro left behind. He said: “I considered leaving the euro on the table and just making a dash for it in order to avoid having to make any pleasantries, but that just felt rude.”
He even thought about tipping. “I also contemplated tipping an extra euro in order to lessen the guilt I felt, which I appreciate is the very epitome of a first-world problem.” In the end, instead of dashing, Adam used his cool logic to reason. He reflected: “It was their offer, they chose to sell it, and they decided to promote it to get punters in – and it certainly worked, even if I didn’t stay to branch out into €5 smoothie territory.”
While he said he wouldn’t recommend spending an entire day bouncing between €1 beer bars, he gave La Parada credit for being a calm and pleasant place to sit and sip. “Whilst I definitely wouldn’t want to spend a whole afternoon stocking up on €1 beers, my time at La Parada was good. It certainly wasn’t one of the rowdier venues in the town; it was chilled and quiet, so I am sure there might be other popular options for people when it comes to going cheap on the beer.”
But he added a word of caution. “Of course, I cannot vouch for €1 beers at the other bars, and I’m sure there are some which warrant the level of caution.”
Adam also rightly pointed out: “It also goes without saying that it is always important to drink responsibly too, whether you are in Benidorm drinking €1 beer or not.”
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