Amsterdam, Dublin and Alicante. According to the British travel agency Opodo, they are the most popular destinations among travelers who plan to take advantage of the extra holiday bridge provided by their government next week on the occasion of the coronation of King Carlos III that will take place on Saturday the 6th.
It is one of the three 'bank holidays' in May in the United Kingdom -the first was yesterday, the next on the 29th- and the one that 34% of travelers from the British Isles have chosen to make a getaway in the middle of spring, between on May 5 and 8. Behind Alicante, they complete the top 10 of various destinations in the sunny south, such as Barcelona, Malaga, Rome, Faro and Lisbon, and the closest Belfast.
The English media predict the arrival of thousands of tourists to London on the occasion of the festivities associated with the enthronement of the new king, but also mention the fact that reservations for trips abroad, particularly to sun and beach destinations, the Coast Blanca the first of them, they have shot. Specifically, reservations for next weekend have increased by 55% compared to the same dates last year.
The fact that Canada or Florida also appear among the most popular destinations in British travel agencies indicates, according to the same sources, that many travelers have chosen to link the two consecutive bridges and take the four working days in between to enjoy of a spring break, what we commonly call an “aqueduct”
Although the coronation is celebrated on Saturday 6, the Prime Minister, Rishi Sunak, announced his government's decision to provide an extra festivity to the nation as it happened 70 years ago, in 1953, on the occasion of the coronation of Elizabeth II, mother of the current monarch.
And the large colony of expatriates that resides in Alicante towns such as Benidorm, Xàbia, Torrevieja or Orihuela, prepares to commemorate the event by organizing their own parties, as they usually do every time some event -Royal Wedding, World Cup of Soccer or Rugby- requires it.
Among the numerous 'Coronation parties' (coronation parties) that these days are announced on social networks and on billboards in the usual meeting places, the calls of the Royal British Legion, a charitable institution that helps veterans of the British armed forces and has several delegations in the province of Alicante. One of its branches, based in Xàbia, brings together members scattered throughout the Marina Alta and has organized a commemorative lunch on Sunday 7 at the Los Arcos de Pedreguer restaurant, which will be followed by a party in the garden.
There are numerous pubs, restaurants, campsites and other places frequented by the British colony that announce parties with typical food, or tea, recommending going wearing the colors of the flag, around television screens that will offer the broadcast of the event.
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A radio station, Big FM Costa Blanca, has set up a large street party in Rojales, a town that has 5,511 registered Britons, 34% of the residents. Even the Church of England organizes a mass on Friday the 5th in the La Siesta de Torrevieja Urbanization in preparation for the coronation, in which prayers will be raised "for his majesty the King and her majesty the Queen Consort". On Sunday there will be another thanksgiving mass and on Monday a big party.
