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No. 3 in the Top 20

Gran Hotel Bali

The Gran Hotel Bali was Benidorm’s tallest building for 19 years and, when it opened in 2002, the tallest in Spain. It was built by an entrepreneur who did not want to take on debt.

Gran Hotel Bali, Benidorm
Photo: Zarateman · CC0 1.0
Benidorm skyline drawn from building data: heights to scale, west to east Poniente Levante TM Tower · 230 m Intempo · 187.1 m Gran Hotel Bali · 186 m Gran Delfín · 158 m Torre Lúgano · 158 m Sunset Sailors Tower 1 · 151 m Neguri Gane · 148 m Edificio Kronos · 140 m Benidorm Beach · 126 m Edificio Don Jorge · 124 m El Mirador del Mediterráneo · 123 m Torre Levante · 120 m Costa Blanca I · 116 m Miragolf Playa 2 · 115 m Gemelos 26 Torre I · 114 m Gemelos 26 Torre II · 114 m Torre d'Oboe I · 114 m Torre d'Oboe II · 114 m Sunset Sailors Tower 2 · 113 m Sol de Poniente 2 · 112 m Beni Beach · 110 m Sunset Cliffs Torre 2 · 106.2 m Miragolf Playa I · 105 m Playa Azul · 105 m Torre Pinar · 105 m Residencial Islamar 2 · 104 m Residencial Islamar 3 · 104 m Torre Poseidón · 103 m Sunset Waves I · 101.5 m Sunset Waves II · 101.5 m Hotel Port Benidorm · 101 m Las Terrazas de Benidorm 1 · 101 m Las Terrazas de Benidorm 2 · 101 m Torre Doscalas · 100.4 m Gemelos 22 Torre 1 · 100.2 m Gemelos 22 Torre 2 · 100.2 m Coblanca 41 · 97 m Delfín Tower · 95 m Hotel Flamingo Oasis · 95 m Gemelos 20 Torre 1 · 94 m Gemelos 20 Torre 2 · 94 m Torre Coblanca · 94 m Sol de Poniente 1 · 92.7 m Tropic-Mar · 92.6 m Edificio Ónice · 92 m Sunset Drive East · 92 m Sunset Drive West · 92 m Londres II · 91 m Torre Sakura · 91 m Costa Blanca II · 90 m Coblanca 40 Torre 1 · 89.3 m Coblanca 40 Torre 2 · 89.3 m Hotel Meliá Benidorm · 89.3 m Principado Marina · 89.3 m Edificio Circo · 89.2 m Torre Benidorm · 89 m Cibeles 1 · 88 m Cibeles 2 · 88 m Sunset Cliffs Torre 1 · 86.7 m Balcón de Poniente 1 · 86 m Balcón de Poniente 2 · 86 m Edificio El Olivar 1 · 86 m Edificio El Olivar 2 · 86 m Sierra de Bernia 1 · 85.9 m Sierra de Bernia 2 · 85.9 m Torre Capri · 85.9 m Torre San Remo · 85.9 m Gemelos 12 Torre 1 · 85 m Gemelos 12 Torre 2 · 85 m Las Damas · 85 m Sandos Benidorm Suites · 83 m Residencial Miranda 1 · 82.6 m Residencial Miranda 2 · 82.6 m Hotel RH Victoria · 82 m Parque Europa 1 · 82 m Parque Europa 2 · 82 m Old town

The story

Joaquín Luis Pérez Crespo was a builder and hotelier. In 1988 he started work on the tower at the western end of Poniente beach. Because he did not want to finance it with loans, construction dragged on for years. The shell stood half-finished for a long time – which is how it appears in Bigas Luna’s 1993 film ‘Huevos de oro’.

The hotel opened on 17 May 2002, after around 14 years of construction. At 186 metres it was Spain’s tallest building until Madrid got its new towers in 2007/08. The complex also includes the older, 19-storey Hotel Bali.

Pérez Crespo remained the owner until the end. He died in early August 2026.

Good to know

  • Since 2009 the hotel has been the launch point for the BASE Jumping World Championships.
  • In 2010 a stuntman rode a motorbike along a cable some 500 metres long from the Tossal de La Cala to the hotel – a Guinness world record.
  • In 2016 Christian Riedl ran up the stairs to the roof in 4 minutes 20 seconds.

Open questions

  • Floors of the Bali: 52 according to the skyscraper database CTBUH. Other sources give 43 – only the floors with hotel rooms – or 53 including two basement levels.

Sources