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Date Published: 16/02/2023

ARCHIVED - Tourists must now pay to visit oldest church in Alicante

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Visitors to Alicante city's historic 14th century Basilica de Santa Maria now have to pay 6 euros to look around

<span style='color:#780948'>ARCHIVED</span> - Tourists must now pay to visit oldest church in Alicante

In an effort to keep Alicante's historic Basilica de Santa Maria - one of the city's cultural and religious tourist attractions - open to worshippers and visitors alike as "long as possible", a private company has been brought in to manage the public side of the building's activities.

And the move means that while worshippers can still pray for free, visitors will have to pay 6 euros for a tour with audio guide.

Parish priest Manuel Martínez said he has been thinking about introducing an admission fee "for a long time", in order to "keep the church open for longer for everyone".

"What we have to be clear about is that worship comes first and anyone who comes to pray will not have to pay, but if they come for a tourist visit they will have to buy an entrance ticket".

The parish priest went on to say that the basilica "is a jewel in Alicante's crown" because of its heritage value, "but we didn't have the means to manage the visits," he added.

"The solution was to sign an agreement with a private company, Procuratio de Santa María, because we had neither the financial means nor the staff".

"It has cost us a lot to set up the museum in the Chapter House, where visitors can see the monstrance, the paintings, the choir books... so that not only can the public tour see the basilica, which in itself is valuable enough, but also a small museum," explained the priest.

As such, as of February 1, tourists and other visitors who want to enter Basilica de Santa Maria to look around will have to pay, and will be given audio guides by one of three people hired by the private company to deal with visits. There are discounts for the elderly, children, students and groups.

A "small part" of the entrance fee will go to the Basilica and the rest to the private company.

The move does mean that opening times have been extended, and visits can now be made uninterruptedly between 10 am and 7 pm.

"Before, we were only open for the 11am mass until 12.30pm and in the evening from 6pm to 8.30pm," said Manuel Martínez.

Paying to enter a church, in particular cathedrals and co-cathedrals (those that share the function of being a bishop's seat, or cathedra, with another cathedral), has become an increasingly widespread practice in recent years in Spain, with entrance fees ranging from 2 to 10 euros.

Entry to the Co-cathedral of San Nicolás in Alicante currently remains free, while the Basilica of Santa María in Elche charges 2 euros to climb the bell tower, although the ecclesiastical enclosure is free to visit.

Other news: Benidorm withdraws all its beaches from Blue Flag accreditation process

Image: Alicante city

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