What to See
Park the Dry
Natural place which existing in the bank of the Segura River in its path through Benijófar, in a former meander, that is to say in a grove. In it there has been created a recreational park equipped with sports facilities and leisure activities. The area is landscaped with native tree species, in which tables are distributed with banks and barbecues, to spend a field day. It is possible to practise hiking, football, bicycle and walks along the river.
You can find this park starting from Benijófar from the square of the Constitution by way of Rafaeles.
Information Phone: 966 715 401
Arabic Water-Wheel
Placed in a meander on the outskirts of the urban core, to the right bank of the Río Segura, It was built with walls of ashlars in the middle of the s. XVII (1659). It is the symbol of our garden and of the locality. It forms a hydraulic set, which includes the mill and weir.
Parrish Church of Santiago Apostol
This church is of relatively recent construction due to an earthquake in 1828. It is a beautiful temple at the end of s. XVI and at the beginning of s. XVII, which are preserved two valuable altars of s. XVII and some elements of baroque ornamentation. Santiago Apóstol and La Inmaculada Concepción are its patron Saints. At the moment, stand out the facade and portico entrance.
Town Hall
The new Town Hall was inaugurated on December 7, 2002. It is an architecturally modern building, plenty of space and bright, ideal to offer citizens a better quality of its services. It won the prize for architecture Juan Vidal 2004, by Diputación de Alicante.
The Orchard
Benijófar is located in the south of the province of Alicante in the district of Vega Baja of the Río Segura and irrigated by this. It is in approximately 8 kilometres from the Mediterranean Sea. In its final stretch, the Río Segura irrigates the orchard of Benijófar, in a strip of about 400 meters wide at its right margin. Area of high agricultural interest of 85.18 Ha, rich land and nowadays dedicated to the cultivation of citrus fruits (orange, mandarin and lemon), vegetables (artichokes, broccoli, potatoes, etc.).. Since the Arabs, agriculture has been its economic activity.
The plots are constituted in portions or divisions. The first ones are the tahúllas with 1.185 square meters; these are divided in 8 octaves and in turn in 32 fathoms. The plots are irrigated by the network of Benijófar's aqueducts, also so called "Irrigation ditches" it is constituted by four channels: the irrigation ditch del Moral, de Enmedio, de Arriba and la Pollera, all of them fed from the Río Segura through a water-wheel that extracts water of the same one.
The network of remaining waters is formed by La Ladrona, as principal channel and a network of numerous secondary channels that the drainage waters spill to La Ladrona.
The Rio Segura is the feeding source of the orchard. The water- wheel located in it raises the water to the ditches, distributing to all the plot of the orchard of Benijófar. Along the right bank of the river, there is a way by which we can observe and access to the old water-wheel and his aqueducts. The four principal ditches, through secondary aqueducts, lint or branches, to irrigate the garden. Addition of aqueducts for irrigation, there are others to pick up waters dead or drainage of land, called “azarbetas” or minor “azarbes” and biggest azarbetas. From the water-wheel an aqueduct is born, and from this starting to take waters the four channels to provide irrigation to Benijófar‘s gardens.
Benijófar bets for the conservation of the garden, offering to the visitors and to the citizen the use and enjoyment of the wonderful landscape of the traditional garden where the plantation of citrus predominates.
Festivities
The festivities of Benijofar begin with its Holy week, which we can stand out the Palm Sunday, in which all the people is going to bless the palms and Easter Sunday, in which the act of meeting is produced, where women accompany the Virgin and men to the Christ. To finish this week we do with the day of San Vicente Ferrer, the feast which is celebrated on Monday after Easter.
More Information
The patron saint festivities in honour of Santiago Apóstol are celebrated on July 25,this start the previous Sunday, with the offerings of flowers and the coronation of Queen and Ladies- in- waiting of the Holidays. In the later days its people and visitors make dances, parades of coaches, parades, figures with a huge heads, dancing, musical performances ... A typical event of grand tradition is the "Patatá" (where citizens and visitors gather for dinner potatoes in the square ) and of recent creation have been introduced the parades of Moors and Christians.
The festivities continue in October, on Sundays, on the verge of dawn, is still kept the beautiful garden tradition of the Rosary of the Dawn, and preceded by "Despertá" with its old songs. We finish the year with the festivities in honour of our patroness, the Immaculate Conception on December 8, in that there are celebrated cultural and religious acts: theatre performances, musicals, concerts, offering of flowers, masses and processions, the days before and the Novena which culminates the same day of the Virgin.
Benijófar is what you want in holidays: captivation and tradition; history and culture; festive environment and happy peoples; melodies of party and an enormous cultural patrimony.