Benidorm commemorates the Centenary of the Coronation of the Virgin of Sufragio with events from December 9th to February 8th

The Church of Sant Jaume i Santa Anna was the setting this afternoon for the presentation of the program and commemorative logo for the Centenary celebrations of the Coronation of Our Lady of Suffrage as patron saint of Benidorm. These events took place between October 28, 1925, and February 7, 1926, and the city will now celebrate with an extensive program of events.

Mayor Toni Pérez; the Councilor for Festivals, Mariló Cebreros; other members of the local council; and regional deputies José Ramón González de Zárate and Manuel Pérez Fenoll joined the Parish Council for the presentation. Also participating were the queens of the Patron Saint Festivals, Paula Pascual Sánchez and Aitana Pérez Gutiérrez; the Episcopal Vicar of the Marina Baixa region, Juan Bautista Samper; and the Ladies-in-Waiting of Our Lady of Suffrage. and numerous citizens and devotees of Our Lady of Suffrage.

Toni Pérez and the parish priest of Sant Jaume i Santa Anna, Juan Antonio González, unveiled the logo commissioned by the parish for the Centenary of the Coronation, created by Mari Carmen Zaragoza from Benidorm.

Following this, Pepita Orozco, representing the Parish Council, announced the program of events organised for this commemoration, which recounts many of the events that took place one hundred years ago, culminating in the Coronation of the Virgin, all of which were recorded in writing by the parish priest at the time, Juan Segarra Segarra. The celebrations will begin on December 9th and continue until February 8th, 2026, the day after the coronation of the patron saint in 1926. On that day, a mass will be celebrated at Plaza de Sus Majestades los Reyes de España, presided over by the Bishop of the Orihuela-Alicante Diocese, José Ignacio Munilla.

Mayor Toni Pérez closed the event with remarks in which he recalled how Vicente Llorca Alós, mayor of Benidorm at the time of these events, "attended to and participated in the decision made by the parish priest, Father Juan Segarra Segarra, promoting the coronation of our patron saint from both a civil and political standpoint." This action, he stated, "simply recognised the devotion and faith that the people" had professed to this image for many years.

“The arrival of our patroness saint on March 16, 1740, marked a turning point in the spiritual and religious life of Benidorm, as did her coronation one hundred years ago,” the mayor emphasised. Pérez praised the parish priest, Juan Segarra, for “leaving a record of how those days unfolded, how Benidorm, the entire town, embraced the coronation of the Virgin Mary,” and affirmed his certainty that “Benidorm will once again embrace all the events of this centenary.”

Full program

The events will begin on December 9th, the day on which, one hundred years ago, “the Blessed Virgin Mary was declared, established, and confirmed under the title of Our Lady of Suffrage, Patroness of Benidorm… Given in Rome by His Holiness Pope Pius XI.” The commemorations will begin at noon with the ringing of bells from all the city's parishes. At 6:00 p.m., the commemorative poster for the Centenary, also created by Mari Carmen Zaragoza, will be unveiled at the El Torrejó Municipal Centre. At 7:00 p.m., a Mass will be celebrated during which the Centenary Hymn, composed by Maestro Juan Antonio Espinosa and performed by the Benidorm Choral Group and the dolçaina player Francisco Jesús María Romero, known as ‘el Bessó’, will premiere.

The next commemoration will take place on January 21, 2026, one hundred years after the day the official notification was received from Rome proclaiming the Most Illustrious Virgin Mary of Suffrage as Patron Saint of Benidorm. On this day, at 6:00 p.m., a photographic exhibition dedicated to the Virgin will be inaugurated in the streets of Benidorm.

On January 24, at 10:00 a.m., a Mass will be celebrated in honour of the Virgin, with music provided by the Camerata Ars Cantica. Half an hour later, the exhibition of the Virgin's vestments will be inaugurated in the Chapel where her image is kept. At 11:00 AM, the floral tapestry commemorating the Centenary will be unveiled on the façade of the Sant Jaume i Santa Anna parish church, along with the decorations adorning the adjacent streets, just as was done on the afternoon of February 7, 1926.

From January 31 to February 6, 2026, the Septenary to the Virgin will take place, with the participation of all the parishes of Benidorm, in this order: Sant Jaume i Santa Anna, Nuestra Señora del Carmen, San Juan Bautista, Nuestra Señora de la Almudena, Nuestra Señora del Mar and Ermita de Sanz, El Buen Pastor, and San Francisco de Asís.

On February 1, at 12:00 PM, the Extraordinary Centenary Concert is scheduled to take place at the Colci Cinema, performed by the city's three musical groups: Societat Musical La Nova, Societat Musical L’Illa, and Unión Musical de Benidorm.

On February 6th, at 8:00 PM, a Prayer Vigil and Encounter will be held before the original statue of the Patron Saint, which will be placed on the main altar of the church to receive the devotion of her people.

On February 7th, the centenary of the coronation of Our Lady of Suffrage by parish priest Juan Segarra Segarra, while Father Pedro Rodríguez read the Papal Decree, the doors of the Church of Saint James and Saint Anne will open at 9:00 AM so that all the people can venerate the Patron Saint. At 10:00 AM, Mass will be celebrated in honor of the Virgin, followed half an hour later by the presentation of children to the Patron Saint. At noon, the Angelus will be recited; at 5:00 PM, the Rosary will be prayed. At 6:00 and 7:00 p.m., two Eucharistic celebrations will be held, followed by the recitation of the "Sabatina" in honour of the Patroness Saint.

At the end of the Mass, a small brooch in the shape of a crown will be presented to the Virgin Mary to reaffirm the affection and devotion of the people of Benidorm on the centenary of her proclamation and coronation as Patron Saint.

Finally, on February 8th, the main day of the centenary commemoration, the day will begin at 10:00 a.m. with a mock aerial display. At 10:30 a.m., the image will be carried from the parish church to the Plaza de SSMM Los Reyes de España (Square of Their Majesties the Kings of Spain), borne on the shoulders of the "Mariners de la Mare de Déu" (Sailors of the Virgin Mary). Once in the plaza, at 11:30 a.m., a Thanksgiving Mass will be celebrated, presided over by the Bishop of the Orihuela-Alicante Diocese and the local priests. The Benidorm Choir will provide the music, and local bands will participate.

Around 1:00 p.m., a procession will return to accompany the Virgin to her church. During the procession, at the intersection of Alameda and Calle Mayor—the exact spot where she was crowned in 1926—a commemorative tile will be unveiled.