A HOTEL in Alicante is offering guests the chance to stay for 375 euros a month as an alternative to renting property.

Not only is it an affordable solution to those householders who struggle to meet their monthly rent and bills, but it could also help to ease the impact of the fall in tourism, say staff from Hotel Albahía.

The three-star hotel, which is on the seafront of the Albufereta beach in the city, says holidaymakers have fallen in number by around 17 per cent this year.

But those who choose to live in a hotel not only escape having to do their own housework, but also have the use of an en-suite bathroom, built-in wardrobe, fridge and internet connection with no bills to pay for electricity and water.

The only prerequisite is that guests have to book up-front for a minimum of three months.

Already, say sources from Hotel Albahía, of its 30 ‘anti-recession rooms’, seven are now occupied and another eight under negotiation.

This is the latest in a series of ‘anti-recession’ measures seen throughout Spain to keep businesses trading.

A bar in Madrid, the Taberna Bocatín, Bar Morrysson in Barcelona, and Darío’s cider house in Gijón (Asturias) have all offered lunchtime menus for a euro to those who can show that they are registered as unemployed with the dole office (INEM).

(Photo: www.alicantehotelalbahia.com)