Brit expats in Benidorm can now enjoy an extra two hours of drinking time in the resort.
Benidorm's Mayor Toni Pérez said bars, pubs and restaurants could now open until 1am due to the "good behaviour" of the 1,100 businesses involved.
Businesses can already open 50 per cent of their terraces under phase one of Spain's de-escalation plan and customers would have been allowed inside with effect from Monday as part of the second stage.
However, the Valencia Generalitat, of which Benidorm is part, has decided not to ask the Spanish government for progression to stage two for the time being because of a slight rise in COVID-19 infections.
Mayor Pérez said pubs, bars and restaurants had been making plans to use their interiors rather than just the terraces so he would now waiver the earlier closing time rule of 11pm to 1am instead.
The decision was taken in consultation with the business associations Abreca-Cobrec.
The mayor expressed great disappointment that the popular tourist resort can't get out of the coronavirus lockdown as early as hoped.
The regional government says there has not been a major outbreak but they are conscious of doing the right thing in difficult times for the good of everyone and to make sure all possible health and security checks are in place.
It was also decided to encompass all areas within the decision rather than allowing specific towns to progress to stage two.
Mayor Pérez said they had no idea why Benidorm was being penalised and not going forward yet to phase two as they had not seen any official figures to support the decision.
Lamenting "the lack of transparency", he said: "We want to think that there are data and indicators that support this decision but whoever has the information is the Generalitat Valenciana and the Ministry of Health, not the municipalities.
"At least in the case of Benidorm, we lack that information because the council does not share it but there is no doubt that we would like to know what the health situation of our city is, as it is an issue that affects our residents and it would undoubtedly contribute to better manage and take action in case there is something to correct."
But he added: "We will continue to observe and promote compliance with the regulations and working , as we have done from minute one and every day, to prepare for the next phase with all the security guarantees, both in the public and private spheres."
The Spanish government had already indicated that different parts of the country would enter the various phases at different stages until the "new norm" was reached by the end of June.
