Fiestas calendar
Fiestas are an
absolutely crucial part
of Spanish life. Even
the smallest village
gives at least a couple
of days a year over to
partying, and happening
across a local event can
be huge fun, propelling
you right into the heart
of its culture. But as
well as such community
celebrations, Spain has
some really major events:
most famously the
Running of the Bulls at
Pamplona, the April
Feria of Seville, and
the great religious
processions of Semana
Santa, leading up to
Easter. Any of these can
be worth planning your
whole trip around.
Following is a very
basic calendar of
fiesta highlights .
For more detailed
information, consult
local tourist offices.
Outsiders are always
welcome at fiestas, the
one problem being that
it can be hard to find a
hotel, unless you book
well in advance.
Note that saint's
day festivals - indeed
all Spanish celebrations
- can
vary in date
, often being observed
over the weekend closest
to the dates given in
our listings. Contact
local tourist offices
for more details.
JANUARY
16-17: San
Antoni's day is
preceded by bonfires and
processions, especially
on the Balearic
Islands .
FEBRUARY
Carnaval (the
week preceding Ash
Wednesday and Lent) is
an excuse for wild
partying and masques,
most riotous in Cádiz
(Andalucía), Sitges
(Catalunya), and
Águilas (Valencia).
MARCH
12-19 Las Fallas
in Valencia is the
biggest of the bonfire
festivals held for San
José, climaxing on the
Night of Fire when
enormous caricatures are
burnt and firecrackers
take over the streets.
Easter
(March/April)
Semana Santa
(Holy Week) is
celebrated across Spain
with religious
processions, at their
most theatrical in the
cities of Sevilla,
Málaga, Murcia and
Valladolid ,
where pasos -
huge floats of religious
scenes - are carried
down the streets,
accompanied by hooded
penitents atoning for
the year's misdeeds.
Good Friday sees the
biggest processions.
APRIL
22-24: Moros y
Cristianos - mock
battle between Moors and
Christians - in Alcoy,
Valencia. (Similar
events take place
throughout the year all
around Spain.
23: San Jordi
- Catalunya's patron
saint's day is a big
party across the region
and is also celebrated
on National Book Day
throughout Spain.
Last week: Feria
de Abril -
spectacular week-long
fair at Sevilla.
MAY
Early May: Horse
Fair at Jerez
(Andalucía).
7-22: San Isidro
- Madrid's patron saint
(15th) - is a signal for
parades, free concerts,
and the start of the
bullfight season.
Pentecost
(Whitsun:7th Sunday
after Easter): the great
pilgrimage to El Rocío,
near Huelva (Andalucía).
Corpus Christi
(Thursday after Trinity;
May/June) is a focus for
religious processions,
accompanied by floats
and penitents, notably
in Toledo, Granada and
Valencia. Many town
fiestas also take place,
including the
spectacular costumed
events of the Festa
de la Patum
(Catalunya).
JUNE
23-24: San Juan
and midsummer's eve is
celebrated with bonfires
all over Spain -
particularly in San Juan
de Alicante, where a
local version of Las
Fallas takes place.
29: San Pedro
- patron of fishermen -
is honoured by flotillas
of boats, and partying
all along the coast.
JULY
7-14: San Fermin
- the famed running
of the bulls at
Pamplona .
25: Santiago -
Spain's patron saint, St
James - is honoured at
Santiago de Compostela,
with fireworks and
bonfires.
AUGUST
10-11 : Elche
(Valencia) hosts mock
battles between
Christians and Moors,
ending with a
centuries-old mystery
play.
First/second week
: Mass canoe races
down the Río Sella in
Asturias.
Third week :
Toledo's main fiesta,
climaxing in amazing
fireworks at the
weekend.
Last week:
Gigantones (giant
puppets) are paraded in
Alcalá de Henares
(Castile).
Last Wed
(usually): La Tomatina
in Buñol, near Valencia:
the country's craziest
fiesta, a two-hour
tomato fight.
SEPTEMBER
First week:
Vendimia (grape
harvest) celebrations at
Valdepeñas (New
Castile), Jerez
(Andalucía) and other
wine towns.
21: Rioja wine
harvest celebrated
in Logroño (Old Castile).
OCTOBER
1: San Miguel
Villages across the
country celebrate their
patron saint's day
12: La Virgen del
Pilar - the patron
saint of Aragón - is an
excuse for bullfights
and jota dancing
at Zaragoza and
elsewhere.
DECEMBER
31: Nochevieja
New year is celebrated
by eating a grape for
every stroke of the
clock in Plaza del Sol
in Madrid.
