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History, art, culture, traditions

Festivals in Spain

In Spain there is always a fiesta somewhere: a calendar of festivals not to miss, from the Fallas to San Fermín, from Holy Week to the Tomatina.

Fiestas are an essential part of Spanish life. Every town and village has its patron saint festival, often a week of processions, concerts, fireworks, bullfights and nights in the square. Here are the most famous, month by month.

Winter

  • 6 January, Epiphany (Día de Reyes): on the evening of the 5th the Three Kings' cabalgatas parade through every city throwing sweets; on the 6th children open their presents (see Christmas in Spain).
  • Carnival (February): the most famous are Cádiz, with its satirical chirigotas, Santa Cruz de Tenerife, one of the world's biggest, Las Palmas and Sitges.

Spring

  • Fallas of Valencia (15-19 March): satirical papier-mâché monuments are burned on St Joseph's night, after days of firecrackers and fireworks (see the Fallas).
  • Holy Week (March-April): the processions of Seville, Málaga, Valladolid, Zamora and all of Spain.
  • Seville's April Fair, two weeks after Easter: a week of sevillanas, horses and casetas.
  • Sant Jordi (23 April) in Catalonia: people give each other a rose and a book.
  • Córdoba Patios (May): homes open their flower-filled courtyards, UNESCO heritage (see Córdoba).
  • San Isidro in Madrid (15 May) and the Romería del Rocío at Pentecost.

Summer

  • Corpus Christi (June): processions in Toledo, Granada and Sitges.
  • St John's Eve (23 June): bonfires on the beaches of Alicante, Barcelona, A Coruña and Menorca.
  • San Fermín in Pamplona (6-14 July): the encierro, the running of the bulls through the centre (see Pamplona).
  • Wine Battle in Haro (29 June) and the feast of the Apostle in Santiago (25 July).
  • Semana Grande in San Sebastián and Bilbao and the Málaga Fair (August, see Málaga festivals).
  • La Tomatina in Buñol, near Valencia (last Wednesday of August): the world's most famous tomato fight.

Autumn

  • La Mercè in Barcelona (around 24 September), with castells, correfocs and concerts.
  • Pilar festival in Zaragoza (12 October), with the flower offering to the Virgin.
  • All Saints (1 November): flowers are taken to cemeteries and Don Juan Tenorio is performed.

National holidays

Nationwide public holidays are 1 and 6 January, Good Friday, 1 May, 15 August, 12 October (Fiesta Nacional, anniversary of Columbus reaching America, with a military parade in Madrid), 1 November, 6 December (Constitution Day), 8 and 25 December. Each autonomous community adds its own, such as Maundy Thursday, the Catalan Diada on 11 September or Andalusia Day on 28 February, and each municipality two local holidays. See also folklore and traditions.