Spain is a country like no other with a range of incredible festivals that the locals as well as tourists take part in each year. These vary from food and drink celebrations to historical and religious festivals that run in different towns throughout the summer months. These festivals are colourful and lively and individual to the area of Spain in which they are located. These festivals can be an incredible way to immerse yourself in the local culture and enjoy a fun week or weekend away in the sun. 

La Tomatina: 

I’ll start with La Tomatina – the messy yet inspiring tomato festival. A traditional festival that has been going since 1945 and originally believed to be started by a group of friends having a local food fight. Held on the last Wednesday in August each year in Valencia, the unique and picturesque town of Buñol is home to this festival which is effectively the largest food fight with overripe tomatoes in the world. Locals and tourists hit the streets and festival goers purchase overripe tomatoes and throw them in the streets. They are celebrating one of their most loved fruits, one that you will find in many Spanish dishes and hopefully a good harvest of the crop. At around 11:00am trucks pull into the Plaza del Pueblo, with tons of local tomatoes that are grown in Extremadura. It is then a waiting game for the first brave soul to climb up and take a tomato from the top of the pile. Once this has happened there is the firing of water canons and the festival is on its way! 

It is all in jest and good fun, the aim is to get messy, celebrate the tomato and throw them once squished (so as to cause no harm) to as many people as you can. There are safety precautions and guests are encouraged to wear old clothes. Towards the end of La Tomatina you will find locals and the more adventurous tourist trying to climb the Palojabon, a long greased wooden pole with a prized Spanish cured ham on, the person who can climb the pole gets to keep the ham. The whole festival ends once you hear two shots fired. You can buy tickets to this festival which commonly has 40-50,000 people attend each year and for those interested the next one is being held on the 25th August 2021.

Las Fallas of Valencia:

The next Spanish festival to mention is also in Valencia, held in commemoration of St. Joseph the Fallas of Valencia. Originally an old carpenter’s tradition to burn old materials before the day of St. Joseph on 19th March locals celebrate the arrival of spring by lighting a large bonfire which gradually grows with locals adding belongings to burn. Another theory is that the festival is an ancient tradition and the fire celebrates the changing of the seasons. The Las Fallas or Falles means the festival of the torch. 

This festival held in Valencia, lasts approximately five days from the 15th to the 19th March and has an incredible atmosphere. Each day there is a fire cracker show called la Mascleta which is held at the Plaza del Ayuntamiento at 2:00pm. The firecrackers shake the ground and the festival gets going. There are usually fireworks each evening and locals create ninots which are life-like puppets made from papier mâché that are burnt at the end of the festival. Each year one ninot is spared from the fire and it is exhibited in the local Fallas Museum with ninots from each previous year. People visit not just to see the fires or fireworks but to see the incredible creations and papier mâché statues. This festival is loud, smokey and smells of gunpowder. Locals dance in the streets and the plazas of Valencia and generally enjoy a party for the five days the festival is on.

Running of the bulls:

One of the most famous festivals in Spain is the Running of the bulls. This is held from the 6th to the 14th July in San Fermin, Pamplona. A festival which is hugely popular but also has some that do not agree with it, it has been running since the 13th century, originally in order to allow herders and butchers to take the cattle from pens outside the city into the bull ring to sell them in the markets and when bull fights were more popular in Spain. It derived from the Spanish tradition of bullfighting in San Fermin and the running of the bulls now attracts over one million spectators each year and each year thousands of brave (and possibly foolish) people attempt the running of the bull. The festival goes on for nine days with parties that go through the night, bull running, sampling of local foods and meeting the locals and the matadors. 

It starts in the Corrales de Santo Domingo and where six Spanish fighting bulls also with six steers start the run and hopefully ending at the Pamplona’s Plaza de Toros. This is the bullfighting arena. Whilst it sounds wild, dangerous, exciting and stupid all in one go, it is on many tourists bucket lists as well as something that millions of Spanish people will try once or more during their lives. There are a lot of rules involved, for example not crossing police barriers, staying away from prohibited or dangerous areas, wearing the correct footwear and there are also rules to protect the bulls such as not to provoke them or harass them, hold them as well as making sure you do not jeopardise any other runners. Anyone over the age of 18 years can run, but this is a dangerous festival and each year people do get seriously hurt, anyone that is not physically fit should not attempt to run with the bulls. It is also worth noting that the police are very vigilant and anyone seen breaking the rules is immediately removed. Many who visit Pamplona during this time go as spectators, they want to soak up the incredible atmosphere, drink and eat with the locals, watch some of the runners from a distance and enjoy a week away.

San Vino Wine Festival:

Next is one of my favourite festivals, the San Vino Wine Festival, also known as the Haro Wine Fight. This is a true and Spanish Fiesta and takes place in the town of Haro, La Rioja on the 29th June, St. Peter’s day, each year. Held from the 28th to the 30th June it is true wine warfare and the mayor of Haro enjoys a seven kilometre procession out of town, up into the cliffs of Bilibio to raise the flag and a short mass is enjoyed before the red wine starts to flow and the battle commences. 

It is the ideal place to drink some of the world’s best wines, sample the local bars, enjoy tasting local cheeses and meet lots of wine lovers that are all visiting for a weekend celebrating rioja and beautiful wines made in the region. This all sounds very civilised however it is a wine fight, so whilst you can sample some of the greatest wine in the region, be prepared to be soaked in grape juice that is not up to the regions high standards. They say that the celebration is centuries old and originated from a land dispute between Haro and its neighbouring village of Miranda de Ebro and this descended into a wine fight. These days it is more about the young and old locals from Haro battling visitors across town using buckets and water pistols to spray the wine at each other. With the beautiful views of the riojan vineyards it is a sight not to miss, and the wine flows down the hills and fertilises the vines. Be prepared to get covered in red wine, enjoy a day outside in the sun throwing and receiving buckets of wine, it is a hilarious and fun fiesta that celebrates the wine of the region and is something that many Spanish as well as tourists look forward to each year!

La Merce Festival:

The last festival to mention is a more culturally acclaimed festival held in Barcelona, the La Merce Festival. A unique festival that is held in the autumn in Barcelona, it is a large festival with live concerts, light shows, parades, fireworks and, as the Spanish wouldn’t have it any other way, the famous human towers. It is a way to celebrate music, the arts and acrobatic shows. It is a popular festival that attracts locals and tourists in their thousands so if you are planning on visiting you need to get there early in the day as it gets incredibly busy. This festival lasts around five days and the city puts on major events such as large dances, local and renowned artists in concerts outside the cathedral and there is a pleasant and excited festival atmosphere throughout the city. It is also a chance to discover and try the local drinks, tapas and visit the markets that are all alive during the festival.

Some of the main shows include the Sardana Dancing which is the famous dance of Catalan, the Inaugural Parade which has music from dozens of percussion instruments and a large parade of papier mâché characters including celebrities, historical figures and dragons that go through the streets starting at the famous Las Ramblas and ending at the Plaça de Sant Miquel. There are light projections displayed on the town council buildings which have beautiful images with music played as if you were watching a cinema production. The Gigantes Parade is very popular with children where large models are created and paraded through the streets. There are also acrobatic acrobatic shows and human towers which can soar over 10 metres into the sky. On the final evening there is a large fireworks display as well as the running from the fire, it is an interesting festival and an excellent time to visit Barcelona. A festival that encompasses so many different attractions, it is one not to miss!

If this tempts you to visit this incredible country or you would like to head to one of these amazing festivals, get in touch with one of our specialists who would be happy to chat to you about all the things you can do whilst visiting Spain and the Balearics. Alternatively click here to see some of our Spanish properties.