This is a discussion on Spanish Fiestas festival calendar within the Spain And Costa Blanca Forum And Discussions , Spain is known for its its famous fiestas. Ranging from the dangerous to the weird.
The dangerous being the famous bull runs to the weird being the tomato fights and ...
Spain is known for its its famous fiestas. Ranging from the dangerous to the weird.
The dangerous being the famous bull runs to the weird being the tomato fights and the burying of the sardine held in Madrid.
They say that in any one day in Spain there is a festival or fiesta of some kind being held
January
The Three Kings come to Spain (evening and night of January the 5th). In every single town and city of Spain, adults and children celebrate the long expected arrival of the Three Kings from Orient. The streets are taken over by parades of all sorts and the little ones receive sweets and little gifts.
Tamborrada de San Sebastian/The San Sebastian Drum Festival.
San Sebastian, Basque Country.
A march to the deafening sounds of drums, as groups of drummers parade through the city on the night of the first day of the year. The next morning, the "Tamborrada Infantil" (Child Drummer's Ceremony) is celebrated
February
La Endiablada/The Disguised Devils
Cuenca, Castilla y La Mancha.
People of this village celebrate disguised as devils in this festival of prehistoric origin. The young boys of the town dressed as devils - wearing pants and jackets painted in bright designs, with large cowbells tied to their waists, and multicolored paper hats, which are replaced later on with cardboard bishop mitres - run through the streets, dance at the entrance and inside the church, pretend to wash the statue of San Blas, and march in procession with it to the uninterrupted sound of the cowbells
Catch the Seville Tapas Fair for a savory taste of the best Spanish tapas – Seville is known as the tapas capital of the world.
Do not miss the Carnavals held in Cadiz, Tenerife, Barcelona and Sitges - huge celebrations involving all night music and dance, and of course fancy dress costumes. Come as you are!
Fallas de San Jose
Valencia.
This Fiesta dates from the Middle Ages, but it did not acquire the personality we know today until the middle of the last century. The festivites include a nighttime parade; a procession of the old towns of Valencia; the offerings of flowers to Nuestra Senora de los Desamparados (Our Lady of the Forsaken), patroness of the city; and the famous "Nit del Foc" (Night of the Fire), on which all the "fallas" (grotesque and humorous scenes made up of carboard figures) are burned.
The Jerez Flamenco Festival brings Spain's top flamenco singers and dancers. Once in Jerez, check out the Horse Shows – the best Spanish horses are found in the Real Escuela Andaluza del Arte Ecuestre. Also stop by some of the Wineries in Jerez – they offer guided tours and samples.
April
Holy Week (Semana Santa) which is important all over Spain but should not be missed in Seville, Cordoba, Granada and Malaga. Very passionate teams of parish members (Cofradías) carry for hours huge wooden floats representing passages from the Bible. Great opportunity for photograph aficionados.
April 22 to April 24. Alicante, Valencia.
Starting with the feast of the Holy Christ, in Valverde del Jucar (Cuenca) in January and ending with the "Moorish King" in Agost (Alicante) in December, almost one hundred and fifty celebrations of "Moors and Christians" take place over the length and breadth of the country. The majority are found in Alicante where the festivities become livelier and more numerous as the days pass. As early as the 17th century, groups of Moors and Christians drove through the town accompanied by noisy bands, after which a "battle" ensues, ending with the triumph of the followers of the Cross, who surround the Moors and defeat them. Everything goes on amidst the noise of fireworks and the ringing of bells.
Cruces de Mayo (May Crosses) in Granada and Cordoba where large crosses are hung to decorate parishes and the locals party in the streets. Cordoba continues the celebration spirit with the Fiesta de los Patios, a neighborly contest to select the city's most beautiful flower covered patio. And you should not quite leave Cordoba yet, because there is more to celebrate! The Feria de Cordoba (Cordoba Fair), a big Spanish fiesta that rivals Seville's April Fair in size.
The famous Feria del Caballo, Jerez's Horse Fair is also held in this month in Jerez.
Madrid, where you will be able to enjoy the largest bullfight festival, San Isidro. Besides bullfighting, Madrileños celebrate plenty of other cultural events commemorating the Patron Saint of the capital.
Festival de los Patios Cordobeses/The Cordoba Patio Festival.
Cordoba, Andalucia.
This centuries-old festival includes the pilgrimage of the conquering Virgin of the Linares Sanctuary across the countryside with horsemen and richly decorated coaches, a competition of Mary Crosses and a Patio, Iron Grille and Balcony Contest in which the patios, small side street and plazas so typical of the city are filled with flowers
Corpus Christi
May 29. Toledo, Castilla y La Mancha.
The nun Juliana of Liege used to have a strange vision every time she began to pray, in which a full moon appeared with its center darkened by shadow. Finally, Jesus himself told her of the significance of the vision: the bright circle signified all liturgical celebrations and these were only darkened by the absence of a feast day dedicated to the exaltation of the actual presence of Christ in the Eucharist (which was debated at the time). Official recognition of the feast day was given in 1246. The new feast day arrived in Spain sometime during the 14th century. In the procession, the main feature is the Host, housed in magnificent masterpieces of silverwork.
Hogueras de San Juan
June 20 to June 29. Alicante, Valencia.
A series of ancient rituals which were followed on this, the shortest night of the year, when light triumphs over darkness, have been studied in minute detail in the work of Baroja. In these rituals, the essential features are the sun, fire and water. Around the feast of San Juan the streets are often decorated with branches and leaves, especially the balconies of young girls in love, who are serenaded; pines and poplars are planted; pilgrimages ('romerias') are undertaken; straw effiges are burnt; the herb thyme is blessed; and 'sanjuanera' songs are sung.
If you are curious about religious pilgrimages, and are up to one of the largest in Spain (1 million people), thenyou should not miss the Romería del Rocio. Pilgrims travel on foot or by horse and carriage to the shrine of the Virgin at the village of El Rocio in Huelva.
Fiestas de Haro
29th June. Haro, La Rioja.
Festivities are strung out through the summer, but the most famous Festival in the city is celebrated on the 29th June - the day of San Pedro. During this Festival the famous "Wine Battle" takes place in the Riscos de Bilibio
Go to Granada to attend the exquisite International Festival of Music and Dance. Around the Alhambra Palace and all over the city the streets are filled with the sound of Spanish guitars, the click of castanets, the whirl of flamenco dancing and much, much more.
In July Cordoba is back on stage for the Festival de Cordoba, an International guitar festival that takes place in the gardens of the Alcazar. A must see for any guitar and flamenco aficionado.
Who would want to miss the famous running of the bulls in Pamplona? Book your hotel in advance for San Fermin, which always begins on the 7th and lasts for a week.
The annual San Sebastian Jazz Festival is all about jazz. For more than 40 years the Basque city of San Sebastian has been offering the best performances available in the Jazz scene, opening trends and discovering new talents. Do not miss it!
On a totally different note, you could also go to the south coast for Día de la Virgen de Carmen, July 16th, in which groups of fishermen carry a statue of the Virgin of Carmen on their boats, usually accompanied with impressive fireworks. Almuñecar, on the Granada coast, is a great place for Día de la Virgen de Carmen.
On the 25th it's the Día de Santiago (Saint James). While not everyone has the time and energy to walk the whole way, the Road to Santiago is a fantastic tourist venue for hikers and walkers. The Road crosses some of the country's most spectacular landscapes and end at Santiago de Compostela (Galicia) where the Saint's tomb lies in the Cathedral.
Dia de Santiago
July 25. Santiago de Compostela, Galicia.
Celebration of the patron Saint of Spain. Fireworks, parades, televised mass. National holiday
Romeria Vikinga
August 3. Pontevedra, Galicia.
An splendid simulation of the Viking invasion of the "Torres de Oeste," which are defended by the Christian natives. After the 'battle'" everybody drinks red wine from the Ulla River and eats seafood, all for free. The feast is followed by folkloric dancing, in which everyone participates.
El Coso
Felanitx, Balearic Islands.
Felanitx celebrates its local fiesta on August 28th, Saint Augustine's day. To tell the truth, it's a bit of an exotic patron saint, given that most Majorcan towns and villages celebrate Saint John, Saint Anthony, Saint Joseph or Saint Sebastian. The Town Hall organizes a whole week of activities: sports, theatre, a children's festival, etc., including four or five outdoors music and dance night festivals, called "verbenes."
Fiesta de Verano
Malaga, Andalucia.
This festival usually starts the second Friday of August with spectacular fireworks. Then, the feria takes place in the centre of Malaga during the afternoon. People wear traditional Spanish costumes and dance "sevillanas" and "malaguenas" in the street; eat fish, cheese and ham and drink a delicious, sweet, red wine. The fair takes place during bullfighting season, so one can see a magnificent contest in the afternoon.
¨La Tomatina¨ - Valencia Tomato Fight Festival
August. Bunol. Valencia.
Every year around 30,00 people descend on the Spanish town of Bunol (in the Valencia region of Spain) to throw more than 240,000 pounds of tomatoes at each other as part of the La Tomatina festival.
If you happen to like sparkling wines and Cava (the Spanish variety for Champagne), then you should join the Catalonia’s Cava week. An entire festival dedicated to the fine Catalan version of champagne. A real community festival in Catalonia.
September is definitely the month of wine and harvesting. Among the various Autumn festivals, there is the Jerez de la Frontera´s Fiestas de Otoño. Three weeks dedicated to sherry tasting, horses and flamenco.
Also the Fiesta de San Mateo in Logroño (which is the heart of La Rioja, Spanish wine country) they celebrate the grape harvest with a big festival. Traditional Spanish party style at its best.
Barcelona celebrates its biggest fiesta, the Festes de la Merce, a huge festival with folkloric parades, fireworks, dragons and giants. This would be a great opportunity to discover one of the most fascinating cities in Spain.
Fiestas Patronales de La Virgen de Gracia
September. Albacete, Castilla y La Mancha.
With more than 400 years of tradition behind them, the Fiestas of Caudete are celebrated every year to honour its Virgin, La Virgen de Gracia. The main components are the fireworks, gunpowder, music, procession, and flower offering to the Virgin.
Fiestas de la Vendimia Riojana/ La Rioja Wine Festival
September (around the 21st, the Day of San Mateo). Logrono, La Rioja.
Harvesting festivities of one of the most renown wine regions in Spain. The Rioja is the center of a very important wine culture.
In Madrid it is the biggest fiesta of the year in the Party sense but the various ayuntamientos also have additional fiestas throughout the year. The Fiesta for Madrid city being that of Almudena (Patron Saint). San Isidro applies to the whole Communidad de Madrid (ie region).
San Isidro is also celebrated in a large number of villages in Extremadura as he is the Patron Saint of Agriculture. Indeed I normally leave Madrid and go to Extremadura for the fiesta!
If you want to know more about San Isidro in Madrid theres additional info here: [Only registered and activated users can see links. ]
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Spanish Fiestas festival calendar 
