Planning a Trip in Spain

Sometimes it helps to know what festivals or events are going on in a destination in order to plan to be there, or to avoid it for your own vacation. Here is a short list of event dates in Spain that may help anyone wanting to go to Spain decide about their own travel dates.

15-19 March - Las Fallas de Valencia
In one of Spain's best-known festivals, huge papier-mache figures each adapted for a satirical theme are paraded through the streets. They are burnt on 19 March, St Joseph's Day – or Father's Day in Spain. www.fallas.com
19 March - Public holiday for St Joseph's Day
except in Andalusia, the Balearic Islands, the Canary Islands and La Rioja.

9 April - Start of Easter holiday across Spain.

12 April - Final of the Kings Cup, Football

23 April - International Books Day

25-30 April - Feria of Seville
Week long party in the Andalucian city

28-30 April - ViñaRock Festival in Albacete

28-April - Final Four climax of basketball season to decide who wins Euroliga

1 May - Dia del Trabajo
May Day bank holiday

5 May - International Festival of Short Films, Documentaries and New Producers, Madrid


10 May - Football´s UEFA Cup Final



11-13 May - WOMAD international music festival in Caceres, bringing sounds from all over the globe

14 May - Last day of Spanish football's La Liga season

20 May - 500th anniversary of the death of Columbus

23 May - The Eagles play only concert in Spain in Barcelona marking 30 years as a group



23 May - Madrid's Prado Museum opens major Picasso exhibition, called Picasso: Tradition and Vanguard, marking the 125th anniversary of the artist's birth and another anniversary of the return of Guernica to Spain following the death of Franco in 1975

26-27 May - Madrid holds two-day rock festival Festimad Sur; Feria of the Book in Madrid's El Retiro park until 11 June.



27 May - Rolling Stones play Madrid, then on 29 May, they hit the stage in Barcelona

1-3 June - Primavera Sound Music Festival, Barcelona

3 June -Barcelona Marathon

7-23 June - PhotoEspana international photographic exhibition in Madrid.
Until 23 June

7 June - Football's World Cup Finals start in Germany. For one whole month Spain, like most of footballing world, will be glued to the TV screen.

14 June - Bridal week begins in Barcelona; 20th anniversary of the death of Jorge Luis Borges, one of the greatest Latin American writers.

15-17 June - Sonar International Festival of Advanced Music and Multi-media art, Barcelona.
The three-day festival offers the hippest sounds around. Contact: www.sonar.es

15-25 June - The 17th Festival of Classical Theatre, Caceres.

18 June - Motorcycling Grand Prix, Catalonia.

18 June - Las Hogueras de San Juan, Alicante
Coinciding with the Summer solstice and are like a smaller version of Las Fallas in Valencia, wood and paper maché structures (hogueras)are erected around the city centre and suburbs. Next to each one an open-air cafe is put up, called barracas, and local people belong to one barraca and contribute cash to finance them. On the last night of fiestas, enormous palmtree-shaped fireworks are let off from the top of Alicante castle, overlooking the city and the hogueras are burnt one by one.

23 June - Eve of St John the Baptist's Day, Catalonia.
Celebrated with big bonfires, firecrackers and fireworks, and people eat the traditional "coca de Sant Joan" (a pastry).

24 June - Public holiday in Catalonia for St John's Day patron saint of Catalonia.
The Catalans celebrate Saint George's day by offering a rose and/or book, and the main shopping streets of Barcelona are filled with book stands.

30 June – Final of the Feria of Theatre in Palma del Rio, Cordoba

1 July - The Festival of Classical Theatre, Merida, Extremadura

6–14 July - San Fermin Festival and Running of the Bulls, Pamplona, Navarra
Famous bull-running event mythologised by Hemmingway and beloved of reckless

tourists everywhere. If you haven't got the guts or money, you can watch it live on television every day.

8-9 July - Pope Benedict XVI visits Valencia. Hundreds of thousands are expected to attend the two-day visit of the Pontiff to Spain's third city to mark the Fifth World Meeting of the Family.

11 July - San Sebastian stages the Basque Festival of Theatre


16-24 July - Expo Science Europe, Tarragona



18 July - 70th anniversary of the begining of the Spanish Civil War

20 July - PopRock Festival in Benicassim, Castellon
One of the biggest and best festival in Spain. Forget awful Spanish Europop, this attrats the best bands from Britain and the US.www.fiberfib.com

21 July - 41st San Sebastian Jazz Festival

5-27 July - Spanish Gold Panning Championships Navelgas, Asturias

25 July - Public holiday for Saint James' Day
except in Andalusia, Catalonia and Navarra.

14-16 August - Creamfields Andalusia, Playa de Villacarios, Almeria.
This famous British clubbing festival comes to Spain once again. This year's line-up has not been announced. See website, www.creamfields-andalucia.com

15 August - Public holiday for the Ascension of the Virgin Mary

19 August - Seventieth anniversary of the murder of Spanish poet Gabriel Garcia Lorca who was shot by Franco's troops at start of the Civil War.

26 August-17 September - Spain's equivalent of the Tour de France begins.

31 August - La Tomatina, Bunol, near Valencia.
Famous festival where everyone throws tomatoes at each other. At least 100,000 kilogrammes are normally used. Contact: www.lahoya.net

4 September - Paserela Cibeles or Madrid fashion week has its second chance to hit the catwalk this year.

21 September - San Sebastian International Film Festival
Spain's premier film festival begins

24 September - La Mercè festival, Catalonia
This is the festival for Barcelona's patron saint, held in the week of the 24 September, the day of La Mercè. All kinds of activities are organized, for all tastes and all ages. Of particular interest is the "correfoc" (fire-breathing dragons from all over Catalonia), and the pyrotechnical music show (fireworks and classical music next to the Montjuïc fountains).

26 September - International Festival of Music in Barcelona, timed to go with La Merce festival. It includes the Live Music Market in Vic, Catalonia, and the Festival BCN Accio Musical, Barcelona

26 September - Womex 06 World Music Festival, Seville.
One of the major music festivals in the world.

1 October - First opera season at Valencia's Palau de les Arts Reina Sofia, which was deisgned by Santiago Calatrava.

3 October - Madrid´s Thyssen Museum starts exhibition of the works of Sargent and Sorolla.

5-15 October - Sitges International Festival of Film.
Showing the best horror, fantasy and downright strange films around. Hollywood stars always turn up. This year they are paying homage to David Lynch.

11-15 October - Girona Film Festival

12 October - Public holiday for Spain's National Day

14-22 October ATP Golfing Masters tournament in Madrid

28 October - 50th anniversary of the start of TVE, Spain´s state television channel

1 November -All Saint's Day, public holiday

2 November - 7th edition of Latin Grammy awards; Third Irish Fleadh, with best Irish music around, Caceres Theatre, Caceres.
Until 5 November

3-19 November - Granada International Jazz Festival
Major jazz festival which attracts international stars. Line-up for this year, not yet announced.

6-November - Madrid's Thyssen Museum opens a major exhibition called Express featuring the work of Rauschenburg.
Until 17 February.

14 November - Museum of Reina Sofia, Madrid, begins exhibition of German painter, Jose Albers.
Until 17 February

6-8 December - 'El Puente' or Bridge national holiday.
Spain celebrates El Dia del Constitucion - Constitution Day, on 6 December and the Day of the Immaculate Conception on 8 December.

22 December - El Gordo lottery is drawn

25 December - Christmas

26 December - Public holiday for Boxing Day

31 December - New Year's Day