Spanish festivals

If winter’s dragging on and you need something colourful to aim for, Las Palmas Carnival 2026 is the big one in the Canary Islands calendar.

If you’ve ever been curious about why people get so misty‑eyed talking about Carnival in Cádiz, 2026 is a good year to understand it properly. This isn’t a glossy parade-first carnival like Tenerife.

Tenerife Carnival 2026 in Santa Cruz is the island at full volume: live bands on every corner, outrageous costumes, and barely any sleep for about ten days. It’s one of the best carnivals in Spain and one of the biggest in Europe.

Carnival in Spain is the moment winter finally loosens up a bit. Streets fill with parades, sequins and brass bands, and kids march through town in costumes their parents cobbled together.

Carnival in Spain 2026 promises a spectacular celebration full of colour, music, and festive traditions. Across the country, cities and towns come alive with parades, street parties, and cultural events.

Spain’s public holiday system isn’t just about national dates like Christmas or Constitution Day. Each autonomous community also sets its own regional public holiday, or festivos, and every city chooses two local holidays on top.

Spain’s holidays in 2026 give you plenty of chances to organise your calendar, plan trips and enjoy long weekends.

New Year’s Eve events in Spain come thick and fast, so if you still don’t have a plan, there’s plenty to jump on at short notice.

Bérchules, tucked into the Alpujarra, is a Spanish town that celebrates New Year’s Eve in summer.

Many bank holidays in Spain can be hard to keep track of, due to variations in holiday calendars across the country. Public holidays in Spain often depend on the region and, in many cases, the city itself.

Halloween in Spain is a two‑speed affair. You have a lively night of costumes and club nights on 31st October, followed by the quiet, reflective rhythm of Todos los Santos on 1st November.

In September, the city of Barcelona throws its biggest party of the year, La Mercè. It’s the local festa major, or main festival, and is essentially a massive, city-wide send-off to summer.

September in Spain has a special feel to it. As the intense heat of summer begins to fade and the crowds start to thin, the country comes alive with some of its most interesting celebrations.

Spain's calendar is peppered with public holidays, known locally as festivos. Many of these days off are rooted in the country's Catholic traditions, often marking feast days for various saints or other important religious events.

Málaga is often seen simply as the gateway to the Costa del Sol, but the city has a character all its own. It's a place with some serious historical weight, where you can trace the steps of Roman and Moorish civilisations through the old town's streets.

Looking for something a little out of the ordinary to pep up your Spanish summer? The Fiesta de Santa Marta de Ribarteme in As Neves is about as left-field as festivals get.

When it comes to festivals, Spain plays in a league of its own. We're talking about some wonderfully wacky traditions, many of which have been celebrated for centuries.

This bonkers festival in Valencia comprises truckloads of tomatoes and people willing to paint the town red. Literally.

It's a public holiday in Madrid on 1st and 2nd May, which means a long weekend of festivities and events. 1st May is Labour Day, like in much of the world, while 2nd May is a holiday exclusive to Madrid, celebrating the Fiestas del 2 de Mayo.

The Patios de Cordoba, or Cordoba's Courtyards Festival, is a colourful celebration held during the first and second week of May. During this festival, residents adorn their courtyards with flowers, transforming them into beautiful displays.

Madrid comes alive every year with the celebration of its grandest annual festival on 15th May.

Steeped in centuries of tradition and bursting with Andalusian flair, La Feria de Abril—also known as the Seville Fair—is one of Spain’s most vibrant cultural events.

The cancellations of major national and international events due to the coronavirus is something we’ve become highly used to in recent times, and Spain’s world-famous Tomatina de Buñol has ended up with the same destiny in 2020.

San Fermin, Spain's most famous bull run, is celebrated every July in the northern Spanish city of Pamplona in the region of Navarre, but the event which draws crowds of over million revellers, including tourists from abroad, will not be taking place this summer.

Spain’s coronavirus crisis sees yet another cultural victim with the cancellation of Madrid’s famous “Feria del Libro” which was due to take place in May.