Barcelona Festivals - Annual Events in Barcelona

Celebrating Barcelona

Street parades, music, dance and food are common themes for any Barcelona celebration.

January

• St Anthony Procession - Each year, on January 17, thousands of people bring their pets to be blessed at churches throughout the city. The largest blessing processions are at Sant Andreu and Eixample.

February

• Carnival in Barcelona - This free annual festival is a last hoorah as Barcelonans prepare for the fasts of Lent. Food competitions have entrants competing for the coveted "pimiento de oro" (golden pepper). The main event, an over-the-top parade, culminates with a mock funeral that buries the Carnival King for another year.

March

• Fiesta de San Medir - The Grácia district hosts this festival to honor the patron saint of broad beans. After a colorful parade, the crowd catches candies thrown from the parade carriages and watches fireworks.
• Barcelona Marathon - For thirty years, this marathon has taken runners through the streets of Barcelona.
• Sitges Vintage Car Rally - This annual event features vintage cars, all built before 1924. The winner of the 45-kilometer (27-mile) race isn't necessarily the fastest since points are awarded for the car itself and the driver's vintage clothing.

April

• Palm Sunday - This culturally significant event begins with a somber procession starting at La Seu Cathedral. The sculptures involved can be works of art, more than 10 feet tall and decorated with intricate designs.
• Saint George's Day - Barcelona's version of Valentine's Day has a wonderful twist. Men traditionally give their sweetheart a rose and receive a book in return. With more than 4 million roses and almost half a million books sold each Saint George's Day, Barcelonans take this tradition seriously.

May

• Formula One: Spanish Grand Prix - In 2007, Barcelona hosts the Spanish Grand Prix and promises a memorable race with a challenging course.

June

• Corpus Christi / L'ou com Balla - Each year, Barcelona celebrates with colorful parades featuring strange carnival creatures and a "dancing egg festival" (L'ou com Balla) where decorated eggs "dance" in the water jets from the city's fountains.
• Catalonian Moto GP - The electric atmosphere of this popular motorcycle race attracts both tourists and race fans.

July

• European Balloon Festival - This annual event is the largest hot air balloon festival in Spain and attracts pilots from around the globe. Almost a quarter million spectators come to see the Catalan sky fill with colorful balloons.
• Tall Ships Race - Between 70 and 100 ships from around the world race up the coast to Barcelona. Watch the ships sail, sample traditional Catalan cuisine and enjoy the sunshine.

August

• Feast of the Assumption - The neighborhood of Gràcia spills into the streets for this annual celebration. This feast, with its live music, street entertainers and wild decorations, jumpstarts the Festa Mayor de Sants.
• Festa Mayor de Sants - The Montjuic district of Barcelona bursts with street parties during this week-long fiesta. While daytime activities are for the local residents, come nightfall the whole city is invited to take part. Expect parades, music and "the dance of the giants."

September

• National Day of Catalonia - September 11 marks the fall of Barcelona during the War of Spanish Succession in 1714. Each house displays the Catalan flag and the city grinds to a halt with demonstrations, parades and other pro-Catalan celebrations.
• Festes de la Mercè - A slice of Catalan culture, this celebration for the Virgin of Mercy is nothing less than spectacular. Fire-breathing dragons, acrobats, traditional dance troupes and musicians take to the streets. Street theater, kite flying and a midnight train of devils are just a few features of this must-see event.
• Catalan Wine and Cava Show - Catalans celebrate the grape harvest with this salute to the region's traditional wines. With more than 400 exhibitors, there's plenty to sample.
• Mecal - Barcelona International Short Film Festival - This international festival salutes short films. Whether the films take creative risks, are important documentaries, give feminist perspectives or are completely computer-generated Flash animation, this festival will screen them.

October

• Barcelona International Jazz Festival - Running from October through to December, the jazz heats up as the temperatures cool down. International musicians play every genre of jazz including big band, bebop, swing, gospel, Latin and classic.

November

• Record Collector's Fair - During this annual event, the largest fair of its kind in Europe, more than 2 million records, CDs and cassettes change hands each year. Previous auctions have included celebrity clothes and even strands of hair.

December

• Fira de Santa Lucia - A Barcelona tradition since 1786, this Christmas fair brings hundreds of stalls to the grounds of the beautiful Barcelona Cathedral. Here you can buy traditional Catalan nativity scenes, baking and even Christmas trees. If you don't want to shop, you can always enjoy the music and decorated scenery.