The Season of ‘La Feria’ Spain

The summer is over us. Soon the children will be off school and anyone not tied up by work will soon rush to the coast to enjoy the beaches, seafood and relaxed atmosphere of the Spanish summer. However, before hitting midsummer, where all activity seems to take a dive as the heat offers and excellent excuse to slow down the pace, the season of la feria marks the end of spring and the coming of summer.

Besides ‘día de la cruz’, every town in Spain has ‘la feria’ – an entire week full of music, dancing, fun fair, food, wine, fireworks and traditional dresses. Most of the yearly fairs we see many places around the rest of Europe are pale in comparison to the Spanish edition.

The date of la feria differs from town to town and it builds on its own traditions and origin. However, the joy and true festive atmosphere is recognizable in each and every one of them.

In Granada – La Feria del Corpus – is the biggest yearly celebration in the city. It starts by the lighting of thousands of light bulbs by the entrance by midnight on the first Monday of the fair, 60 days after Pascua during Semana Santa, and ends with a spectacular firework on the evening of the following Sunday.

During the day it’s very much a family oriented event with stalls with goods, sweets and food, decorated horse carriages and girls and woman dressed in traditional flamenco dresses. However, it’s in the evening the fiesta really comes to live, with lights, music and dancing. During the week of la feria the city of Granda also has two processions. The first one taking place on the Wednesday is aimed at the children, while the second on the following Thursday is of a more religious perspective. Though these processions are worth the experience for anyone in Granada they’re not to be compared to the magnificent scenery during the Semana Santa. The focus is not on religion, but on fiesta and alegría.

During late spring and early summer you see an endless list of local festivities taking place. Should you be so unlucky not to experience the big festival, every neighborhood will at some point during the season have its own local celebration. It’s very much in the same spirit, just on a smaller scale. The day will be offer food, drink and activities for the children with bouncing castles and stalls with sweets and toys.

In the tradition of the Spanish festive spirit, the evenings will be marked by activity around the bars set up in the streets, food, drinks, and stages with live music and dancing.