Festivities in Benidorm

Benidorm is a reflection of its inhabitants so its cultural and festive variety is very varied, so travel to Benidorm on the date you travel, you are sure to find some party to enjoy its atmosphere.

• January: Sant Antoni Abad festivities
• February: Carnival, The Burial of the Sardine
• March: Commemoration of the discovery of the Virgen del Sufragio, Fallas, St Patricks Day
• April: Easter
• May: The May Cross
• June: Corpus Christi Pilgrimage, Hogueras de San Juan
• July: Fiestas del Carmen, San Jaime (patron saint of Benidorm)
• October: Moors and Christians, Oktoberfest, Fiestas del Roser
• November: Benidorm fiestas, Fancy Dress Party, Carxofa Festival
• December: Christmas

Benidorm is all decked out to celebrate Valencia’s most internationally renowned festival, the Fallas. Enormous monuments made of cardboard and wood are set up in the streets, inviting people to come out and participate in the festivities.

The main features of this festival are the mascletás (firecrackers), fireworks, street parades, bands and floral offerings to the Virgin. There are three Fallas in different areas of the city: the Centre Falla, the Els Tolls Falla and the Rincón de Loix Falla, with six monuments in the streets in total, including the children’s Fallas.

The festivities come to an end on the 19th, the feast day of San José (Saint Joseph), when the cremà (literally the ‘burning’) starts at midnight ― a spectacle of fire in which the ninots (puppets) are burned in the flames (the three Fallas are burned at different times so that you can get to see all of them).

During Holy Week, the party and beach activities take second place to give greater prominence to the processions and other religious events.

One of the most important processions is the Vía Crucis (Stations of the Cross) on Good Friday. It departs from San Jaime church and makes its way to Monte Calvario (the old cemetery), where the Stations of the Cross and the Sermón de las Siete Palabras (Sermon on the Seven Last Words of Christ) take place.

On Holy Thursday, the Stations of the Cross in La Cala is the main event. The Cofradía de Nuestro Señor Jesucristo en su agonía en el Monte de los Olivos (Brotherhood of Our Lord Jesus Christ in his agony on the Mount of Olives) departs from San Juan Bautista church and passes through the main streets in the area.

On Resurrection Sunday, a very emotional procession for the people of Benidorm takes place: the Encuentro (“discovery”). Departing from San Jaime church, the patron saint and the Virgin of Suffrage are carried to Alameda Street.

Given the fantastic climate of Benidorm, many national tourists take the opportunity to visit Benidorm at Easter and combine their religous holidays with the first chance of the year to sunbathe on the beach.

Benidorm celebrates the festival of its capital, the Hogueras de San Juan (Bonfires of San Juan). You can sense the excitement in the air at the city’s two bonfires: La Cala bonfire and El Campo bonfire. Authentic works of art made of cardboard and wood.

The most representative figures of the festivals, the belleas del foc (Valencian for “Beauties of Fire” - the festival queens) and their damas (ladies-in-waiting), wear the traditional Alicante dresses with floral prints, apron, bodice and a white lace headdress.

San Juan is celebrated the night before the “burning”, and Benidorm locals gather on the beaches of Levante, Poniente and Mal Pas to have dinner and to have fun, but especially to make wishes in the water at midnight, leaving behind everything that is old or bad and welcoming in the summer.

On the 25th July, many religious and leisure activities take place in Benidorm in honour of the city’s patron saint, San Jaime. These include a huge Verbena (open-air celebration) with an orchestra, reduced bar prices, and the traditional castle of fireworks.

In addition, also during the month of July, given the seafaring origin of the city, the celebration of the Fiestas del Carmen in Benidorm should not be missed.

Every year, around the 16th July, festivals are celebrated in honour of the Virgin of Carmen, and a marquee is erected in the port for holding concerts and open-air celebrations. Also worth seeing is the offering of flowers and the sailors’ procession.

These festivalsin the middle of July, together with the good climate of Benidorm and its beaches, make it a very attractive destination for summer vacations.

This festival involves plenty of popular tradition and commemorates the battles between both sides in the Christian Reconquista. It takes place in various towns in Alicante.

Over the three days, the filàs (battalions), dressed in magnificent costumes from medieval times, take over the streets and engage in mock battles, filling the air with gunpowder.

Both tourists and locals line the streets to watch the most representative moments. The processions, the offering of flowers to San Jaime Apóstol (St. James the Apostle), the floats and the musical marches are some of the most important events. But without a doubt, the biggest moment comes when the Christians emerge victorious and climb up to the castle to greet the public, thus ending the festival.

This is the festival par excellence in the municipality and it is celebrated to honour the patron saint, the Virgen del Sufragio (Virgin of Suffrage). It takes place in November, from the second Saturday to the following Wednesday. During these five days the streets of Benidorm exude a festival atmosphere and are decked in lights and flowers, with bands playing the songs and hymns of Benidorm.

The locals gather together in peñas (clubs), where friends meet after the various activities, and which also welcome visitors.

The most representative figures in the city during these days are the adult and child queens (Reinas) and ladies-in-waiting (Damas), who wear regional dress and show their devotion to the Virgin throughout the entire year.

Among the most important events in Patron Saint's Day are the re-enactment of the discovery of the Virgin on Poniente beach, the floral offering in which all the peñas participate, the concerts, the ‘comedy’ parade (political satire), the procession of floats and the spectacular fireworks display that brings the festival to a close.

On the Thursday following the second Sunday in November, the English-speaking community holds the biggest fancy dress party in the whole of Europe. Cowboys, magicians, princesses, film personalities, etc. invade the bars and clubs to show off their costumes!

Thousands of British tourists return each year specifically at this time so as not to miss this huge carnival. The streets, closed to traffic, fill with colour, performances and people who are out to have fun. Everything is primed for a party!

The initiative was introduced by one of the bar owners 15 years ago, in an effort to promote tourism in the area. It quickly caught on and spread to other towns until it became what it is today, an event that is known across Europe and is even covered by the British media.

Various events take place in the city from 22nd December to 5th January. This religious festival opens with the pregón (announcement by the town crier), which takes place on the Saturday in the Plaza del Ayuntamiento (City Hall Square), referred to during these days as the Plaza de la Navidad (Christmas Square). This spot is without a doubt the centre of all the Christmas festivities and events. If there is anything going on, it will be taking place here. Stalls and a bar are set up, with inflatables for the kids and even an ice skating rink.

A real postman collects the children’s letters on the 27th and the 28th of December, but then returns to the city on the 3rd and 4th of January to listen to each of the kids’ requests.

New Year’s Eve is very special. The party atmosphere really starts to get going in the square after 11 pm, when everyone gathers to see out the old year and welcome in the New Year by eating the traditional grapes.

Every year without fail, the three kings visit the city, arriving on the evening of the 5th, passing through the streets, greeting the people and handing out sweets to the kids. Once they reach the City Hall, a fireworks display signals the end of the parade.