Festivities in Mojácar

Carnival in Mojácar is experienced in a very special way. In addition to the parades and the witty costumes, the comparsas prepare for months their group performances and sing lively “chirigotas”, full of satire, which cover the most important moments in the day to day life of the town or even the rest of the country.

But, without a doubt, the highlight is the great parade that runs along the main street of the beach in an explosion of joy and merriment for all ages and the popular Burial of the Sardine. Life is a carnival!

The 28th of February is the most important day in the region of Andalusia and is a tribute to the Andalusians. The town of Mojácar paints its streets in the green and white of the Andalusian flag to announce to everyone that it is a day to celebrate.

Among the events that take place during the day, we can find the raising of the flag accompanied by the anthem of Andalusia, a popular marathon, the tasting of a giant paella and the different performances of the municipal schools with the most autochthonous dances and songs.

At the end of February or beginning of March, during the central Thursday of Lent, it is a tradition in Mojácar to celebrate the Día de la Vieja (Day of the Old Woman). Its meaning is related to the expression "partir la vieja Cuaresma" and consists of a day of relaxation, putting aside for a moment the austere character of Lent.

The locals take the opportunity to spend it in the countryside with their families and friends. The children are the real stars of the day and carry peculiar figures in the shape of old women, whose heads are stuffed with sweets, hanging on a wooden cross that they nail to the ground. It is customary to throw stones at them to get the sweets inside, as if they were piñatas.

Holy Week is the most special time in Andalusia. These are days when the images of Jesus Christ and the Virgin are carried in procession through the streets on the shoulders of costaleros in a display of music, flowers, incense and the singing of saetas that reflect the devotion of a people that is inherited from father to son and that blossoms every spring.

One of the most interesting and special moments of Mojácar's processions takes place on Palm Sunday when the living procession of the palms takes place on the back of a donkey. But the most beautiful moment is the Procession of the Encounter, on the night of Maundy Thursday, which takes place under the arch of Mojácar. You have to experience it!

The Sunday closest to the 15th of May is the pilgrimage in honour of San Isidro Labrador. Although it is true that this pilgrimage is the main event of the fiestas of San Isidro, the festivities begin in the town on the Friday before with a concert, followed by fireworks and open-air dances, which are also repeated on Saturday.

For the pilgrimage, the villagers dress their carts with flowers and start the march to the hamlet of Sopalmo accompanied by traditional music and dances to celebrate a popular meal in the countryside around the saint's hermitage.

The Moors and Christians fiestas are the most important in Mojácar. They are held on the weekend closest to the 10th of June and commemorate the peaceful surrender of the town to the Catholic Monarchs in the 15th century.

During these days several events are held starting with the medieval market that fills the streets with different craft stalls, the medieval tournament and the grouping of the Moorish and Christian sides in their respective barracks, from which they parade through the streets of the town wearing their spectacular costumes to the rhythm of the music.

Romantic Night was born in 2017 and is celebrated at the end of June. It is an initiative promoted in our country by the Association of the Most Beautiful Villages of Spain and is held simultaneously in more than 300 villages in France, Italy, Japan, Belgium, Lebanon, Russia, Germany, Switzerland and Liechtenstein. All of them are considered to be particularly beautiful because of their natural and monumental heritage.

For this date, the villages dress up in their best clothes and fill up with music with different concerts after the premiere of a commemorative video of the event in all the villages at the same time that pays tribute to the peculiarity of these beautiful municipalities.

The night of 23 June is a magical evening when the whole town gathers on the beach to welcome the summer. In Mojácar, the Bonfires of San Juan are experienced in a very special way, as the Town Council itself prepares the Playa del Descargador for the celebration, organising various activities for all ages and making available to all attendees numerous bonfires and a large open-air dance so that the whole family can enjoy this night of fun in the moonlight.

This celebration unites all the peoples of the Mediterranean around fire as a symbol of the purification of the soul at the beginning of a new cycle. Out with the bad!

Around the 28th of August the fiestas in honour of San Agustín, patron saint of Mojácar, are held, with various activities including the ribbon race, both by bicycle (dedicated to children) and on horseback, in which the single women place their ribbons and the young men of the village have to pick them up as they race for their owners dressed in faralaes to impose them on them. Quite a display of bravery!

Another of the most special moments is the floral offering to the saint, which takes place with a beautiful procession to the beat of the municipal music band to the church of Santa María, where the women wear the typical Mojaquero costume.

The festivity of the Virgen del Rosario, patron saint of Mojácar, is celebrated on the 7th of October, and with it the most popular events of the August fiestas are revived, such as the ribbon race, but this time open to the participation of people and couples from all walks of life.

In addition, there are concerts, open-air dances and the procession of the Virgen del Rosario. A highlight is the Fiesta de la Tercera Edad, an event organised by the Town Council after the procession as a tribute to Mojácar's elderly.

From the beginning of December until the 6th of January, Mojácar offers all its visitors numerous activities for the whole family full of Christmas spirit. From concerts and theatre, to film screenings for the little ones, exhibitions of nativity scenes, Christmas lights, parades and even the religious services that are so characteristic of this time of year.

Mojácar's good weather offers a different kind of Christmas where the sea and the Mediterranean sun illuminate the festivities in a special way, with some people celebrating the New Year by bathing in the purifying waters of the beaches! Do you dare?