CULTURE:
La Mercè Festival, Barcelona, September 19th-24th
Every year since 1902, the Catalan capital has held a massive street festival — the city's biggest — in honour of the Virgin of La Mercè, patron saint of Barcelona. Over five days, you can enjoy hundreds of activities ranging from street dance shows and theatre performances to concert and folk dances. The festivities include traditional events like the impressive human castles (castellers) demonstrations and parades of 'giants' and 'big-heads'.
Fiestas de Saint Antolín, Medina del Campo (Valladolid) September 1st-8th
These festivities mainly on the typical 'encierros' (running of the bulls events) and bullfights, on horseback or on foot. The celebrations are much anticipated by the whole community, with clubs and associations working for months to make this a successful, fun event.
Fiestas de la Vendimia, Jerez de la Frontera, September 9th-14th
This wine harvest festival in the Province of Cádiz not only offers a large choice of wine tasting sessions and vineyards tours but also a wealth of activities to chose from, including performances from the Royal Andalusian School of Equestrian Arts, painting exhibitions, Shakespeare plays, flamenco, salsa and entertainment for kids.
DANCE AND MUSIC:
Biennial Flamenco Festival, Sevilla, September 12th-October 5th
First held in 1980, this prestigious flamenco festival is celebrated every two years in the Andalusian city of Seville. The three-week long competition features the greatest dancers, vocalists and guitarists in the flamenco world, as well as as well as up-and-coming artists . Performances take place in different host venues throughout the city, mainly theatres but also in hotels or on the street. There are also courses, conferences and seminars.
DCode Festival 2014, Madrid, September 13th
One of the summer's last musical gasps, this indie-inflected event in the grounds of Madrid's Complutense University includes the only Spanish concert of proto-hipster Beck. Also playing this year are British singer Jake Bugg, Bombay Bicycle Club and Spain's very own Lourdes Hernández, better known as Russian Red.
Mallorca Rocks Festival
The Kaiser Chiefs and DJ Mark Ronson are set to take over the popular resort of Magaluf in September. The Kooks will also return to the Rocks stage, after headlining the 2010 Edition. Ibiza also play hosts to a few last gigs before summer in Spain's Balearic Islands wraps up.
Barcelona Jazz Festival, October 10th to November 30th
This six-week long festival features over 100 concerts from local and international acts at venues around the city. Some of the concerts are even free.
FILM AND THEATRE:
International Film Festival, Donostia-San Sebastián, 19th-27th September
This festival in the capital of the Basque Country is internationally recognized. In the past it has hosted the International premieres of Vertigo (A.Hitchcock) and welcomed stars such as Audrey Hepburn and Elizabeth Taylor or more recently Meryl Streep and Brad Pitt. This year, Denzel Washington will open the 62nd Edition of the Festival and receive the prestigious Donostia Lifetime achievement Award.
www.sansebastianfestival.com/in/
SPORT:
2014 Spain Basketball World Cup, August 30th-September 4th
Twenty-four national teams including Spain, France (current European champions) and the United States (reigning world champions), will compete for the Basketball World Cup with knock-out stages taking place in Granada, Seville, Bilbao and Las Palmas de Gran Canaria before the competition moves to Barcelona and Madrid for the business end of things.
La Vuelta, August 23rd-September 14th
The Vuelta is one of the world's biggest bicycle races, along with Le Tour de France and the Giro d'Italia. This year’s tour kicks off in Jerez de la Frontera and will wrap up in Santiago de Compostela after three weeks of brutal competition. Last year Chris Horner, a 42-year-old American rider, won the Tour, becoming the oldest winner of any cycling grand tour. But Spaniards will be hoping that local hero Alberto Contador will take this year's crown.
OTHER EVENTS:
Fashion week, Madrid, September 11th-16th
While 41 recognized designers will show off their latest collections on the catwalks, the 58th edition of Madrid’s Fashion will also give some twenty emerging talents the chance to show what they can do. Interesting innovation this year: the fashion shows will be broadcast live at Conde Duque and near Plaza de Colon, two emblematic venues in Madrid. Watch out for Madrid's 'Fashion's night out' on September 12th with stores offering special discounts.
Find out more at
UPCOMING EVENTS:
Oktoberfest, Calella (Barcelona), 4th-25th October
Guitar Festival, Sevilla, October 23rd-November 1st
Castells ('human tower') festival, Tarragona, September 28th and October 4th-5th
Saffron Festival, Consuegra, October 24th
Member comments