Barcelona’s neighborhood festivals draw to a close

Those who have spent time in Catalonia may have noticed that more often than not, the streets become filled with music, decorations, fireworks, and performances of every kind. These are the typical ‘festa major’ celebrations, and each town and city in the country gets their own. In the case of the capital Barcelona, even individual neighborhoods get their time to shine, and the last of the summer just drew to a close, the Festa Major de Sants.

Running from August 18 until the 26, there were 14 streets participating – all decorated to the nines. Also worth a mention were the ‘castell’ competitions – the emblematic high-reaching Catalan human towers – as well as the ‘diables,’ people dressed like devils, brandishing fireworks and sparklers. Not to forget the amusement park ride, visible just right next to the central Barcelona Sants train station.

One for every neighborhood…

But Sants is far from the only area in Barcelona to get a week of music, art, and celebration. Every neighborhood gets their turn, with perhaps the most well-known being those of the charming western Gràcia area.

Held in mid-August, just before the festivities for Sants, the Festes de Gràcia has become an international tourist attraction due to its vibrant themed street decorations, a friendly artistic competition between the area’s micro-neighborhoods. The Catalan Romani community, an integral part of the neighborhood, plays their part as well, and the festivities provide an opportunity to hear Catalonia’s own ‘rumba catalana’ music performed.  

The Festes de Gràcia and Sants cap off a summer full of neighborhood celebrations. June is the month with the most festivals, clocking in at 29 out of the total 76 according to local media Betevè, just in time to celebrate the arrival of summer. One of the oldest is that of Sant Roc in the Gòtic neighbourhood, with some 430 years under its belt, while the youngest is that of the Dreta de l’Eixample, at just over a decade. Other notable celebrations include that of the Sagrada Familia, Casc Antic (what most visitors would know as the Gòtic and Born), Raval, Poble Sec, Barceloneta, and Poblenou.

…And more  

Included in the 76 festivities are the two largest: the city-wide revelries of Santa Eulalia and La Mercè. The first was patron saint of the city until the 17^th century when the second took up the mantle, and both events – the former in mid-February and the latter in late September – give the opportunity to celebrate the city of Barcelona.

It’s La Mercè which, however, draws the biggest crowds. It runs for less time than some of its neighborhood-sized counterparts, from the 21 until the 24 of September, but what it more than makes up for it in activities. Near-nonstop music, food, art, dancing, workshops, ‘castells,’ and of course, ‘correfocs’ are set to be some of the highlights of this year’s festivities.