The clamor of the May festivities in Andalusia has just subsided: Cordoba removes the flowers from the balconies, the horses of Jerez return to the stables and the Blanca Paloma of El Rocío experiences moments of greater tranquility in her niche on the altar of the Ermita. However, the Andalusians’ desire to celebrate is not appeased, which is why it is useful to draw a map of all the events that cheer the June in Southern Spain.
The first truly summer month is still a period of relative calm, but if we flew over Andalucia on June nights, we would be struck by the bright profiles of Marbella, Antequera and Alhaurín de la Torre (province of Malaga), or captured by the explosion of music at the Festival Internacional De Música y Danza de Granada. And what about the fires that light up all over Andalusia on the night of San Juan, traditionally the night when summer begins: we see them crackling on the beaches of Cadiz, Almería, Malaga…
For all these reasons, if for example you want to take a tour in Andalusia in the summer, the month of June could be a solution that should not be underestimated in terms of parties and events, especially if you beat the Costa del Sol.
June festivities in Andalusia: The Main Events
Feria de Marbella
The queen palm of the June festivities in Andalusia wins the Feria de Marbella without even the burden of fighting: the most fashionable city of the Costa del Sol is unleashed in a series of memorable celebrations in honor of the patron saint of the city San Bernabé. The Marbella fair takes place annually around the second week of June and can be considered a sort of minor anticipation of the much more famous Feria de Malaga, which in August makes the Costa del Sol explode with joy, light and color.
Throughout the week, Marbella becomes a stage for sacred and profane events, religious pilgrimages and civic processions, flamenco shows and popular festivals and exclusive parties: probably most of the inhabitants of Marbella identify the beginning of the party with the fireworks display which, generally, is held in Playa del Faro after a concert and the classic choice of Miss Marbella. In fact, the festival celebrates its religious origin the day before, with the inauguration pilgrimage to the Ermita de San Bernabé, the chapel of the patron saint located in the pine forest of the Parque de Nagüeles.
The Feria del Día usually takes place from 1pm onwards in the Avenida del Mar area, between the paths and palm trees of the Parque Alameda, while the Feria usually continues at night in La Cañada near the shopping center, where the casetas host events of all kinds: flamenco demonstrations, tastings, folklore shows and so on. Bullfights are held at the Plaza de Toros de Marbella on various days of the week, up to the final monumental event in honor of the saint; needless to say, however, the most exclusive and fashionable parties take place in the nightclubs and beaches of Marbella and Puerto Banús.
Granada International Music and Dance Festival
The historic and renowned Festival Internacional de Música y Danza de Granada since 1883 is one of the flagships of Granada and all of Spain. It is usually held between the second half of June and the first of July and every year boasts a program of events of the highest order, with artists, orchestras and musicians of international standing who perform in a forbidden dream location.
Can you imagine the thrill of attending a flamenco concert in the heart of the Patio de los Arrayanes or in the intimacy of the Carmen de los Mártires, to a ballet in the Generalife gardens or to a concert by the London Symphony Orchestra in the shadow of the Renaissance colonnades of the Palacio de Carlos V?
June festivities in Andalusia: Other Events
In the province of Malaga there are many spring festivals (first of all that of Antequera ) or those dedicated to the patron saints, but undoubtedly it is worth trying a synthetic mapping of the celebrations that take place throughout Andalusia on the night of June 23, for the noche de San Juan (Saint John the Baptist).
Feria de Primavera de Antequera
Malaga is undoubtedly the most festive province: between the end of May and the beginning of June, the Feria de Primavera in Antequera also takes place. Compared to Marbella, here the Feria, also known as Feria de Primavera de Agrogant, has a slightly different and less “worldly” meaning: the events and manifestations that take place during the 5 days of the Feria are aimed at celebrating the excellence of agriculture and livestock in the area.
If you decide to take a trip to the Recinto Ferial di Parque del Norte (on the north-western outskirts of the city), you will find a popular and authentic festive context: parades of purebred horses and competitions for the best goat farms, casetas where you can taste the delicacies food and wine of the area, flamenco performances and folk dances but also bullfights, cultural events, rock concerts…
Noche de San Juan: Where To Celebrate It?
La Noche de San Juan (June 23) is universally considered, by tradition, the party for the beginning of summer as it is the shortest of the year… but only for reasons of time! In reality in Andalusia the celebrations are exaggerated and last until the light of dawn. The Hogueras de San Juan (or Candelas) are the traditional bonfires that are lit on the beaches of Andalusia, and certainly the best way to understand what this festival means for Andalusians is to reach one of the following seaside resorts:
Almería
Thousands of young and old flock to the Playa del Zapillo and the various beaches of Almería (those towns), where traditional are switched Hogueras de San Juan of Almería. The bull-inspired processions that take place along the Paseo Marítimo are also spectacular, and the irrepressible celebrations that extend throughout the night, including music and foam parties on the beach.
Cadiz
Cadiz, the white city where the sunlight reigns, could only spend itself in great celebrations for this luminous festival of fires: bonfires are lit on all the beaches and in the various corners of the city. But the most characteristic event in Cadiz (reminiscent in some ways of the spectacular Carnival that is celebrated here) is the traditional Festividad de los Juanillos: during the celebrations, puppets depicting famous characters from the ancient and recent tradition of the city are burned. There are also prizes for the most spectacular “baking dish” performance!