Top Ten Spanish Festivals · Spanish people like to celebrate. Every season has important...

Top Ten Spanish FestivalsSpanish people like to celebrate. Every season has important festivals: in spring, “La Feria de Abril” and “Las Fallas”; in summer, the Tomatina Tomato Fight, the “Romería del Rocío” and Sanfermines; in autumn, All Saints Day and in winter, Carnival celebrations in Tenerife, Cádiz and Águilas among others. At Christmas they have “Nochebuena” dinner on the 24th of December and “Nochevieja” on the 31st, as well as “Cabalgata de Reyes” or the Three Wise Men Parade on the 5th of January. Easter (Holy Week) celebrations also take place all over Spain.

These are ten famous Spanish festivals:

Carnival of Santa Cruz de TenerifeConsidered the second most famous carnival in the world, with thousands of people that dress up, parade in floats and dance through the streets. People elect a Carnival queen and bury a giant sardine at the end of the festival.

Carnival Celebrations in CádizBoth the comparsas and the chirigotas are groups of people wearing the same costume. The comparsas invent nasty songs about famous people and the chirigotas invent funny songs about recent news.

The Tomatina

Tomato FightParticipants throw

tomatoes at each other. They are ripe so they are soft but they make you very dirty! This happens at the end

of August in Buñol (Valencia).

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Carnival Celebrations in ÁguilaThe famous dialogue between Don Carnal (Mr Meat) and Doña Cuaresma (Ms Lent) finishes with a battle of confetti-filled eggs.

Las Fallas in Valencia People make figures called ninots and build structures

called fallas. The competition between all the ninots and fallas finishes when they burn them on a night called La Cremà.

La Feria de Abril in SevillaFor six days, this fair starts with a parade of horses and men and women dressed in flamenco-clothes. Then there is “sevillanas”, a traditional dance similar to flamenco, drinking and eating at the fairgrounds until very late at night.

Sanfermines (Running of the Bulls)A writer called Ernest Hemingway wrote about this feast in his book The Sun Also Rises. The book helped to make them famous all over the world. Early in the morning people run through the streets of Pamplona chased by angry bulls.

All Saints DayPeople visit cemeteries and leave flowers in honour of their loved ones that have died. There are special sweets called “huesos de santo” and “buñuelos”.

The Romería del RocíoA big group of people travel on foot, on horse or in horse-drawn carriages to the church of El Rocío, in the province of Huelva.

Holy Week in CartagenaThis is a religious feast in which the processions are not festive, but solemn. Participants in the processions wear cloaks and hoods and carry religious figures between a few people, as they are quite heavy.

Top Ten Spanish Festivals


Questions1. Which festivals does the text mention that take place in summer?

2. What happens at the Tomatina?

3. What is buried at the end of the Carnival of Santa Cruz de Tenerife?

4. Look up the word “parade” in a dictionary. What does it mean?

5. What is the difference between comparsas and chirigotas?

6. What happens at La Cremà?

7. What is the name of the book that made Sanfermines world-famous?

8. What can you expect to eat on All Saints Day?

9. What are the processions like during Holy Week in Cartagena?

10. Which is your favourite festival among the ones mentioned in the text and why?



Answers1. Which festivals does the text mention that take place in summer?

The festivals that the text mentions that take place in summer are the Tomatina Tomato Fight, the “Romería del Rocío” and Sanfermines.

2. What happens at the Tomatina? At the Tomatina people throw tomatoes at each other. They are ripe so they are soft but they make you very dirty.

3. What is buried at the end of the Carnival of Santa Cruz de Tenerife? At the end of the Carnival of Santa Cruz de Tenerife a giant sardine is buried.

4. Look up the word “parade” in a dictionary. What does it mean? The word “parade” means a procession of people or vehicles (floats) to celebrate a special day or event.

5. What is the difference between comparsas and chirigotas? The difference is that comparsas invent nasty songs about famous people while chirigotas invent funny songs about recent news.

6. What happens at La Cremà? At La Cremà they burn the ninots and the fallas.

7. What is the name of the book that made Sanfermines world-famous? The book that made Sanfermines world-famous was called “The Sun Also Rises”.

8. What can you expect to eat on All Saints Day? On All Saints Day you can expect to eat “huesos de santo” and “buñuelos”.

9. What are the processions like during Holy Week in Cartagena? The processions during Holy Week in Cartagena are not festive, but solemn.

10. Which is your favourite festival among the ones mentioned in the text and why? Open answer.



Top Ten Spanish FestivalsSpanish people like to celebrate. There are important festivals in every season: in spring there is “La Feria de Abril” and “Las Fallas”; in the summer the “Tomatina” Tomato Fight, the “Romería del Rocío” and “Sanfermines”; in the autumn All Saints Day and in winter Carnival celebrations in Tenerife, Cádiz and Águilas among others. At Christmas they have “Nochebuena” dinner on the 24th of December and “Nochevieja” on the 31st, culminating in the “Cabalgata de Reyes” or Three Wise Men Parade on the 5th of January. Easter (Holy Week) celebrations happen all over Spain as well.


Carnival of Santa Cruz de TenerifeConsidered the second most famous carnival in the world, with thousands of people in fancy dress dancing through the streets in floats. They elect a Carnival queen and bury a giant sardine at the end of the festival.

Carnival Celebrations in CádizBoth the comparsas and the chirigotas are groups of people who dress up the same way. The first invent songs about famous people and the second make fun of what happens in the news.

The Tomatina

Tomato FightParticipants throw soft tomatoes at each other.

It takes place at the end of August in Buñol (Valencia).


Carnival Celebrations in ÁguilaEspecially famous for the dialogue between Don Carnal (Mr Meat) and Doña Cuaresma (Ms Lent) which finishes with a battle of confetti-filled eggs.

Las Fallas in Valencia Figures called ninots and structures called fallas are

built. There is a competition between all the structures and figures and at the end they burn them on the night called La Cremà.

La Feria de Abril in SevillaFor six days, this fair starts with a parade of horses and flamenco-dressed men and women. Then there is “sevillanas” (a traditional dance similar to flamenco), drinking and eating at the fairgrounds.

Sanfermines (Running of the Bulls)Ernest Hemingway, the writer, made Sanfermines famous by mentioning them in his book The Sun Also Rises. Early in the morning bulls are released and people run away from them along the streets of Pamplona.

All Saints DayPeople visit cemeteries and leave flowers in honour of the dead. There are special sweets called “huesos de santo” and “buñuelos”.

The Romería del RocíoThis is a pilgrimage, a group of people that travel on foot, on horse or in horse-drawn carriages to the church of El Rocío, in the province of Huelva.

Holy Week in CartagenaThis is a religious feast in which the processions are serious and a bit sad. Participants in the processions wear cloaks and hoods and carry religious figures that are quite heavy.



Questions1. Which festivals does the text mention that happen in the spring?

2. When does the Tomatina take place?

3. Which festival is considered the second most famous carnival in the world?

4. How do you think people become the carnival queen?

5. What are the figures built at Las Fallas called?

6. When are the ninots and fallas burnt?

7. How does every day at the Feria de Abril begin?

8. What is a pilgrimage?

9. What do participants in the Holy Week processions wear?




Answers1. Which festivals does the text mention that happen in the spring?

The festivals mentioned that happen in the spring are La Feria de Abril in Sevilla and Las Fallas in Valencia.

2. When does the Tomatina take place? The Tomatina takes place at the end of August.

3. Which festival is considered the second most famous carnival in the world? The festival that is considered the second most famous carnival in the world is the Carnival of Santa Cruz de Tenerife.

4. How do you think people become the carnival queen? Open answer that includes smiling a lot, having a beatiful outfit, having nice hair, etc.

5. What are the figures built at Las Fallas called? The figures built at Las Fallas are called ninots.

6. When are the ninots and fallas burnt? The ninots and fallas are burnt at the end of the festival, in the night called La Cremà.

7. How does every day at the Feria de Abril begin? Every day at the Feria de Abril begins with a parade of horses and flamenco-dressed men and women.

8. What is a pilgrimage? A pilgrimage is a group of people that travel together on foot, on horse or on horse-drawn carriages.

9. What do participants in the Holy Week processions wear? Participants in the Holy Week processions wear cloaks and hoods.




Top Ten Spanish FestivalsSpanish people like to celebrate. There are important festivals in each of the four seasons: in spring there is “La Feria de Abril” and “Las Fallas”; in the summer the Tomatina Tomato Fight, the “Romería del Rocío” and Sanfermines; in the autumn All Saints Day and in winter Carnival celebrations in Tenerife, Cádiz and Águilas among others. At Christmas “Nochebuena” dinner takes place on the 24th of December and “Nochevieja” on the 31st, culminating in the “Cabalgata de Reyes” or Three Wise Men Parade on the 5th of January. Easter (Holy Week) celebrations are also widespread.


Carnival of Santa Cruz de TenerifeThis is considered the second most famous carnival after the one in Rio de Janeiro (Brazil). Thousands of people in fancy dress parade and dance through the streets. A Carnival queen is elected and on Ash Wednesday, at the end of the festival, a giant sardine is buried.

Carnival Celebrations in CádizTwo famous components of this carnival are the comparsas and the chirigotas, groups of people who wear identical costumes and make up witty songs that either criticise or make fun of contemporary news.

The Tomatina

Tomato FightParticipants throw ripe tomatoes at each other.

It takes place at the end of August in Buñol (Valencia).


Carnival Celebrations in ÁguilaWell-known for the speech that takes place on the Saturday between Don Carnal (Mr Meat) and Doña Cuaresma (Ms Lent) which finishes with a battle of confetti-filled eggs.

Las Fallas in Valencia Puppets or dolls called ninots and elaborate structures called fallas are built to compete against each other, only to be burnt on the night called La Cremà.

La Feria de Abril in SevillaA six-day fair starting with a daily parade of horses and flamenco-dressed men and women followed by “sevillanas” (a traditional dance similar to flamenco), drinking and eating at the stalls set up along the fairgrounds.

Sanfermines (Running of the Bulls)Given international prestige by writer Ernest Hemingway in his book The Sun Also Rises, these feature early-morning running along the streets of Pamplona pursued by angry bulls. People taking part in the feasts dress in white with a red handkerchief.

All Saints DayPeople visit cemeteries and leave flowers in honour of the deceased. There are special sweets called “huesos de santo” made with marzipan and fillings and sweet fritters called “buñuelos” with cream inside.

The Romería del RocíoThis is a pilgrimage or procession in which people travel on foot, on horse or in horse-drawn carriages to the hermitage of El Rocío, in the province of Huelva. Pilgrims usually wear traditional Andalousian costume and sleep outside.

Holy Week in CartagenaThis is a religious feast in which the processions are serious and solemn. Participants in the processions wear distinctive cloaks and hoods and carry heavy floats.



Questions1. How many festivals are mentioned in the introduction?

2. Which adjective is used to describe the tomatoes at the Tomatina?

3. Use a dictionary to find the meaning of the adjective in question 2.

4. Find two differences between the carnival in Tenerife and the carnival in Cádiz.

5. What do the eggs used in the battle between Don Carnal and Doña Cuaresma contain?

6. What happens at La Cremà?

7. How long does La Feria de Abril last for?

8. Which three modes of transport do people use at the Romería del Rocío?


10. Why do you think people in Valencia make such elaborate figures and then burn them?



Answers1. How many festivals are mentioned in the introduction?

In the introduction 11 festivals are mentioned including Christmas and Easter.

2. Which adjective is used to describe the tomatoes at the Tomatina? The adjective used to describe the tomatoes at the Tomatina is “ripe”.

3. Use a dictionary to find the meaning of the adjective in question 2. “Ripe” means fully grown and ready to eat.

4. Find two differences between the carnival in Tenerife and the carnival in Cádiz. Two differences between the carnival in Tenerife and Cádiz are the location of the carnival and the importance of the comparsas and chirigotas in Cádiz.

5. What do the eggs used in the battle between Don Carnal and Doña Cuaresma contain? The eggs used in the battle between Don Carnal and Doña Cuaresma contain confetti.

6. What happens at La Cremà? At La Cremà the falles, elaborate structures made by Valencian people, are burnt.

7. How long does La Feria de Abril last for? La Feria de Sevilla lasts for six days.

8. Which three modes of transport do people use at the Romería del Rocío? The three modes of transport used by people at the Romería del Rocío are walking, riding a horse and horse-drawn carriages.


10. Why do you think people in Valencia make such elaborate figures and then burn them? Open answer can include because it is a tradition, because they represent a new beginning, etc.



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