VALENCIA – After two years, the biggest Valencian street festival Las Fallas has returned. Visitors can once again enjoy the usual festivities such as the mascletaes, the offering, open-air dancing, and the impressive firework displays.
The festival is officially opened on the last Sunday of February during ‘La Crida’, during which the Fallas fuse was lit. The highlight of Las Fallas is from March 15 to 19. Then you can enjoy virtually in all the streets of the city a lot of art, humour, and satire.
Valencia’s most international festival
For the origin of this festival, we have to go back hundreds of years in time. Every year on March 19, carpenters celebrated Saint Joseph, their patron saint. The carpenters of the town took old remains from their workshops to burn them. This tradition marked the end of winter and thus welcomed spring.
Over the years, the festival has undergone quite a metamorphosis, without losing any of its traditions. The bonfires are created by burning the Fallas. These are the monuments that are erected every 15 March in the streets of the city and the province of Valencia. The authentic works of art are made by the guild of fallero artists. They are accompanied by musicians, pyrotechnicians, costume designers, and florists. They are all true craftsmen and they are part of the soul of the festival.
Las Fallas 2022, livelier than ever before
After a year without the festival and a year with a minimal program in September to burn the monuments, lovers of the great festival of Valencia can celebrate it again. They can admire once again the Fallas adorning the city streets with more joy than ever.
This year, the authorities will maintain the safety measures for covid. The use of face masks is mandatory for all indoor activities and outdoor manifestations where it is difficult for the visitors to guarantee a safe distance. Click here for the full program.
Gunpowder, music, and lots of art
One of the most spectacular events of Las Fallas is the “mascletà”. These fireworks shows take place daily until March 19 at 2.00 pm in the Plaza del Ayuntamiento. Thrill-seekers should also not miss the fireworks that the organisation sets off every evening in the Turia Garden.
During the “plantá” in the nights of March 15 and 16, the Fallas end up in the streets. The fallas commissions spread a total of 800 works of art over 400 locations in the city. These are classified into different categories according to their complexity, size, and originality. They are all unique, but the most spectacular is located in the old town, Ciutat Vella, and the Ruzafa and Gran Vía districts.
If you really want to immerse yourself in the special Spanish celebration, book a guided tour or a Fallas tour. This gives you the opportunity to see the most spectacular monuments, while the guide tells you all about the details and the traditions.
The award ceremony for the best Fallas takes place on the 16th and 17th. Then, the Fallas committees receive their prizes in the town hall, accompanied by music bands.
The flower offering
Then follows the most exciting event: the ‘flower offering’. Every March 17 and 18, the falleros make this sacrifice to the Virgen de los Desamparados- She is the patron saint of València. The falleros dress in their traditional costumes and walk through the streets of Valencia carrying bouquets to the rhythm of the music of local bands. The procession ends in Plaza de la Virgen, where there is a huge statue of the patron saint wearing a cloak covered with flowers.
Final act of Las Fallas
On March 19, the final act of Las Fallas comes with the “Cremà”. This is a special event where the monuments disappear in the flames of the bonfires. It starts at 8 pm with the little Fallas and as the evening progresses the big ones follow. A little later, the commission announces the winners of the first prizes in both categories and those of the town hall. Meanwhile, the flames, accompanied by fireworks, take away the remains of the Fallas of the current year and start those of 2023. It is a spectacle that you must experience at least once in your life.
Discover all the information about Las Fallas at visitvalencia.com.
