Summer Fairs

Every town and village in Andalucia has its own feria or fair © Michelle Chaplow
Every town and village in Andalucia has its own feria or fair. © Michelle Chaplow

Summer Fairs

Every town and village in Andalucia has its own feria or fair, and it would be possible, if one had superhuman powers of endurance, to spend the whole summer following them about the region. The summer annual feria originated in the middle ages, and was the principal means of interchange of local products within the kingdom. The first feria takes place at Seville in April (two clear weeks after Semana Santa) and the last is at San Pedro de Alcántara in mid October.

The 'day fair'  - Feria del día

The 'day fair' traditionally takes place in the streets of the town itself. Streets are closed to traffic, and businesses close for the week as well. Tables and chairs are set up and the bars serve food and drink in the street with music playing on every corner. People of all ages sing and dance, and visitors are always welcome. It is now becoming common in towns of Costa del Sol and others for the day fair to be celebrated at the 'Recinto Ferial' (Feria Ground).

 

 

The Evening Fair 

The Summer Feria of Andalucia. © Michelle Chaplow
The Summer smiles of Andalucia.

At night, the fair shifts to the public fairground or "recinto ferial" on the outskirts of the town. There is a traditional amusement park with lots of rides for the children and "casetas" (tents) set up by the various clubs, associations and political parties of the town. Some of these tents provide live entertainment and all are equipped with a full bar.

Many of the “casetas” (some would say too many) are by private invitation only. Outsiders are invariably welcomed. Just ask if you can go in, if not try the next one. And if you find you’re down on your luck, there is always the large “Caseta Municipal” put up by the town council and open to everybody.

On some evenings there will be a top billing singer, for which tickets will be sold on the door at a reasonable price. These are usually very popular and often sell out, so if you really want to get in, you may want to start queuing up early.

DRESS

It is becoming less common for local ladies to wear their traditional feria dress or men the 'traje corto' to go to the feria. Reasons cited are the heat and the cost. In some towns like Malaga and Estepona only the minority of people dress traditionally in others such as Seville or Jerez the majority of people still dress traditionally. 

The dates of the summer fairs in Andalucia

The ferias usually start midweek and finish on Sunday night. In the larger cities they start at midnight on the Saturday or Sunday night and run for a week. The official opening of the feria is usually marked with fireworks. Monday after the feria is often a local holiday designed for recovering from the festivities.

Here are traditional dates for fair-goers of many towns and villages which vary slightly each year.  The town hall organises the Feria usually the 'departmento de cultura' (culture department) or Delegacion de Festejos (Festivals department). The feria dates (and budget) are appoved by a full council meeting about five months (in the case of capital cities) and two months (in the case of villages) ahead of the event.  We appreciate that this is a problem for foreign tourists who wish to book work holidays and purchase flights. The town hall primarily views the feria as a local event, to which foreign tourists are most welcome, but will make very few consessions; perhaps that's why it retains its unspoilt charm.

The Town Hall website is usually www.<town-name>.es The traditional dates often appear in the 'Turismo' section and the exact dates may apear in the 'Agenda' or 'Noticias' (News) section. Look out for the feria poster on the website and on social media. 

Name of Feria Town Traditional date
(See note above)
Feria de Abril Seville April (varies)
Feria de Abril Mairena del Alcor 16th to 19th April
Feria de Primavera Vejer de la Frontera 15th April - 3rd May 
  Espera 30th April - 3rd May
  Castillar de la Frontera 30th April - 3rd May
  El Puerto de Santa Maria 6th - 11th May
  Tahivilla 8th - 10th May
  Algar 9th - 10th May
  Jerez 10th - 17th May
  Los Barrios 12th - 17th May
  Córdoba 25th May - 1st June
  Alhaurin el Grande 27th - 28th May
  Medina-Sidonia 27th  - 31st May
  San Jose de la Valle 27th - 31st May
  Sanlúcar de Barrameda 2nd - 7th June 
  Puerto Real 3rd  - 8th June
  Jedula 4th - 7th June
  El Colorado 4th - 7th June
  Conil 5th - 8th June
  Marbella 8th - 14th June
  Paterna 10th - 14 June
  Chiclana de la Frontera 11th  - 14th June
  El Bosque 11th - 14th June
  La Muela 16th - 19th June
  Taraguilla 18th - 21st June
  Algeciras 20th - 27th June
  San Pablo de Buciete 26th - 28th June
  Estepona 2nd -9th July
  Guadiaro  2nd -5th July
  San Fernando 14th - 19th July
  Barbate 15th - 19th July
  Prado del Rey 16th - 19th July
  La Línea 13th - 22th July
  El Campanario, Nueva Andalucia, Marbella 21st - 24th July
  Benalup 22nd - 26th July
  Algodonales 23rd - 26th July
  Almáchar 24th - 26th July
  Puente Mayorga 30th July - 2nd August
Fiesta de la Urta Rota 31st July - 2nd August
  El Gastor 1st - 6th August 
  Benaocaz 6th - 9th August
Feria Setenil de las Bodegas Setenil de las Bodegas 6th - 9th August
  Guadarranque 6th - 9th August
  Manilva / Sabinillas 6th - 9th August
Feria Benamargosa Benamargosa 3rd - 5th August
  Almonaster la Real 7th - 9th August
  Iznajar 8th - 12th August
Feria Real San Roque San Roque 12th - 16th August
  Baeza 11th - 17th August
  Alcala del Valle 13th - 16th August
  Torre Alhaquime 13th - 16th August
  Trebujena 13th - 16th August
  Puerto Serrano 13th - 17th August
  Campillos  
  Jimena de la Frontera 14th to 16th August
  Benahavís 14th - 17th August
Real Feria de Augusto  Archidona 14th - 18th August
Feria  Fuentes de Andalucia 14th - 18th August
Feria Real Puente Genil Puente Genil 15th - 18th August
Feria San Roque El Coronil El Coronil 15th - 19th August
Feria Málaga Málaga 15th - 23rd August
Feria Real Fuente Palmera 16th - 19th August
Feria Pedrera Pedrera 16th - 19th August
  Almeria 17th - 26th August
  Zahara de la Sierra 21st - 23rd August
San Bartolome Umbrete Umbrete 23rd - 26th August
  Cumbres de San Bartolome  19th - 23 August 
Feria Guaro Guaro 23rd - 26th August
Feria Real de Agusto Antequera Antequera 19th - 23rd August 2015
Feria Aracena Arecena 23rd - 27th August
  Alcala de los Gazules 26th - 30th August
  Coto de Bornos 27th - 30th August
Feria y Fiesta San Agustin Hinojosa del Duque Hinojosa del Duque 4th - 8th September
Real Feria y Fiestas de San Agustin Guadix 27th August - 1st September
  Olvera 28th - 31st August
Feria Marchena Marchena 30th August - 2nd September
  Ubrique 30 August - 8th September
Feria Real Priego de Córdoba 1st - 5th September
  Villaluenga del Rosario 4th - 8th September
  Chipioina 4th - 8th September
  Conil 4th - 8th September
Fiestas de las Angustias Ayamonte Córdoba 5th - 9th September
  Huelva 5th - 9th September
  Alcala del Rio 5th - 9th September
  Baza 5th  - 15th September
  Mijas 6th - 11th September
 Feria Real Tarifa 6th - 13th September
  Ecija 11th - 16th September
  Ubrique 10th - 13th September
  Bornos 10th - 13th September
Fiesta Nacional de la Vendimia Jerez 10th - 15th September
  Lebrija 12th - 16th September
  Villanueva del Trabuco 11th - 15th September
  Moron de la Frontera 13th - 16th September
  Carrion de los Cespedes 13th - 16th September
  Villamartin 20th - 24th September
Feria de San Miguel, Ubeda Úbeda 28th September - 4th October
  Torremolinos 25th - 29th September
    30th September - 4th October
  Fuengirola 6th - 12th October
Feria de Nstra. Sra. del Rosario Montoro 7th - 12th October
Feria de Nerja Nerja 8th - 12th October
Feria y Fiestas Ojen 8th - 12th October
  Jaen 13th - 19th October
  San Pedro 14th - 19th October

 

Link to listing with dates on the web of the ferias of 2022. Asociacion de Feriantes de Andalucia (Trade Association of Fairgrounds).

Download a PDF for 2022 prepared by the  Asociación de Empresarios Feriantes de Málaga y Provincia. 

Music and Dance, Rock and Pop Festivals  -  Comprehensive list of modern music and dance festivals in Andalucia

 

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