Seville Spring
Feria (Fair)
Dating back to 1847, Seville feria is one of
the most important in Andalucia. Some of the best horses in the
region travel from miles around to parade and compete at this, the
oldest feria in Andalucia.
More about Seville Spring
Feria.
More about Seville
Jerez Feria
Held in Gonzalez Hontoria Park, Jerez Feria,
is one of the most important events in the equestrian calendar.
Jerez is home to some of the grandest families in the region, their
studs and bull-breeding farms surround this beautiful old city.
There is something for everyone at the Jerez feria;
bulls, carriage driving, showjumping, dressage and the more traditional
Doma Vaquera competitions, Jerez is one of the most prestigious
ferias in Spain. To win ´best of breed´at Jerez feria
is a great honour.
More about Jerez Spring
Fair.
More about Jerez
The Rocío Pilgrimage or "Romería"
A charming tradition in Andalucia are the less
well known "romerías", where horses ride
from miles around to gather together for a vast spring picnic under
the cork trees for tradional music and dancing.
A Romería so called because pilgrims traditionally
walked to Rome, and therefore became known as "romeros"
- to popular shrines, around which great fiestas are held. Perhaps
the most spectacula is the one devoted to the Virgen del Rocío,
popularly called "El Rocio" for short.
Nearly a million people gather in a small hamlet
in the marshlands of the
Guadalquivir river delta, where the statue of the "Madonna
of the Dew" has been worshipped since 1280. The pilgrims come
on horseback and in gaily decorated covered wagons from all over
the region, transforming the flatlands into a colourful and noisy
carnival.
More about Rocio
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.
