World Heritage Cities in Spain
10 experiences not to be missed in the World Heritage cities
The World Heritage Cities have festivals and fairs dating back hundreds of years.
Mérida International Classical Theatre Festival
During the Mérida International Classical Theatre Festival, which is held in July and August, you can enjoy the splendid 1st century BC Roman theatre, an incredible scenario for performances of Greco-Latin based works, but also open to the performing arts in general, including music and films. For the Stone & Music Festival which takes place in August and September, the Roman theatre welcomes top Spanish and international artists.
Santa Tecla Festival
If you visit Tarragona in the second fortnight in September you can attend the Santa Tecla Festival which includes some of Catalonia’s most symbolic traditional festivities. The streets are full of people dressed up as devils and dragons, testing your reflexes by throwing firecrackers, which is what they call the Correfoc.
Flamenco Cultural Autumn Festival
In Baeza, you can discover the secrets of Flamenco singing and dance at the Flamenco Cultural Autumn Festival. The city’s Flamenco club organises literary gatherings, exhibitions and concerts around this typically Spanish art form.
Cervantes Week
In October, Alcalá de Henares celebrates Cervantes Week, a great opportunity to take a closer look at the legacy left to the city by Miguel de Cervantes, the author of Don Quixote. The streets are filled with literature, leisure and gastronomy, including a Medieval Cervantes Market where you’ll find local products and lovely craft work souvenirs.
Festivity of Saint James the Apostle
A good time to visit Santiago de Compostela is 25 July to celebrate the Festivity of Saint James the Apostle, the patron saint of Galicia and Spain. You’ll see how the whole city becomes an enormous festival.
Carnival
Carnival is especially colourful all over Spain, but in cities like Santiago de Compostela it is especially enchanting. The capital city of Galicia shows its vocation for masks, make-up and fancy dress especially during the parade on Carnival Tuesday, with the participation of floats and troupes of friends and neighbours parading through the city.
Medieval Market of the Three Cultures
Each November the Medieval Market of the Three Cultures is set up in the historical town centre of Cáceres, where you are invited to travel back in time and discover the extraordinary blend of Moorish, Jewish and Christian traditions.
Festival of the Cordoba Patios
May is also the time for the Festival of the Cordoba Patios, declared Intangible Cultural Heritage by the UNESCO. For two weeks, the people of the city proudly open the gates to their patios in the historical old town and deck them out specially for the occasion with pots full of geraniums, carnations and jasmines. They can be visited at practically any time of the day and you also get the chance to taste delicious tapas from Cordoba and Montilla-Moriles wine.
Easter Week
In March and April, Cuenca gets ready to solemnly celebrate Easter Week. There you can attend the procession known as the Camino del Calvario (‘the Road to Calvary’) to the sound of Las Turbas. This is what they call the incredible din made by drums and trumpets parading in front of the image of Jesus Christ in the processions through the steep streets of the historical old town of Cuenca.
Corpus Christi
Towards the end of spring you can attend the festivity of Corpus Christi in Toledo. A solemn parade in a city adorned for the occasion with ancient standards and tapestries on the balconies of the houses and flower arrangements in the streets.
