Spain is culture

There are many different ways to discover Spain: enjoying the coast and beaches, following a route taking in different monuments, exploring the countryside, playing sports like golf... However, if you have never visited Spain during Easter week, then you just have to come. And even if you already know this famous fiesta, you should come again, because the celebrations in each region of Spain are different.

In Spain, Easter week is celebrated with a great deal of emotion. People take an active role in its events and traditions. By day and by night, the streets fill with the sound of drums, the colour of flowers and the art of religious sculptures, that come together to produce a highly moving atmosphere.

World-famous fiestas

Easter week is celebrated in all the cities, towns and villages of Spain. Nevertheless, there are some fiestas that are especially well known for their unique beauty, and have recieved the International Tourist Interest designation.

At Easter week in Seville you will see how the Easter brotherhoods manage to support the immense weight of elaborately decorated statues of the Virgin Mary as they parade through the narrow streets of the old town. Easter week in Malaga includes the ritual privilege of the freeing of a prisoner. This is one of the most emotive moments, when the figure of Jesus Christ blesses the inmate. During the Easter week celebrations in Cuenca you can also enjoy the concerts programmed within the Religious Music Week festival, which take place in historic buildings such as the Cathedral.

If you go for Easter week in León you are bound to be impressed by the encounter between Saint John and the Virgin Mary in Plaza Mayor Square, which marks the end of the Easter processions. At Easter week in Zamora, the sound of Gregorian chant provides an incredible atmosphere for the nocturnal processions. During the processions of Easter week in Valladolid, take a close look at the religious statues - they are valuable works of Baroque art. Easter week in Salamanca is spectacular on account of the backdrop formed by the city's stunning monuments.

The Palm Sunday Procession in Elche features the customary palms and is one of the most beautiful held in any part of Spain. AtEaster week in Cartagena the end of the processions are especially emotive, when thousands of people come together to sing the salve to the Virgin Mary. Easter week in Lorca is especially original - the processions include figures and scenes from the bible and from ancient civilisations. In the province of Albacete, the crowning moment in Easter Week in Hellín is the Tamborada, when the sound of up to 20,000 drums invades the town.

Each one of these celebrations is special, unique and different, as well as the rest of Easter week events that have the International Tourist Interest designation, in the following cities: Granada, in Andalusia; Zaragoza, in Aragon; Crevillent and Orihuela, in the Valencia Region; Medina de Rioseco, Medina del Campo, Ávila and Palencia, in Castile-León; Toledo, in Castile-La Mancha; and Viveiro and Ferrol, in Galicia.

Once you have discovered them, you'll want to return to Spain for Easter week.