A unique festival event in Spain. Are you going on holiday to Spain soon? If so experience Las Fallas in Valencia where the whole town is set on fire!

This traditional celebration continues to grow in popularity each year with locals and visitors joining the city of Valencia in a mood of excitement. The origin of the celebration goes back to the eighteenth century, when carpenters burned the remains of a hard winter’s work in honour of their patron, Saint Joseph. Over the years, the leftovers were converted into “fallas”, enormous figures built of papier mache, wood and wax which represent personalities and current events of the past years. They are designed by renowned artists, painters and sculptors. For three days, from March 16th to 19th, the fallas are placed in every street corner and in square, some as high as 30 metres.

On the last night of the festival, the fallas are burned. The last ones to be destroyed by the flames are those one which have won prizes by the Genrakl Fallas Committee and those in the City Hall square. Only one falla is kept each year by popular vote, and displayed in the Museum of the Falla together with those from various years which were awarded the same privilege. At midnight, hundreds of fireworks surround the fallas and Valencia goes up in flames.

This is a unique world event, only Valencia and the region surrounding has anything like this. If you don’t like huge crowds then you can pick up your hire car in Valencia and go to the smaller towns in the area. Denia has excellent fallas celebrations as well as Gandia, Olivia and Javia.

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