A reason for joy
Fairs and festivities
Carnival
¡Esto es Carnaval!/It's Carnival!
Benalmádena is lighthearted and cheerful when Carnival arrives in February. Every February, numerous satirical "letrillas" and "chirigotas" are sung by groups of friends, or murgas, who gather in the "Casa de la Cultura" to celebrate our "Gran Gala de Carnaval".
The starting gun goes off at the Drag Queen Gala, one of the most important on the peninsula, with the participation of drag performers from all over Spain. The Plaza de la Mezquita is filled that night with magic, light, colour and music.
With a long tradition in Benalmádena, our carnival attracts groups from other parts of Andalusia who contribute to add extra sparkle to a festivity with deep popular roots which explodes on the day of the "Gran Desfile de Carnaval" and ends with the "Entierro de la Lagartija". Carnival in Benalmádena is transgression and at the same time it is tradition, it is ingenuity and it is carefree.
It is spectacle and emotion.
Easter
Religious fervour and passion of the people
At Holy Week the manifestations of popular religiosity in Benalmádena are everywhere. These festivities are able to attract thousands of people eager to get to know our traditions and are experienced in our municipality with extraordinary fervour.
On these special dates the different brotherhoods hold numerous processions both in Arroyo de la Miel and in Benalmádena Pueblo. You can't miss the procession of the Virgen de la Soledad, which goes through the historic quarter of Benalmádena Pueblo on the night of Good Friday and takes place in absolute silence. An experience you will never forget.
El Paso
Tradition and fervour
One of the events worth highlighting during Holy Week in Benalmádena is "El Paso", a unique tradition which consists of the theatrical representation of the passion and death of Jesus Christ in the surroundings of the "El Retamar" Periurban Park.
This unique theatrical performance, in which many locals become actors for a few hours, is characterised by the fact that its text is written in a mixture of poetry and prose, during which saetas are performed to introduce each of the successive elements of the plot.
An authentic reference of our "Semana Santa" ( Holy Week), this event, which takes place every Maundy Thursday and Good Friday, is a unique event not to be missed.
The Corpus Christi Festivities
Corpus Christi
At the end of May or beginning of June, the Corpus Christi celebrations take place in Benalmádena.
On this special date the people of Benalmádena make a series of carpets of flowers in the streets of the old town, using up to 70,000 flower stalks.
On these carpets of flowers, carefully made by the locals over a period of days, the procession of "La Custodia" takes place on a day when the whole town is an explosion of floral aromas.
One of our most photographed traditions, it attracts visitors from all over the world.
Feria de San Juan/ San Juan Fair
Jump the bonfire!
Benalmadena celebrates its traditional "Feria de San Juan" from 24th to 29th of June, offering something for everyone. A gracious and hospitable host, Benalmádena has fun at its fairgrounds in Arroyo de la Miel, at night, and during the day, at the popular "Fería de día", which from the centre of Arroyo de la Miel, is able to bring together tens of thousands of people in a gastronomic and leisure event unparalleled on the coast.
Full of light and colour, our town takes to the streets and beaches on the traditional Night of San Juan (Noche de San Juan), an immemorial magical night when bonfires are built on which, symbolically, the bad experiences of the past are poured out, and where the "júas", rag and cardboard dolls that represent them, are burnt.
Veladilla de la Virgen del Carmen
Sailor's fervour and pride
Every July, around the 16th, "La Virgen del Carmen", patron saint of sailors, is rocked on the waters. In the inlet of the Nautical Club of our port, the Benalmádena Divers Association extracts from the bottom of the sea the "small" image of the virgin, who spends the whole year under the waters, to take her out in procession.
She is venerated with fervour by the people of the sea, on board their boats, who worship her with fervour in the church of "La Virgen del Carmen" in Benalmádena Costa and in the Port Captaincy which, during "La Veladilla del Carmen", is the heart of this immemorial celebration, so dear, so ours, so seafaring.
Feria de la Virgen de la Cruz
Devotion to the Patroness
In Benalmádena, any time is a good time to enjoy yourself in style, but August is a must. In the middle of the month we enjoy the festivities in honour of the Virgen de la Cruz, Honorary Perpetual Mayoress and Patron Saint of Benalmádena Pueblo. These are days of great devotion, entertainment and cultural events.
Every year more and more people set aside the 15th of August so as not to miss this day, to stroll through the typical streets, to see them decorated, perfumed with incense and the soft smell of nardos that the throne of the Virgin leaves as it passes, nardos offered with great love by all the neighbours.
And to end the day, under the moonlight, the magic takes over the Plaza de España with the singing of the Salve, thousands of flares illuminating it while the bearers raise it to the sky, cheers and waves, sevillanas dances and the fervour of the whole town.
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