ARCHIVED - April 9 to 16 Fiestas de Primavera in the city of Murcia

The barraca restaurants return and the main events include the Bando de la Huerta on April 11 and the Entierro de la Sardina on April 15

The Fiestas de Primavera take place in Murcia this year from April 9 to 16, celebrating the arrival of spring and the end of the penitence of Semana Santa as the city celebrates its role as the vegetable garden (or “huerta”) of Spain, a mantle it has worn since the Moors began to harvest water from the River Segura using irrigation channels, watermills, underground storage systems and wells a thousand years ago.

Along with the fruit and vegetable crops, over the centuries numerous traditions of the Huerta have been passed down through the generations, and this festival celebrates many of them, bringing food, flowers, costumes and colour to the streets of the city.

At the same time, the annual Costa Cálida Tuna festival returns to the San Basilio district, close to the motorway exit at km 140 on the A-30: far from being connected to fish in any way, the Tunas are the male voice and acoustic guitar groups whose sounds are so typical of Spanish music and who generally appeal greatly to international audiences.

But for many Murcianos the central feature of the Fiestas de Primavera is the opening for a week of the “barracas”, open-air restaurants which are set up every year by the various folk dancing peñas and which serve the best of simple traditional Murcian cuisine in tasty portions to make for a hearty meal. The food is well priced, with the same prices set for all of the barracas, and all funds raised are used to fund folk activities and next year’s fiestas!

The barracas are all over the city in the gardens and public parks, and you'll come across them wherever there's a spot of green on the map, but the best known and largest are those in the Jardines del Malecón and by the Plaza Cruz Roja, both of which run along the banks of the river Segura in the centre of Murcia. PRIOR BOOKING IS STRONGLY ADVISED!

The most popular events are the Bando de la Huerta on April 11 and the Entierro de la Sardina on April 15, but these are just two of many. The highlights of the 2023 schedule are as follows:

Sunday April 9

The “barraca” open-air restaurants open at 14.00, shortly after the end of the last Semana Santa procession.

17.30: The children’s Bando de la Huerta parade is held in the city centre. Route: Avenida General Gutiérrez Mellado, Avenida Alfonso X el Sabio, Plaza Santo Domingo, Calle Alejandro Séiquer, Plaza Cetina, Calle Isidoro de la Cierva, Apóstoles, Plaza Belluga.

20.00: Official opening of the “Entorno Huertano” in Santiago y Zaraïche. This area, a recreation of traditional life in the Huerta of Murcia, including live animals, is open to the public for a week between 12.00 and 22.00.

Monday April 10

11.00: A floral offering at the Monumento a la Huerta in the Jardín del Salitre, one of the most popular of the many parks in the city.

17.30 to 19.30: Free children’s workshops in the Plaza Cruz Roja and the Glorieta de España.

18.00: Floral offering in the Plaza Belluga to the Virgen de la Fuensanta, the patron of the city of Murcia. Followed by a parade (route: Plaza de Camachos, Avenida Canalejas, Puente Viejo, Martínez Tornel, Glorieta de España, Arenal, Plaza de Belluga).

21.00: Free concert featuring Carey in the Auditorio Murcia Parque.

21.00: Fireworks in Avenida Teniente Flomesta.

21.30: Traditional folk music and dancing in the Plaza de San Antolín.

Tuesday April 11, the day of the Bando de la Huerta

Throughout the day hundreds of thousands of Murcianos dress up to celebrate the Bando de la Huerta in the parks and gardens of the city. The barracas are in full swing and are packed to the rafters, providing traditional outdoor eating, and if you don’t have a prior booking there will be very long queues. Many prefer to take a picnic or head for a “normal” bar or restaurant, and don’t even consider the possibility of parking anywhere near the centre!

10.00: “Huertana” Mass featuring the figure of the Virgen de la Fuensanta (the patron of Murcia) in the Plaza Belluga, outside the Cathedral. This is followed at 11.30 by the procession with the Virgen de la Fuensanta on the following route: Plaza Belluga, Apóstoles, Isidoro de la Cierva, Alejandro Seiquer, Plaza Santo Domingo, Trapería, Hernández Amores, Gran Vía Escultor Salzillo, Plaza Belluga.

13.30: Fireworks outside the Town Hall in the Glorieta de España.

17.00: The Bando de la Huerta parade sets out on its processional route: Calle Mozart, Alameda de Capuchinos, Marqués de Corvera, Plaza González Conde, Calle Sacerdotes Hnos. Cerón, Calle Princesa, Puente Nuevo, Plaza Cruz Roja, Avenida Teniente Flomesta, Gran Vía Salzillo, Plaza Fuensanta, Avenida de la Constitución, Plaza Circular, Ronda de Levante, Plaza Juan XXIII.

Wednesday April 12

10.00: A “Sardinera" Mass and floral offering in the cathedral of Murcia.

11.30: Children’s circus entertainment in the Plaza de la Paja.

17.00: The floats taking part in the “Batalla de las Flores” go on display in the morning and during the afternoon are decorated in preparation for Thursday's parade. Plaza Hernández Amores, Plaza Esteve Mora, Plaza Apóstoles, Jardín Floridablanca, Avenida de la Libertad, Calle Almudena.

17.30 to 19.30: Free children’s workshops in the Glorieta de España. 

20.00: The children’s Entierro de la Sardina, featuring floats on which all of the groups are children, starting on Avenida Gutiérrez Mellado. At the end of the parade the children’s Last Will and Testament will be read from the Town Hall balcony, a catafalque is ceremonially burnt in Avenida Teniente Flomesta and there is a firework display outside the Town Hall.

21.00: The Festival de Tunas begins at the Pérgola de San Basilio in the north of the city.

21.30: Folk music and dancing festival in Plaza de la Cruz Roja.

Thursday April 13

17.00: The Tunas festival continues in the streets of Murcia as groups of wandering minstrels serenade passers-by!

17.30 to 19.30: Free children’s workshops in the Glorieta de España.

18.00: The "Batalla de las Flores", the main floral parade of the Fiestas de la Primavera, begins near the Plaza Circular and concludes on the south bank of the River Segura this year in the Alameda de Colón, alongside the Jardín de Floridablanca. At the end of the parade the flowers are handed out to spectators, and there is a firework display.

Route: Alfonso X, Plaza Santo Domingo, Calle Alejandro Seiquer, Plaza Cetina, Calle Isidoro de la Cierva, Plaza Ceballos, Calle Ceballos, Avenida Teniente Flomesta, Puente Nuevo, Plaza Voluntarios, Calle Princesa, Calle Sacerdotes Hermanos Cerón.

18.30: The Arrival of the Sardine, which will take centre stage on Saturday evening, in a parade from the district of San Antolín to the Town Hall in the Glorieta de España.

20.00: The arrival of the Sardine is celebrated with a parade from Plaza Belluga, outside Murcia cathedral, to the Town Hall. This is followed at 22.30 by the official delivery ceremony featuring the Mayor of Murcia on the balcony of the Town Hall, and a firework display. Parade route: Plaza Belluga, Apóstoles, Isidoro de la Cierva, Plaza Cetina, Alejandro Seiquer, Plaza Santo Domingo, Santa Clara, Maestro Alonso, Gran Vía Salzillo, Plaza Martínez Tornel, Glorieta de España.

21.00: The Festival de Tunas continues at the Pérgola de San Basilio in the north of the city.

22.30: The Sardine is officially delivered to the Mayor of Murcia by the Mayor of Molina de Segura, followed by a firework display. 

Friday April 14

17.00 to 21.00: Music and dancing with La Calle Salsa in Avenida de la Libertad.

17.30 to 19.30: Children's workshops in the Glorieta de España.

20.00: The parade of the Last Will and Testament of the Sardine (“El Testamento de la Sardina”). Route: Avenida Gutiérrez Mellado, Jaime I, Plaza Fuensanta, Gran Vía, Plaza Martínez Tornel, Glorieta de España. The parade ends at 22.30 with the reading of the will of the Sardine on the balcony of the Town Hall.

21.30: The Tunas return to the Pérgola de San Basilio for the closing gala of the Costa Cálida International Tuna Festival (admission free).

22.30: The reading of the Last Will and Testament of the Sardine on the balcony of the Town Hall, followed by more fireworks.

Saturday April 15, the Entierro de la Sardina

11.00: The groups taking part in the main Entierro de la Sardina parade later in the day warm up in the streets of the city.

11.30 to 13.30: Free children’s workshops in the Glorieta de España.

12.30: The parade of Doña Sardina. Route: Plaza Belluga, Calle Salzillo, Trapería, Plaza Santo Domingo, Avenida Alfonso X el Sabio, Plaza Circular. The parade ends with firecrackers in the Plaza Circular at 14.00.

20.30: The Entierro de la Sardina, the biggest parade of the Fiestas de Primavera gets under way. Route: Avenida San Juan de la Cruz, Calle Santa Joaquina de Vedruna, Calle Princesa, Calle Alameda de Colón, Puente Viejo, Plaza Martínez Tornel, Gran Vía Salzillo, Plaza Fuensanta, Avenida de la Constitución, Plaza Circular, Avenida Primo de Rivera, Plaza Díez de Revenga.

Midnight: Music in the Plaza Martínez Tornel.

01.00 (approx): the parade ends in the Plaza Díaz de Revenga and the Sardine is ceremoniously cremated in the Plaza Martínez Tornel, next to the river and the Glorieta de España. This is followed by a huge firework display over the River Segura on the Pasarela Miguel Caballero (the bridge at the eastern end of the Glorieta de España, around 150 metres from the Puente Viejo).

Sunday April 16

9.30 to 13.15: In the park area alongside Calle Pintor Almela Costa the annual gathering of radio control naval modelling enthusiasts takes place, with various classes of remote control vessels sailing on the pond.

11.30: Open-air magic festival in the Auditorio Murcia Parque. 

14.00: The official closing ceremony of the "Barracas” in the Jardín de la Seda, although the majority remain open for a last long lunch before they are dismantle for another year.

For more upcoming events in the Region of Murcia go to the What's on section of Murcia Today.