If you are planning to travel to Barcelona during the first weeks of February you may want to know that there will be a Carnival going on. Probably Barcelona’s Carnival isn’t the most popular one in Spain, especially if we compare it to other places such as Cádiz or Tenerife. Anyway, this could be advantageous if we take into account that the city won’t be as crowded and therefore looking for an apartment in Barcelona will be much easier.
It is also said that Barcelona’s carnival is overshadowed by other festivals celebrated in diverse spots of Catalonia, such as Sitges or Tarragona. Depending on which are your plans for this intense party, you may want to consider the possibility of traveling by train to other surrounding spots of Barcelona.
Carnival in Barcelona
Anyway, the city center still keeps celebrating this amazing days, holding most of the Carnival celebrations together with other neighborhoods such as Poblenou or Sants. You will be able to witness a great amount of chariots, dancers, music, amazing costumes and much more while the procession moves down the street.
“The streets get full of colors, music, costumes and chariots during this magical days”
In Barcelona it’s quite frequent for celebrations to be organized locally by neighborhood associations. Moreover, people always find it a good excuse to take out some typical food to the streets, actually some neighborhoods also organize tortilla contests. So if you are willing to taste some real Spanish food this might be the right chance for you.
Carnival can become a pearl of your Barcelona city tour – imagine how many different people you may meet & communicate with. The atmosphere of total fun is the main trend during these days. So, if you are easily irritated by the noise – you’d better leave the city for several days.
Carnival in Sitges
If you are already in Barcelona you may want to be informed about other local celebrations, especially the one that is hold in Sitges, a surrounding town that hosts the biggest Carnival celebration in the area.
“Sitges is a coastal town 30 minutes away from Barcelona that hosts the most important Carnival in the area”
Sitges has often been called the gay capital of Europe. It is also widely known for its horror film festival and it’s crazy Carnival. In this coastal city of the Mediterranean the party starts on the 12th of February and lasts until de 18th.
Generally, a character called the Carnival King directs the celebrations. This person comes on the first day and marks the beginning of the festivities. The following week, on the 18th, a procession is hold where the king of the Carnival is killed, symbolizing the end of the celebration and therefore the end of the fun. This moment is also a must-see, as glamorous widows and black dressed transvestites crowd the streets in order to mourn the end of the party.
It’s really easy to get to Sitges from Barcelona. The cheapest and easiest way is by train. You can take it either from Sants or from Passeig de Gràcia. With a frecuency of around 15 minutes, the journey to Sitges doesn’t last longer than 30 or 40 minutes. The last train leaves at 00:06 and the first one at 5:45, so remember you will have to wait almost until dawn to come back to Barcelona, but that shouldn’t be a problem as you can be sure you will be entertained enough. Are you ready for some crazy Carnivals in the Mediterranean?
