Fiestas, fairs and other events in 2015.

[Sparky]

Also from the Majorca Daily Bulletin

Fiestas, fairs and other events in 2015.

Thursday, 19 February-Sunday, 22 February:
Carnival
Each of the towns and villages celebrates Carnival in one way or another with "Rua" parades, notably in Alcudia and Pollensa, which, if I have my dates correct, should be on the Saturday, i.e. 21 February.

Friday, 27 March-Sunday, 29 March:
Santa Margalida - Spring Fair
Agricultural and craft fair with a tapas special on the Saturday evening. The dates have not been confirmed yet, but it is normally the case that the Sunday fair coincides with Palm Sunday, as a traditional blessing of the palms is a feature of the fair.

Thursday, 2 April-Monday, 6 April:
Easter
Needs no explanation, other than to point out that Pollensa does Easter more dramatically than elsewhere in the north with the procession of blood on Holy Thursday and the descent with the cross from the Calvari on Good Friday.

Thursday, 9 April-Sunday, 12 April:
Playa de Muro - Road Bike Festival
Very German, but nevertheless a good event for cyclists as it has plenty of exhibitors as well as workshops for fitness and races. Dates to be finally confirmed but are scheduled for these days.

Friday, 10 April-Sunday, 12 April:
Puerto Alcudia - Boat Show and Sepia (cuttlefish) Gastronomy Fair
The annual pre-season warm-up fair with its mix of boats and all manner of seafaring crafts plus other crafts - of the eating and drinking varieties - plus of course all those specialist dishes made from everyone's favourite rubbery mollusc of the deep, the cuttlefish.

Friday 10 April-Sunday, 12 April:
Muro - Sant Francesc Spring Fair
Celebrating Saint Francis, the day of the fair on Sunday typically features horses, black pigs, crafts and classic cars. Giants procession and a concert after midnight on the Saturday are usual. Tapas route on the Friday evening.

Sunday, 12 April:
Pollensa Half Marathon
From Pollensa town into the port and back again. For more information and entries, go to the Elitechip website - elitechip.net.

Saturday, 18 April-Sunday, 19 April:
Pollensa Wine Fair, Sant Domingo cloister
Attracting over 30 wine producers from Majorca, many of them small bodegas, the better day is the Saturday as things go on till the evening, meaning more time to drink (sorry, taste).

Friday, 24 April-Saturday, 25 April:
Alcudia - 360 Degrees of Culture
Expanded to a two-day event last year, the 360 degrees refer to all sorts of cultural activities - music, literature, theatre etc. (To be confirmed but has become established on the weekend before the start of the tourist season.)

Wednesday, 29 April-Sunday, 3 May:
Puerto Pollensa - Seaplane Splash-In
The seaplanes return for a third time and more are expected than before. The schedule appears to involve the planes heading off to the mainland, so it's not quite certain when the military base will be opened for the public to come and see the planes (probably the Saturday; be sure to take ID in order to be allowed in).

Friday, 1 May-Sunday, 3 May:
Alcudia - April (Andalusian) Fair
Started last year, the fair is inspired by the April fair in Seville. Pollensa also has an April fair, though information regarding this is nigh impossible to find. It may be the weekend before this fair. Andalusian music and dance, horses, gastronomy.

Sunday, 3 May:
Buger - Fira des Jai
A strange fair which was revived in the late 1970s. It celebrates an old custom of grandparents returning to the village from the large markets of Inca and Sineu. The Jai is a figure who welcomes them back along with the children of the village. Agriculture, music and folk dance.

Thursday, 7 May:
Inca - Dijous Gros Fair
The old May fair in Inca, it was brought back two years ago having been dropped in the early twentieth century.

Saturday, 9 May:
Puerto Alcudia - Ironman 70.3 triathlon
The half Ironman. Expect the now traditional complaints regarding the inconvenience of road closures on the day.

Saturday, 9 May-Sunday, 10 May:
Campanet - May Fair
Craft, agriculture and livestock.

Saturday, 23 May-Sunday, 24 May:
Can Picafort - Nautical Sports and Calamari Gastronomy Fair
An innovation last year which celebrated the fact that Can Picafort's new yacht club had finally been completed the year before. Dates to be confirmed, but these are probably right.

Sunday, 7 June:
Pollensa - Corpus Christi
Charming and eccentric, Pollensa is not unique in its dance of Sant Joan Pelós (a representation of John the Baptist), but it is when it comes to the two girls of the town who carry the eagles and who wear dresses embroidered with jewels donated for the occasion by women of the town.

Wednesday, 24 June:
Muro - Sant Joan Fiestas
The first of the summer fiestas, the midsummer celebration of John the Baptist is significant for Muro in that he is the patron and that the parish church bears his name.

Monday, 29 June:
Puerto Alcudia (Buger, Colonia Sant Pere and Puerto Pollensa) - Sant Pere Fiestas
The fiestas for the patron saint of fishermen. Puerto Alcudia stages the most lavish of events with the procession and flotilla on the 29th and one of the most spectacular fireworks displays of the summer. Low-key by comparison in Puerto Pollensa but more going on in Colonia Sant Pere and indeed inland Buger; Saint Peter is, oddly, the village's patron saint.

Wednesday, 1 July-Thursday, 2 July:
Alcudia La Victoria - La Mare de Déu Fiestas
A very Alcudia affair. A pilgrimage to the mountain hermitage of La Victoria. You don't get any DJs pumping out music after midnight. Folk dance, rum, paellas, camomile offerings are the order of the days.

Sunday, 12 July:
Campanet - Sant Victoria Fiestas
The major summer fiestas in Campanet, a feature of which is the Summer Carnival that attracts so many people that parking backs up to the motorway.

Sunday, 19 July (or Sunday, 12 July):
Puerto Pollensa - Virgen del Carmen Fiestas
I'm taking a punt on the final day being the 19th. The rule has been that the climax to Puerto Pollensa's main summer fiestas is on the Sunday nearest to the day of the Virgin itself, which is 16 July. Hence, it would be the Sunday after and not before, as was the case last year.

Monday, 20 July:
Sa Pobla (Santa Margalida) - Santa Margalida Fiestas
Santa Margalida is one of two patron saints in Sa Pobla (the other is Jaume). Consequently, the two fiestas roll into one, but Margalida is the more important, reflecting the status of the saint who gave her name to the oratory in Crestatx, which was where people came from in order to populate the then new town of Sa Pobla in 1300. Santa Margalida, obviously, also celebrates the saint but the fiestas there are not the town's main summer event.

Saturday, 25 July:
Alcudia (Sa Pobla) - Sant Jaume Fiestas
The old town of Alcudia's annual fiestas in honour of the town's patron, Sant Jaume. A feature is the "We are citizens of Pollentia", a celebration of the Roman past that includes a special party in honour of Roman gods. By special party, one means DJs from 11pm.

End July to end August:
Pollensa Festival
Time was when we knew the line-up by April. Nowadays it's not normally announced until June. The festival returned more to its central music roots last year. The concerts are mainly classical but they can often throw up surprises with other styles of music. Usually there is a concert before the start of the La Patrona fiestas with the others being staged after the fiestas.

Saturday, 1 August-Sunday, 2 August:
Playa de Muro - Fiestas
Predominantly evening activities on the two days. Music, giants, gastronomy and a good fireworks display on the beach by the Albufera canal to bring the curtain down.

Sunday, 2 August:
Pollensa - La Patrona Fiestas (Moors and Christians)
The greatest of the summer fiestas in the north. There are still the music parties, even if they have been cut in terms of scale and times that they used to go on to. 2 August is of course the day of the Alborada hymn being played at 5am and the grand street theatre of the Moors and Christians battle at 7pm.

Sunday, 2 August:
Son Serra de Marina - Fiestas
Relatively low-key, as befits this laidback and slightly odd place. On 2 August there is Son Serra's version of Can Picafort's duck release and swim as well as a pirates' battle.

Tuesday, 4 August-Saturday, 8 August:
Sa Pobla Jazz Festival
These should be the dates, if they follow last year's pattern. The festival line-up won't be known for some time but it always includes major international names.

Friday, 14 August-Sunday, 16 August:
Cala San Vicente - Fiestas
These dates are open to change. The Cala's fiestas have been shunted around over recent years, but these dates match how things were last year. A highlight is the jazz and trempó (Majorcan salad) on the street in the upper part of the resort.

Saturday, 15 August:
Can Picafort - Mare de Déu d'Agost Fiestas
The longest of the summer fiestas and the one with the most spectacular of all the fiestas' fireworks displays on the 15th, which is also the day of the duck release and swim. The town hall is hoping that live ducks might return this summer. Doubtful that they will, but we'll see.

[Sparky]

And from September until the end of the year :-

Sunday, 6 September:
Santa Margalida - La Beata Fiestas
Along with Sa Pobla's Sant Antoni, the La Beata fiestas are the north's most significant for attracting island-wide interest and various dignitaries and VIPs. The La Beata procession (always held on the first Sunday of September) is something you should get to witness at least once.

Sunday, 20 September:
Alcudia Half Marathon
This date is yet to be confirmed.

Sunday, 20 September:
Santa Margalida - Almond Fair (Sant Mateu)
One of any number of themed fairs, Santa Margalida's is devoted to the almond, an important crop for the town down the years.

Saturday, 26 September:
Puerto Alcudia - Ironman 140.6 triathlon
The full Ironman. This will be the second staging of the only full Ironman triathlon to be held on Majorca.

Sunday, 27 September:
Binissalem - Vermar wine harvest fair and fiestas
Always popular with folk in the north - the wine may just have something to do with this - there is much more besides the wine, such as the extremely messy great grape battle which is staged earlier in the fiestas (probably Saturday, 19 September).

Tuesday, 29 September:
Campanet - Sant Miquel Fiestas
In honour of Campanet's patron saint, the fiestas are relatively subdued, the main fiestas' emphasis having been pushed to July when the weather can be guaranteed.

Friday, 2 October-Sunday, 4 October:
Alcudia - Autumn Fair
The largest of the autumn fairs right in the north. Animals, agriculture, local produce, music and of course a fair of the fun variety.

Monday, 12 October:
Buger - Fira de Ses Rondalles
The Rondalles are Majorcan folk tales, so the Buger fair is very traditional in that it celebrates the culture of these stories. Folk music, dance, craft and artisan work. Originally held the same weekend as Alcudia's fair, it was moved to coincide with the national holiday of 12 October.

Sunday, 25 October:
Inca - First Autumn Fair
The dates for the Inca fairs haven't been officially announced yet, but I'm presuming they will be as set out here. The rule is that the first fair takes place on the first Sunday after Saint Luke, which is Sunday, 18 October.

Sunday, 1 November:
Inca - Second Autumn Fair

Sunday, 8 November:
Inca - Third Autumn Fair

Saturday, 14 November-Sunday, 15 November:
Muro - Pumpkin Autumn Fair
Muro's theme is the pumpkin which means, therefore, the grand contest to find the largest pumpkin that has been grown and all sorts of pumpkin-based cuisine.

Saturday, 14 November-Sunday, 15 November:
Pollensa - Artisan Craft Autumn Fair
Good amounts of live music helped to breathe new life last year into a fair whose attendance had been dwindling but which had also benefited in 2013 from exhibitions of innovative, contemporary artisan design.

Thursday, 19 November:
Inca - Dijous Bo
The largest of all the fairs in Majorca with a tradition that goes back to the Middle Ages.

Saturday, 28 November-Sunday, 29 November:
Sa Pobla - Autumn Fair
All manner of exhibitions - agricultural, animals, embroideries etc. - the fair is preceded the weekend before by the gatherings of giants and xeremiers (bagpipers). The afternoon of the Saturday (21 November) should see a grand procession of dancing giants and hundreds of bagpipe players. Noisy.

Sunday, 20 December:
Muro - Christmas Fair
Probably needs no explanation.