Every year Spain celebrates the shortest day of the year, the summer solstice, with the Fiesta de Sant Joan – this year celebrated on the 23rd June. The Sant Joan festival has a few variants in its name, but in Catalonia and Barcelona it is most often referred to as ‘Nit de Sant Joan’, also ‘La revetlla de Sant Joan’ and ‘Verbenas de Sant Joan’.
This eve is one of Barcelona’s biggest, craziest and funnest parties of the year. The main fireworks display is held at 19:30h in Plaça Jaume in El Gòtico, welcoming the flame of Canigò; the fire as a symbol of abundance, purity and fertility. After this more than 70,000 locals and tourists alike flock to Barcelona’s beaches, to carry on festivities, eating, drinking and dancing. There is no official organised celebration – everyone tends to do their own thing, celebrating with firecrackers and bonfires all over Barcelona. The day after the Nit de Sant Joan is a public holiday, so the parties on the 23rd go on until the early hours of the morning, with the Chiringuitos (bars on the beach) staying open all throughout the night.
Most bars and clubs organise big Sant Joan parties, so be sure to check out the event listings to find out what’s going on and where.
Official website here.
