Las Fallas De Valencia 2024

Las Fallas De Valencia 2024

The “Fallas” is a traditional celebration held annually in commemoration of Saint Joseph in the city of Valencia, Spain. The five main days celebrated are from 15 to 19 March, while the Mascletà, a pyrotechnic spectacle of firecracker detonation and fireworks display, takes place every day from 1 to 19 March.

• If you are looking to stay in Valencia during the event, check out the Vincci Palace, a 4 star hotel in the old town, close to all the city’s major attractions offering guests modern, chic rooms and a delicious breakfast buffet.
• The Catalonia Excelsior is another recommended option, with one of the best locations for The Fallas, just a one-minute walk to the Town Hall.
• Looking to watch The Fallas from your hotel balcony? Stay at the Meila Plaza Valencia, and enjoy amazing views of all the major events and pyrotechnics.

Gay events during The Fallas of Valencia

2 million visitors attend the Fallas festivities. Valencia is a gay-friendly and popular destination and gay venues are bustling with visitors throughout the weekend.

• Many of the gay bars and clubs host special Fallas parties and theme nights during the festivities. The city’s gay bars are all located in the centre, quite close to one another.
• Start your evening at The Muse for some pre party cocktails and end your evening at one of the late night parties held at Deseo 54. Meanwhile Bubu is popular with local bears and chasers and for cruising, pay a visit to Cross, you won’t be disappointed!

Mascletà

• From 1 to 19 March, every day at 2 pm in the Plaza del Ayuntamiento, the city vibrates to the sound of the traditional mascletà, a display of gunpowder explosions that beats out a unique sound. Afterwards, the city’s terraces fill up as people go to enjoy a typical aperitif and some traditional Valencian food under the Mediterranean sun.

La plantà. Early 15 to 16 March

• On the mornings (8am) of 15 to 16 March the plantà (installation) takes place, when the falleros and falleras, the men and women who construct the fallas (monuments), get together to work through the night on erecting them, to have them finished by dawn on the 15th.

Prize Giving Ceremony. 17 March

• On the morning of 17th, the falleros and their commissions go to the Plaza del Ayuntamiento to collect their prizes. Prior to the ceremony the jury visits all of the city’s sculptures, of which there are over 750 including the large and the children’s sculptures, in order to decide upon the winners.

Fireworks and the Nit del Foc. 18th March

• On March 18 from 1.30am , the sky of Valencia is filled with the light and colour of impressive firework displays. At 12 midnight, people gather on Paseo de la Alameda to enjoy the best display of colour and light. Not to mention the spectacular Nit del foc (Night of Fire), which is held during the early hours  and offers a fireworks display which is the only one of its kind in the world.

La Cremà (The Burning) 19th March

• On 19th March all of the sculptures, both those in the large and the children’s categories, go up in flames. At 10 pm the Cremà of the children’s sculptures begins. Two hours later it is the turn of the large monuments. The falla in the Plaza del Ayuntamiento is the last one to burn, at 1 am in the morning. It is always preceded by a small display of spectacular fireworks which fill the square with noise, light and colour, leading to the Cremà of the city’s last falla and with it the end of the festival.
• 22.00 h. – “Burning” of children’s fallas.
• 22.30 h. – “Burning” of the children’s fallas – first prize.
• 23.00 h. – “Burning” of the children’s fallas in the Town Hall Square.
• 00.00 h. – “Burning” of all the fallas of Valencia.
• 00.30 h. – “Burning” of the fallas – first prize.
• 01.00 h. – “Burning” of the fallas of the Town Hall Square.

Gay Valencia Neighbourhoods

• Most of the gay and gay-friendly bars and restaurants are dotted across the city in the Ruzafa and El Carmen districts:

Ruzafa District

• Ruzafa – Hip district Russafa is filled with coffee shops, American-style bakeries, cafes with terraces, late-night bars and clubs, and restaurants
• Cómic Café – Calle Sueca, 33. Popular bar with a large terrace to watch the world go by. Very busy at weekends.
• La Boba y el Gato Rancio – Calle Cuba, 59. Stylish gay café-bar with an open-air terrace. A great starting point for a night out.

El Carmen District

• El Carmen –  The buzzing old-town district of El Carme is the site of medieval gates Torres de Serranos and Torres de Quart, once part of the old city walls. Its narrow streets are home to cafes, tapas bars, fashion boutiques and souvenir shops, and revellers crowd the terraces and dance floors of its many late-night bars. Museums include the Institut Valencià d’Art Modern, displaying 20th-century international works.
• Café Trapezzio – Plaza del Músico López Chávarri 20. Gay-friendly café with a large terrace in the heart of the historic district of El Carme.
• Cross Meeting Bar C/ Juan de Mena, 7 – A late-night bar for mixed age groups. Occasional live entertainment.
• Café de las Horas – Conde de Almodóvar, 1 Combines old palatial stables with a baroque design in a cosmopolitan atmosphere. Cocktails, teas and homemade cakes.
• Take a private tailored tour of Valencia and discover the city at your own pace with a knowledgeable guide.

Dining Out

• Head to Central Market –  An 80,000 square foot market, constructed in 1928. An Art Nouveau building with a marvelous mix of colored tiles, stained glass panels, and a soaring dome reaching 100 feet, it is home to Central Bar, the only restaurant directly inside the market. It is the perfect venue for lunch, but bear in mind, queues can be quite long in the afternoon. (2.30 pm is the height of lunch hour in Valencia).
• Mercat Bar –  Owned by chef Quique Dacosta, known as the most successful and celebrated chef in Valencia, earning the title of one of the 50 Best Restaurants in the World. The menu at Mercat Bar is driven by seasonal ingredients in a market type setting that’s fun and casual.
• La Riua – A prize-winning restaurant known for its paella, authentically Spanish with tile floors, high-back wood chairs, and murals on the walls.

The History of the Fallas

• The Fallas festival is an expression of tradition, satire, art and sentimentality for one’s homeland,  where everything that is bad is burnt and reborn from the ashes to welcome a new season.
• Typically, just before spring, in the city streets, the guilds stopped working at night and burned  the rustic parot (a wooden device used for lighting) in front of each workshop.
• To feed the fire, these artisans accumulated old strips and chips of wood together with old junk collected from the neighbourhood. Afterwards, the parot would be brought to life with rags, giving it a human form, with an old hat as the head, and so the Ninot figure was born. These figures were then placed on a pedestal so they could be seen in the distance.
• The festivities program for the Fallas Week originates from the history of the Fallas to this day.
• An example of it is the “ninot indultat” (pardoned ninot), a tradition that was asked for by the people. This lead to an exhibition of the best figures, one per Falla, with the general public as the jury, and these were saved from being burnt.
• All the pardoned ninots are exhibited in the Fallas Museum.

Recommended Hotels in Valencia

Popular hotels currently trending with our readers in Valencia include:

Hospes Palau,    Zenit Valencia,    Vincci Palace,    Catalonia Excelsior