During the first week in February the town of Bocairent celebrates its Moors and Christians fiesta. The festivities are held from February 2 till February 6 in honour of Saint Blas – the patron of the town. Almost every Spanish village, town or city has its own Moors and Christians festivity sometime during the year celebrating the victory of Christians over Moors in 13th century. However, the one in Bocairent is one of the best, mainly thanks to its long tradition. So what can we look forward to during those 4 days?
Friday 2nd February – Les Caixes
The first day of the fiesta starts with “Nit de Caixes”. All the music bands and participants of the parade get together to march in the streets to demonstrate the proclamation of Saint Blas as a patron of the town.
Saturday 3rd February – La Entrada
The festivities continue with “La Entrada” that symbolizes the arrival of Moors in Spain. The parade starts during the day with a spectacular procession of Christians accompanied by paso doble music and continues with Moors arriving at night. Over 2000 people participate in this amazing parade of floats.
Sunday 4th February – Día del patrón Sant Blai
Sunday is the most important day of the celebrations. The highlight of the day is the procession of Saint Blas that you can watch in the main square.
Monday 5th February – Día de moros y cristianos
Monday is the day of battles between Moors and Christians. Men simulate face to face fights and you can enjoy multiple fireworks and a great quantity of gunpowder fired in the main streets of the town.
Tuesday 6th February – Día del Santo Cristo
The last day is dedicated to Jesus Christ and the colourful processions end their journey in a chapel.
If you plan to visit this unique fiesta for one day only, we recommend either Saturday or Sunday. To get to Bocairent you can take a short distance train from Valencia to Xàtiva and then transfer to regional train to Ontinyent. Another option is to go by Blablacar. Enjoy!
