April and May are typically the time of year where every Spanish woman regrets having that extra piece of torrija (a delicious sweet fried bread consumed during Easter) and tries to squeeze herself into something which was neither created for speed nor comfort. I’m talking about the traje de flamenca (the iconic Spanish flamenco dresses) for the annual Feria. We were fortunate enough to experience Feria in Sevilla last year and we are still coming down from the buzz.
What is Feria?
Feria is basically the big annual fair of each town. These fairs are huge in Spain, especially in AndalucÃa and allow Spaniards to do what they do best – party.
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The feria in Sevilla is the most famous, commencing on the Monday two weeks after Easter Sunday of Semana Santa. Normally known as La Feria de Abril or La Feria de la Primavera (if it happens to occur in May), the feria in Sevilla is a week full of dancing, eating, drinking, socialising and daily events, such as bullfights and horse parades. The fun lasts all week, with many locals partying every spare minute of the day until the festivities end. We even knew people who would work during the day and return to the feria each night after work and pull an all-nighter, dancing the night away until the morning.
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- Feria de abril is a colourful event
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- Dress to impress at Feria
Travel-Ling Tip: Do as the locals do and pace yourself. Spaniards are experts at pulling all-nighters, without getting too drunk. Feria is not about how much you can drink, but more how long you can dance, socialise and stay out.
Approximately one million people attend feria in Sevilla, and it’s no wonder; it is THE place to be for the entire week. The city itself becomes a fashion parade, with men and women showcasing their traditional AndalucÃan dress (the stunning trajes de flamenca are my favourite) through the streets, often by fancy horse carriages. But like so many festivities in Spain, La Feria had quite humble beginnings. Originating as a humble cattle market in 1847, the casetas (tents, which translate to ‘little houses’) were erected to sell livestock. Nowadays, over a thousand of brightly decorated casetas, adorned with pretty paper lanterns, line the grounds of El Real de la Feria (the fair grounds), filled with food, drinks and lively music.
All of the casetas are full of music and merriment
Travel-Ling Tip: Sample and enjoy the traditional food. We love our croquetas and tortilla. Vino dulce is also pretty nice (once you get past how strong it is!)
It was such an experience to walk past each caseta and see a different party going on in each one. Individual groups were dancing sevillanas (a popular flamenco-based dance) to the loud flamenco music blaring from each tent. Sadly, the majority of the casetas at the Feria in Sevilla are privately owned and not accessible to the public. Thankfully there were still a few large casetas put on by the local council for us ‘plebs’ but the liveliest ones were the ones privately owned and paid for by corporations, political parties or wealthy families, complete with their own security guard at the front as well! That being said, the public casetas were still great, with groups dancing and singing along to the upbeat flamenco, flowing alcohol (and yet no drunkenness!) and cheap food, including the Spanish staples of potato tortilla, croquetas and bocadillos (mini sandwiches).
One of the stands serving Vino Dulce (Sweet Wine)
Travel-Ling Tip: Towards the entrance of the casetas is a large map, showing who owns which caseta. Stop here and check out where the public ones are, otherwise you will be walking around for a while to find one, as there are only seven out of 1,000 accessible for the public.
Feria de abril is THE place to be all week
El Real de la Feria doesn’t just house the casetas though. There is also a huge fairground, called La Calle del Infierno (The Street of Hell – clearly named by the tired parents of kids running on a nasty combination of lack of sleep, adrenaline and sugar), complete with theme rides, raffle booths and plenty of carnival food and drink. The total space the fairground covers is an impressive 1.2km2 – plenty of room for fun and debauchery. Feria in Sevilla has an amazing and festive atmosphere, and one the big kid in me loved to soak up. I couldn’t resist a ride in the huge ferris wheel, taking in unbeatable views of the whole fairground. It was quite astounding to see how huge and spread out the Real de la Feria actually was!
La Calle del Infierno (The Street of Hell)
Travel-Ling Tip: If you value your feet, wear comfy shoes! The fairground itself is quite huge to walk (or dance) through, and if you are staying in the old centre of Sevilla, you have a bit of a walk to get to the feria grounds (as it’s over the bridge, on the other side of the city).
The feria grounds spread out over 1.2 km²!
La Portada
La Portada is designed and built each year for Feria
Whilst the showgrounds were impressive, the entrance to the Feria has to be my favourite – La Portada (the main gate). This huge gate, lit up in thousands of lights, overlooks el real de la feria. The gate showcases a new design each year and is constructed solely for the event. In fact, the whole fairground is temporary, and only constructed for the feria, before being packed away at the end of the event for the following year.
La Portada is an impressive entrance
What to Wear to Feria (for the ladies)
Designer feria dresses is big business during feria
Now, let’s talk about THE DRESS. I’ve always wanted to wear one since I saw them years ago. As soon as I knew I was going to be in Spain for the Auxiliares Program, I vowed to myself that I would save up and buy one. It’s a rite of passage for so many Spanish women and it was a dream of mine to also partake in this tradition. Searching high and low in multiple cities, I found the perfect one for me. The whole process of searching through different colours and designs and trying different dresses on was like buying a formal (prom) or wedding dress. So for me, it was definitely a fun part of the process.
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- Getting into character
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- The walk home from feria is a stunning one
At first, I was a little self-conscious walking around Sevilla in my dress, especially as I did not hold back on the torrijas during Semana Santa! However, the nerves quickly melted away and my inner flamenco diva came out. Maybe it was due to the lack of breath or blood circulation (did I mention this thing was tight?), but I was on cloud 9, feeling like a million bucks, and definitely part of the cool crowd. I was even stopped multiple times by tourists asking if they could take photos with me! Being the showpony that I am, I couldn’t say no, putting on my best Spanish accent as possible (we don’t want them to feel gypped that their photo souvenir with a Spanish diva was actually with an Australian wanna-be, right?).
The Plaza de Espa̱a Рthe place where I became a tourist attraction
Travel-Ling Tip: The style of the dress (mermaid) is quite tight around the thighs, so be prepared to walk a lot slower than usual! If, like me, you weren’t blessed with inner-thigh gap, stockings might help reduce chafing (sorry for the TMI, but us girls have got to stick together, much like my thighs in this dress!).
Taking in the beautiful scenery, away from the feria crowds
Travel-Ling Tip: Nothing is sexier than confidence, so once you’ve squeezed yourself into the dress, own it!
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- The Plaza de España is the perfect spot for a photo op
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- And it’s one of my favourite places in Sevilla
Have you been to Feria in Sevilla? Or any other Ferias? What did you think? Comment below!
One of my favourite pics from the weekend
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Loved the inside know-how on how to enjoy Feria in Sevilla, and your own huge enjoyment of it – the whereabouts, food, dress and fun atmosphere. Also the pics – really good!
Thank you! Glad you enjoyed it! It brings back so many wonderful memories! Now just to find another excuse to wear the dress!
I’ve read about the Spanish mega-parties quite a bit and they always look absolutely mesmerizing. I knew the Sevilla one was huge, but didn’t realize it was the most famous. Loved your photos and your outfit looked great. Perfect choice 🙂
Mesmerising is a great way to describe it! Sevilla is the most famous, but other ferias are just as good! And thanks for your lovely compliments! 🙂
Those feria dresses are beautiful, but definitely look mighty tight! I can imagine though that once you get it on though, you can get into the spirit of the event. It must be a long week of festivities and late nights!
Yes, the dress was tight, but still felt amazing once on! I don’t know how the Spanish can do it, partying each night! Just after one night we were exhausted! :p
Feria looks like great fun, although I don’t think I could pull and all-nighter. And I am glad to be a man, because it would be difficult to pour myself into one of those flamenco dresses, especially after all the torrijas I would eat!
Haha The torrijas get me every time! Feria was fun, but we struggled to stay out all night as well. I admire the Spanish and their endurance for a good party!
This has also been adapted in the Philippines from the Spaniards during the colonial years and is still somewhat practiced to this day. It’s called “perya” which is derived from “feria”. It’s not as grand and charming as Spain’s, but definitely authentic in a more Filipino way!
That sounds wonderful Erica! I would love to visit Philippines and see Perya! Do they have similar costumes?
Thanks for sharing! I have never heard of Feria, and would definitely love to participate in such an awesome and amazing carnival! I love the lights in the area!
Thanks Bernard! Feria is such a great event in Spain, and is celebrated in most AndalucÃan towns (each with their own dates and flare for the event!).
I lived in the north of Spain for a couple of years, which I loved. But, I never made it to Andalucia for the big festivals that everyone talks about. Articles like yours make me want to go even more. Hopefully I can make it out to one of the ferias soon (and maybe I’ll get the dress too!).
Where did you live in Spain Natalie? We didn’t get to see as much of the north as we would have liked. All the more reason to return though!
It looks like an amazing week of festivities! Was it hard finding accommodation though?
Being the OCD travel planner that I am, I had no trouble finding accommodation, as I booked months in advance. I daresay it would be very difficult to find something at the last minute (especially in a budget range). Couch surfing, staying with friends/family or airbnb would be the best bet, unless you are super organised and book something in advance. We managed to get a beautiful loft room, right in the old quarter for a decent price through booking.com 🙂
Looking fabulous! This is one event I’ll have to add to my bucket list – the Spanish sure know how to party! And it sounds like something I would absolutely love – I love that it’s more about dancing the night away than getting blind drunk!
Thanks love! Yes, you would love it! The music and atmosphere is electrifying, not to mention the yummy food! (including potato tortilla! haha).
You look beautiful! The Spanish really know how to party- everyone should attend a Spanish celebration at least once during their travels. Great tips as well, especially on comfy shoes!
Thank you so much Mar! Yes, comfy shoes are definitely key here. And I agree, life isn’t complete without attending at least one Spanish celebration! 🙂
Having been under Spanish colonisation for almost three centuries, Filipino culture is incredibly infused with similar traditions. There are fairs such as these called ‘perya’ where in they celebrate with having an assortment of theme park like rides and traditional games you can participate in. I would love to experience a feria in Sevilla myself! Hopefully I can visit soon! Thanks for this wonderful insight!
Perya sounds great! I’d love to visit there for it! I think the Philippines needs to be added to our future travels (and sooner, rather than later!) 🙂