There is always a festival happening somewhere in Andalucia.  Most towns hold their ferias in the summer, they consist of parades, concerts, bullfights, fairgrounds dancing, fireworks and they go on well into the night. 

The most outstanding events include:

February/March

Carnaval (Carnival) :  Fancy dress parades and general merry making happen in many places (the wildest in Cadiz) in Febrary and/or March, usually ending on the Tuesday 47 days before Easter Sunday.

March/April

Semana Santa (Holy Week):  The week leading up to Easter Sunday. Parades of lavishly bedecked holy images, long lines of nazarenos (penitents sometimes hooded), and big crowds, in almost every city, town and village.  In major cities there are daily processions from Palm Sunday to Easter Sunday; smaller places may omit Monday and Tuesday.  Sevilla has the most famous celebrations; Malaga, Granada, Cordoba, Arcos de la Frontera. Jaen, Baeza, Ubeda and Huercal-Overa also stage spectacular processions.  Village events can be just as unique and touching.

April

 Feria de Abril (April Fair):  Sevilla stages this week-long party in late April.

Romeria de la Virgen de la Cabeza:  Hundreds of thousands of pilgrims mass at the Santuario de la Virgen de la Cabeza near Andujar, Jaen province, on the last Sunday in April.

May

Feria del Caballo (Horse Fair):  Held at Jerez de la Frontera in early May, this features music, dance and other events aswell as lots of colourful equestrian activities.

Cruces de Mayo (May Crosses):  Crosses are placed in squares and patios in many towns, notably in and around Granada, on about 3 May.  They are decorated with flowers and become the focus for temporary bars, food stalls, music and dancing.

Concurso de Patios Cordobeses (Courtyard Competition):  Scores of beautiful private courtyards open to the public for two weeks in early May in Cordoba.

May/June

Romeria del Rocio (Pilgrimage to El Rocio):  This festive pilgrimage of up to one million people to El Rocio in Huelva province is held on Pentecost weekend, the seventh day after Easter.

June

Hogueras de San Juan (Bonfires of San Juan):  Bonfires and fireworks, especially on beaches, are the heart of this midsummer celebration on 23 June.  Many thousands of people camp overnight along Andalucia´s beaches.

July

Dia de la Virgen del Carmen (the feast day of the patron of fisherfolk):  On 16 July, the Virgen´s image is carried into the sea, or paraded upon it amid a flotilla of small boats, at many coastal towns.

August

Feria de Malaga (Malaga Fair):  This most animated of all the summer ferias runs for nine days from one weekend to the next in mid-August.

September

Moros y Cristianos (Moors and Christians):  This re-enactment on 14 and 15 September of the 1568 Musli, rebellion in Valor, Granada province, is the most colourful of several Andalucian events commemorating Muslim/Christian conflicts.

September/October

Fiestas de Otono (Autumn Festival):  Jerez de la Frontera´s three-week grape harvest celebrations in September/October, with horse races and parades, flamenco dancing and an air show.