A guide to enjoy the San Juan Bonfires in Alicante and the bullfighting fair

Tips to have the best Feria de Hogueras of your life

The San Juan Bonfires are Alicante’s festival of the year, which lasts 5 days and is the most eagerly awaited event by the people of Alicante and the thousands of tourists from all over the world who flock to “Las Hogueras” (Bonfires) every year to enjoy one of the most iconic and popular festivals in Spain.

More commonly known under the name “Les Fogueres de Sant Joan“, these fiestas are held every year at the end of June, making them the perfect prelude to the summer, where music, colour, festivities, the smell of gunpowder and fun are all guaranteed. And bullfighting too! According to the calendar, the Bullfighting Fair of Las Hogueras de San Juan is the one that kicks off the summer season.

If you have never had the opportunity to experience them in first person and you are looking forward to it, take note because in Servitoro we have prepared a guide to enjoy the San Juan Bonfires of Alicante like a real “foguerer“, where we tell you absolutely everything you need to have a great time. It is sure to be an unforgettable plan!

What are the Alicante Bonfires?

Las Hogueras or Bonfires are Alicante’s big festival. This city is the capital of the Costa Blanca, located in the heart of the Mediterranean. It boasts a magnificent climate all year round, especially when the Bonfires are celebrated, and an exceptional range of stunning beaches, making it one of Spain’s main tourist destinations.

Les Fogueres de Sant Joan, a festival declared to be of International Tourist Interest, stems from the tradition of burning useless objects at the arrival of the summer solstice. Nowadays, more than 200 “bonfires” are set up all over the city, which are papier-mâché monuments with a satirical theme, very similar to those of Las Fallas in Valencia, which are present throughout the festivities, until the last day when they are burnt in what is known as the night of “la Cremà“, which is simply spectacular.

Similarly, during all the fiestas the “Mascletàs” take place in the legendary Plaza de los Luceros, in the centre of Alicante, which is an impressive firecracker competition that every day makes the city vibrate, and begins with the legendary phrase; “Senyor pirotècnic, pot començar la mascletá” (Mr. pyrotechnic, you may begin the mascletá).

Apart from the mascletàs, there are many other events such as the opening speech, “La Plantá”, which is the day on which the bonfires are set up and the festivities officially begin, the Cabalgata del Ninot, parades, processions and the offering of flowers to the Virgen del Remedio.

When are the San Juan Bonfires 2024?

As every year, the San Juan Bonfires 2024 officially start on the 20th of June with La Plantà and end on the 24th of June with La Cremà, which puts an end to the festivities by burning the bonfires, after the firing of the Monumental Palm Tree from the Castle of Santa Bárbara at midnight.

During these 5 days, music and festivities take over the city throughout the day, with a multitude of events. However, the most famous events of the Alicante Bonfires are undoubtedly the Mascletàs, which you really have to experience to see what it feels like. It is a spectacle of gunpowder and noise that every day makes the city tremble, gathering thousands of people in a square.

During the evening and until the early hours of the morning, the streets and squares of Alicante become meeting points to celebrate and have fun, where you can find the classic racós and barracas, which are enclosures with tables and chairs where people gather to dine and dance for as long as they can hold out.

Following five intense days, the Bonfires of San Juan come to an end on the night of the 24th of June with the cremà (burning of the bonfires). On that night, from midnight onwards, each of the monuments that have been decorating the streets of the city are set alight, which are then extinguished by the firemen as part of the traditional “banyà”, which is one of the most eagerly awaited and fun moments, as the firemen bathe everyone present with water from the hoses.

The Alicante Bonfires Bullfighting Fair

Traditionally, Alicante has been a city with a great love of bullfighting, and the Bonfires Bullfighting Fair is one of the most awaited moments for the people of Alicante, and for bullfighting enthusiasts from all over Spain, as it is a fair that coincides with the beginning of the summer.

The fair takes place in the fabled Alicante Bullring, located in the centre of the city, opposite the Plaza de España, and is hailed as one of the oldest working bullrings in the Valencian Community.

It is a second rate bullring with a capacity for 15,235 people, which was inaugurated in 1847, with a famous bullfight in which “Lagartijo”, “Guerrita” and “Lagartija” fought. In spite of its more than a century of history, it has only had to mourn the death of one bullfighter, that of the Sevillian bullfighter Manuel Día, better known as “Minuto Chico”, on 3 September 1911.

The bullfighting festivities usually take place from 18 to 25 June, and are divided into bullfights, rejones (mounted bullfights) and novilladas (bullfights with young bulls).

All the bullfights start at seven o’clock in the evening, although it is important to go to the bullring early enough to find your seat, especially if it is your first time there.

The Alicante Bonfires Bullfighting Fair has a long tradition of bringing together the best bullfighters out there. At the 2023 fair, for example, the people of Alicante had the opportunity to see bullfighters such as José María Manzanares, Sebastián Castella, El Fandi, El Juli, Roca Rey and Morante de la Puebla.

Buying tickets for the Alicante Bullring during the Bonfires of San Juan

Since it coincides with the city’s biggest festival, the Alicante bullring always hangs the sold-out sign and tickets run out quickly, so if this year you are planning to go to the Fogueres de Sant Joan and you want to go to the bullfights, we recommend that you buy your tickets as soon as possible.

Servitoro will help you buy your tickets for the Alicante bullring in the Bonfires Bullfighting Fair, and you can do it in advance and online, from the comfort of your home, without having to travel or queue in long lines at the box office.