The Seville Fair (officially and in , 'Seville April Fair') is held in the

Andalusia Andalusia ( , ; , ) is the southernmost autonomous communities of Spain, autonomous community in Peninsular Spain, located in the south of the Iberian Peninsula, in southwestern Europe. It is the most populous and the second-largest autonomou ...

n capital of

Seville Seville ( ; , ) is the capital and largest city of the Spain, Spanish autonomous communities of Spain, autonomous community of Andalusia and the province of Seville. It is situated on the lower reaches of the Guadalquivir, River Guadalquivir, ...

Spain Spain, or the Kingdom of Spain, is a country in Southern Europe, Southern and Western Europe with territories in North Africa. Featuring the Punta de Tarifa, southernmost point of continental Europe, it is the largest country in Southern Eur ...

. The fair generally begins two weeks after the , or

Easter Easter, also called Pascha ( Aramaic: פַּסְחָא , ''paskha''; Greek: πάσχα, ''páskha'') or Resurrection Sunday, is a Christian festival and cultural holiday commemorating the resurrection of Jesus from the dead, described in t ...

Holy Week. The fair officially begins at midnight on Monday, and runs six days, ending on the following Sunday. Each day the fiesta begins with the

parade A parade is a procession of people, usually organized along a street, often in costume, and often accompanied by marching bands, floats, or sometimes large balloons. Parades are held for a wide range of reasons, but are usually some variety ...

of carriages and riders, at midday, carrying Seville's leading citizens which make their way to the bullring, , where the bullfighters and breeders meet. For the duration of the fair, the fairgrounds and a vast area on the far bank of the Guadalquivir River are totally covered in rows of (individual decorated marquee tents which are temporarily built on the fairground). These usually belong to prominent families of Seville, groups of friends, clubs, trade associations and political parties. From around nine at night until six or seven the following morning, at first in the streets and later only within each , there are crowds partying and dancing , drinking

sherry Sherry ( ) is a fortified wine produced from white grapes grown around the city of Jerez de la Frontera in Andalusia, Spain. Sherry is a drink produced in a variety of styles made primarily from the Palomino grape, ranging from light versio ...

, or , and eating

tapas Tapas () are appetisers or snacks in Spanish cuisine. They can be combined to make a full meal and are served cold (such as mixed olives and cheese) or hot (such as , which are battered, fried baby squid; or , spicy potatoes). In some bars ...

. This fair also has an amusement park that comes with it and has many games to play along with rollercoasters to ride.

History

The Fair dates back to 1846 when it was originally organized as a livestock fair by two councillors born in Northern Spain, Basque José María Ybarra and Catalan Narciso Bonaplata. Queen Isabel II agreed to the proposal, and on 18 April 1847 the first fair was held at the Prado de San Sebastian, on the outskirts of the city. It took only one year before an air of festivity began to transform the fair, due mainly to the emergence of the first three casetas, belonging to the Duke and Duchess of Montpensier, the Town Hall, and the Casino of Seville. During the 1920s, the fair reached its peak and became the spectacle that it is today.

Location

Since 1973, the ''Feria de Abril'' takes place at the Real de la Feria, an area of 24 blocks (450,000 m²) which is located between Los Remedios and Tablada. In 2012 there were 1048 ''casetas''. The streets of the Real are named after famous bullfighters such as

Juan Belmonte Juan Belmonte García (14 April 1892 – 8 April 1962) was a Spanish bullfighter. He fought in a record number of bull fights and was responsible for changing the art of bullfighting. He had minor deformities in his legs which forced him to de ...

and Pascual Márquez. Next to the Real is the ''Calle del Infierno'' (Hell Road), an amusement park which offers many recreational activities; a circus is usually set furthest from the Real on the back of the Parque de los Príncipes. Construction of the ''portada'' (the main gate) starts months in advance, and it takes several weeks to clear the place after the end of the fair. Plans to relocate the Fair to the Charco de la Pava have existed for the past 20 years, but the local government is yet to present any plans to transform the Real. For years the Charco de la Pava has been used as the main parking lot for fair attendees.

Pescaíto

Saturday night in the ''Feria de Abril'' is referred to as ''la noche del pescaíto'' (night of the fish) due to the fact that fish is the traditional dish to have for dinner. Celebrations officially start at midnight between Saturday and Sunday when the lights of the ''portada'' are turned on. This event is called the ''alumbrao''. People gather in front of the ''portada'' to watch the ''alumbrao'' and then go to the casetas to have dinner and spend the whole night at the Real.

Future fair dates

The 2020 Feria de Abril was scheduled from April 25 to May 2. However, on March 15, 2020, the fair was postponed to September due to the coronavirus pandemic in Spain.

Image gallery

References

External links

Feria de Abril 2010

The 2006 Feria de Abril (April Fair)

* ttps://archive.today/20130124204610/http://picasaweb.google.com/kenybuey/20080412FeriaSevillaLasMejoresFotos Photos Seville Fair 2008 "Feria de Abril"
Seville Fair 2008 video in YouTube
{{Authority control Seville Tourist attractions in Seville Fairs in Spain Annual events in Spain Spring (season) in Spain