Barcelona Festivals

It is not unknown that Barcelona is one of the liveliest cities in the world. Many visitors surge to the Catalan capital during the summer season and enjoy the warm wheather and the town's diversity. Every year there are many events organized both by the City Council and by private organizations and each national holiday has its specific charme.

Starting in the first week of June (1^st - 3^rd), the Primaverasound Festival will hit Barcelona with different types of music. There will be approximately 90 groups playing at the Barcelona Forum, which is on the outskirts of the city, right at the beach. It takes place for the 6^th time and attracts famous bands from every type of music such as Mogwai, Dinosaur Jr., Motörhead, the Flaming Lips, 2 Many Djs and many more.

Already 2 weeks later, from the 15^th - 17^th of June, people can enjoy the famous Sonar Festival, which is the biggest festival of electronic music in Europe. Famous Djs like DJ Shadow from San Francisco, the label Nightmares on Wax or the Hip Hop group Ugly Duckling turn the city into one big party and play their music at different locations throughout the whole center and on the beaches. Indoor sessions will be held in the MACBA, which is the Museum of Contemporary Arts of Barcelona and which provides an exclusive atmosphere for all visitors. All other locations are spread all over the different districts.

Arriving in June, people can enjoy the famous Sant Joan festival on the 23^rd and 24^th. This is however a more 'Spanish' event thus, it will put visitors into a closer contact with the national culture. People celebrate the shortest day of the year by building bonfires and having fireworks all night long in all parts of the city. The whole city will be on the streets and the biggest and longest party will be held on Mount Monjuic. Obviously, the next day, the 24^th of June, is a holiday and people relax from an exhausting night and there will be still a slight smell of gunpowder in the air.

On the second weekend of July (14^th and 15^th), one more festival will take place in Barcelona: the Summercase Festival. It will be located at the Forum as well and hosts music like Belle and Sebastian, Fatboy Slim, New Order, Dandy Warhols, Adam Green and the Chemical Brothers. Accompanied by a manifold set of other musicians, visitors can enjoy the festival day and night.

One more important event will take place from the end of June until the beginning of August: the Grec Festival. During this period of time, visitors will have the opportunity to watch different theater plays, musicals, artistic performances, concerts and many many more. Actions will take place throughout the whole city and there is a wide range of regional and international artists. Because of the length of the 'event', visitors have the daily opportunity to watch the attractions. Some of them are performed only once, others are repeated constantly.

Many of theses events take place on a weekend and attract thousands of people. Due to the additional 'regular' tourists, the city will be very crowded during these dates and spin-offs like housing problems will be a topic as well. Visitors are adviced to inform themselves about it in advance, whether they book apartments on the internet, for instance www.oh-barcelona.com , or hotels on pages like www.oh-holidays.com . It is also recommended to visit such events when being already on vacation along the costs of Costa Dorada or Costa Brava as Barcelona is always worth a trip.