THE region of Los Velez has one of the busiest calendars with regards to celebrations and festivals in the province of Almeria, characterised by their variety and peculiarity.

MAY 1st:

Fiesta de Trabajo, Labour Day, also Mother's Day in Spain. National Holiday.

JUNE 24th:

Dia de San Juan, St.John's Day.

JULY:

Throughout the weekends of July a series of folklore festivals are celebrated in the Encarnation Square, with performances by national and international music groups and bands.

AUGUST:

Summer Festival in Velez Rubio with music, dancing and plenty of eating and drinking, held during the FIRST week of August. Declared festival of national tourist interest of Andalucia.

Summer Festival in Velez Blanco,with music, dancing and plenty of eating and drinking, held during the SECOND week of August.

OCTOBER:

Virgen de la Rosario, Spanish Constitution Day. National Holiday.

DECEMBER:

Christmas celebrations take place throughout the Christmas season with folklore groups from across the country filling the streets with their music. The Spanish have their main Christmas celebration on December 24th, Christmas Eve. This is a family occasion celebrated in the home with lots of drinking and eating.

DECEMBER 8th:

Dia de Conception Inmaculada, Immaculate Conception Day. National Holiday.

DECEMBER 28th:

Día de los Inocentes. All Fool's Day. The people of Vélez Rubio have a unique way of celebrating this day. A group of locals take over the town to the extreme of impersonating the mayor and priest and acquiring powers such as the indiscriminate fining of locals who can even be sent to jail and 'condemned' to drink and eat. All this will be remembered as a practical joke.

FOLKLORE:

The typical dance of the area is the 'Parranda' of Levantine-Murcian influence. Though forgotten in urban centres, it still survives in rural areas. These dances are being revitalised thanks to the popular meeting 'Encuentros de Cuadrillas' which have been celebrated at Christmas time since 1985. The ancestral 'Cuadrillas de Animas' of religious origin is still a living tradition and it is growing every year. Thousands of people from Murcia, Albacete, Granada and Alicante fill every corner of the town for the two day long celebration.