San Juan

Noche de San Juan

Fiesta de San Juan is dedicated to Saint John, with its traditions referring to pagan times. This fiesta is celebrated on June 23rd, St. John’s Eve, and the day of the summer solstice day.

La Noche de San Juan is one of the most special calendar dates of the year in Spain and is celebrated all over the country, especially in seaside locations.

There are two key components of the San Juan festival.
The first is fire, a symbol of the sun, making bonfires a key feature. These bonfires play a huge part in the celebrations.

Secondly, good luck, wishes and superstitions. Many rituals take place on this night with the aim to face the new stage of the year with the favour of luck. One of the most famous traditions is to write down wishes on paper and burn them.

Another tradition used to attract good luck and ward off bad energy is to jump over the bonfires or waves with your back to the sea. Depending on the region, the number of jumps over the bonfire can change, in Valencia, you should jump seven times, whereas in Galicia it should be nine. The number of jumps over the waves also changes. It is tradition to make the jumps at midnight as this is the perfect moment to make a wish and make it come true.