You’re probably aware by now that the Lanzaroteño calendar is packed to the rafters with fiestas and events that bring the whole community out onto the streets to celebrate. In fact, 11 out of the 12 months of the year feature some form of festival – only April misses out.
July’s premier celebration on the island comes in the form of the Nuestra Señora Del Carmen festival, a celebration of the Virgin of Carmen, an important figure in the Catholic church. Celebrations are varied, but you can be sure of an exciting day or two when this Lanzarote festival rolls around.
The festival takes place in mid-to-late July, starting with the Saint’s day on the 16th and continuing on from there. You can expect all sorts of activities focusing around the Virgin of Carmen, the patron saint of fishermen, with icons of her being carried through the streets of Teguise, Playa Blanca and the appropriately named Puerto Del Carmen. Nearly every town and village on the Island will have some form of celebration, so you don’t need to travel far to experience the festival.
Other celebratory events include music, art, live comedy (in Spanish of course, so get your Duolingo fired up in preparation) and much more. So, if you’re looking to enjoy the fantastic Lanzarote weather in a party atmosphere, then this fiesta should be at the top of your priority list.
You can also expect to see some quintessentially Canarian events, such as lucha canaria (a type of traditional wrestling that is very popular on the islands, dating back to 1420), performances celebrating local folklore and of course street parties and local residents giving offerings to the Virgin.
The festival has been celebrated in Spain since the 13th century and has been a fixture of the Lanzarote events calendar for hundreds of years. The Virgin of Carmen is known as “la estrella de los mares” or the star of the seas, and the Spanish Navy, as well as fishermen across the country have named her their lucky charm and patron saint.
Spain’s maritime culture has grown around this legend, and the annual festival serves as a way of blessing boats for safe passage and a bountiful catch in the year to come.
After a long day taking in the festivities, there’s little better than relaxing in a private villa in peace and quiet. All of our villas in Lanzarote are located in and around Playa Blanca, so you’ll be close enough to a major population centre so you can take part in the celebrations, but be in enough privacy to get some vital winding-down time without much disturbance.
So, if you want to experience one of the more unique things to do in Lanzarote, have a browse of our available villas in mid-to-late July and make some plans for a fiesta!
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