The night of San Juan takes place from June 23rd to June 24th and is one of the most awaited moments of the whole year in Valencia!
To celebrate this festival, the typical tradition is to go to the beach in the evening with family and friends and enjoy the night! People may eat dinner there taking their own food and drinks while sitting around a bonfire, and they also take part in special rituals and traditions.
The most common of these is to go into the sea at midnight and jump 7 waves! This is a sign of good luck and you should definitely make a wish. Some people prefer to jump over the fire 7 times too, to make a wish after midnight.
All in all, the best thing about San Juan is to have fun and share this celebration with relatives and friends.
San Juan is a pagan celebration in which people used this day to ward off evil spirits by lighting up the beach with bonfires. It is also related to the worship of the sun as it take places right after the summer solstice. It is also exactly 6 months before Christmas.
Valencia loves San Juan and to aid the celebrations the local government give out between 20 and 35 tonnes of firewood, from 6:00pm to 8:00pm!
If you want to get involved in this special tradition, we must warn you that not all beaches are open to bonfires. To prevent fires in the natural Park of “La Dehesa”, bonfires and fireworks are banned in “Playa del Saler”, “Pinedo”and “El Perellonet”.
If you prefer to stay in the city and you’re not a big fan of fires, don’t worry! The city is full of parties with live music and DJ’s in most neighborhoods!