Kingdom of Navarre. Land of diversity

Land of traditions

Navarre is a land of deep-rooted traditions that reflect the plural nature of its customs. Music, dance and gastronomy are the highlights of fiestas in the towns and villages. Pagan rites exist alongside religious traditions throughout the four seasons.

March is the month of the Javierada. Thousands of people walk in pilgrimage from Pamplona and other places in the region to the castle where Saint Francis Xavier, the patron saint of Navarre, was born in 1506.

With the arrival of the spring, Navarre is literally flooded with romerías (popular pilgrimages). Some of the most representative are those of El Yugo, Ujué, Roncesvalles and Labiano. Easter is a time of special fervour, with the best-known ceremonies being the Santo Entierro Procession in Corella and the Bajadica del Ángel in Tudela. 'The day of the Almadía' is held at the end of April or in early May to commemorate the descent of tree trunks on specially made rafts down the rivers of the Pyrenean valleys.

'Fiesta' is the key word in Navarre after the summer solstice. In Zugarramurdi they celebrate Akelarres (witches' covens), while in July Pamplona is host to the Sanfermines and many towns and villages dress up to celebrate their patron saint. Dances are king in the mountains: (the bolantes of Valcarlos, the paloteado of Ochagavía...) as are rural sports (Basque pelota, tree-trunk cutting competitions...). In La Ribera, jotas (popular folk songs) and vacas bravas (steers) top the bill. During the summer there are also ancestral traditions based on mediaeval treaties, such as the Tributo de las Tres Vacas (Tribute of the Three Cows) and the representation of the Misterio de Obanos, a passion play based on legends around the Pilgrim's Way to Santiago.

At the start of autumn, around the time of the festivity of San Miguel, flocks of sheep from the northern Roncal valley enter the Bardenas Reales in the south. When the pigeon hunting season arrives, the town of Etxalar takes on a new lease of life. November 29th is the festivity of San Saturnino, the patron saint of Pamplona, and December 3rd is the Day of Navarre and St Francis Xavier, the patron saint of the region.

In winter, Sangüesa plays host to the performance of the Auto Sacramental of the Magi, a passion play. Carnivals in Navarre are a source of great ethnographic wealth, especially those held in the north in Lantz, Lesaka, Goizueta, Ituren or Zubieta. As the winter comes to an end, the long-awaited Javieradas take place.

Reasons for discovering Navarre

• Land of Diversity
• Land of traditions
• Good food
• The four seasons
• Party atmosphere
• Where one feels good
• Routes through history
• Authentic people