Moors and Christians

Declared of International Tourist Interest

 To see the entrances Where to sleep during
If you’ve decided to watch the entrances Fiestas?
of both the Christians and the Moors, you There is a wide range of
should rent seats that are set out along the accommodation in Alcoy
Useful information

route. This will save your feet. To do this, and this includes both rural
contact the Tourist Info 965.53.71.55 where and city types. Visitors can
you will be given information about what choose to stay in the city
you need to do. or in the more emblematic
natural surroundings, such
A much more comfortable option is to watch as the Font Roja Nature
the show from the private balconies that can be rented for Reserve. Both of these environments
the event. People normally get a group of friends together have options to suit all budgets; from
to keep the cost down, as this can vary according to the the small rural house to the farmhouse
condition and location of the balcony. converted into a comfortable villa; from
a hostel at the heart of the festival to
hotels with panoramic views.

Whatever you choose, don’t forget that

it is sensible to reserve rooms well in
advance.
The “filaes”
Each one of the twenty-eight “filaes”
at the Alcoy festival has their own
social premises and you must try and
visit some of these. Some of these
groups have rescued old factories from
the ancient industrial Alcoy that were
heading for decline and others have
taken over basements in the city area Our gastronomy
that were once busy textile workshops The traditional cuisine in these regions is based on seasonal products
or warehouses. The Christian ‘filaes’ and is as tasty as it is unknown outside the territory. April is still a
usually create a feeling of Reconquista good time to tempt your tastebuds with soup-style dishes, such as
in their premises. The Moorish ‘filaes’ “borreta” (a fish stew), “olleta” (a stew-type dish) and “arròs caldós”
make you believe that you’re in a Fez (broth-soaked rice)-, but you should also try the “bajoca farcida”
palace. (stuffed pepper) and “pericana” (a spicy cod dish).

Ask and just go with the flow. Even Coffee liqueur is a wonderful coffee drink, which isn’t sweet and in
though they are private premises, you’ll Alcoy has the reputation of a witches brew, a genuinely local drink,
always find someone willing to host you which accompanies the very genuine “tapas” served in this area and
and allow you a visit. ever present at the festival.
Alcoy is waiting for you
If the visitor has time between
the main events of the festival to
enjoy the rest of the city, Alcoy
has a great variety of places and
activities to enjoy during his stay.
The surroundings of Alcoy offer
interesting excursions without
having to move very far thanks
to the closeness to the natural
environment wich is especially
outstanding in the Parque Natural
del Carrascal de la Font Roja and
in the Parque Natural de la Sierra
Mariola.
The old town has left us the
remains of walls and medieval
towers, the present view of this
town derives directly from the
times, when Alcoy was a pioneer
of the Industrial Revolution in
Spain. It is worth mentioning some
outstanding Art Nouveau buildings,
for example, the Casa del Pavo and
the Círculo Industrial, the ancient
building of the Parque de Bomberos
or the Municipal Conservatory of
Dance and Music Juan Cantó.
The bridges are the main urban
characteristic of the city. Its over
60,000 inhabitants are particularly
proud of these constructions, which
have overcome the orographic
irregularities of the town.
People live the Christmas holidays
in a special way with the Parade
of the Three Wise Men, which
is the oldest one in Spain and
was declared of National Tourist
Interest.
Dear visitor, we hope your stay
in Alcoy is pleasant and the town
arouses your interest.
Program for the main events of the festival

MUSICIAN’S DAY – APRIL 21*:

Marching band procession: at 19.30.

DAY OF THE MOORS AND

CHRISTIANS PROCESSIONS – APRIL 22*:
Dawn reveille: at 05.45 in Plaza España.
Christian procession: begins at 10.30.
Moorish procession: begins at 17.00.

SAINT GEORGE’S DAY – APRIL 23*:

Children’s dawn reveille: at 09.00.
Procession of the relic: at 11.00. * The official Alcoy festival calendar
General procession: at 19.30. states that the celebrations take place
on April 22, 23 y 24, but it is possible
DAY OF THE GUN BATTLE – APRIL 24*:
that these dates may be altered due
Moorish ambassador and messengers: 10.00.
to Easter week. The dates can be
Morning gun battle: at 1.00.
confirmed by contacting Alcoy Tourist
Christian ambassador and messengers: at 16.30.
Afternoon gun battle: at 17.30. Information centre (965537155).

Appearance of Saint George: at 21.30.

On Easter
Sunday,
there is an evening procession, “La Gloria”, to mark the
beginning of preparations for the three day festival.
One representative from each Filá takes part in this
procession accompanied by a marching band playing
military two-step music. The procession passes through
the streets of the old part of the city to announce the
festival’s imminent arrival.

On the eve of the celebrations, the twenty-first of

April, there is “The day of the musicians”, an emotional
homage to the bands that will provide the music for
the three day festival. The music bands pass through
the city’s streets, finishing at Plaza España where they
then gather with the people of the city to accompany
them in the festival hymn.
The Christian procession into the city is a spectacular explosion of sound
and color passing through the centre of Alcoy which commemorates
defense of the city by the “armies of the cross” against Saracen attack.

The Moorish procession floods Alcoy with the exotic flavor of the
armies of Mohammed as they march in to take the city.

While it is beautiful to see the processions on television, being here to

live and breathe the atmosphere of the Moors and Christians festival
is an unforgettable experience. The Moors and Christians festival
of Alcoy in honor of Saint George were, in 1980, declared to be of
International Tourist Interest, and are widely recognized today as
being one of the world’s great spectacles. In fact Alcoy is considered
to be the birthplace of the Moors and Christian celebrations taking
place each year throughout the Valencian Community. The program of
the celebrations follows what is called the “Festival Trilogy” and takes
place over three days. The first is the day of the two processions,
Christian and then Moor. The second day celebrates the festival’s
patron saint, Saint George, and then finally comes the day of the gun
battle.
At half past five in the morning,
the bells of Santa Maria church ring out over the city, and Plaza España is bursting
with the people excitedly waiting for the celebrations to begin. Their faces are
radiant and their costumes spotless. This is the “Diana” or dawn reveille. A squadron
of ten men from each Filá passes through the centre of the city accompanied by
a band playing a military two step. Alcoy awakes! The celebrations have begun!

As the morning advances, the streets and squares of the city become a sea of
people ready to enjoy the Christian procession.

The sound of bugles and drums rings out. Those who wish to can watch the procession
from one of the thousands of seats that line the streets throughout the length of
the procession. They will see the Christian captain’s chariot surrounded by his
knights, the special squadrons, standard bearers and groups of women dancers. To
the spectator, the Christian procession is a breathtaking cavalcade of music and
color. Throughout the morning, the Christian filás pass, one after another, through
the city, with their squadrons, their musicians and their chariots filled with excited
children. Finally, the Christian lieutenant with his extravagant entourage brings
the Christian procession to a close.
It timelunch,
is
for
which is a chance to eat, rest and recharge
the batteries before the Moorish procession.
This is a feast of sensuality to fire the
imagination of the visitor, who will soon
find himself submerged in an atmosphere
of Eastern mystique, as he watches a
procession of dancers, African warriors and
exotic animals beneath a rain of confetti
and streamers thrown from the packed
balconies of the city. As night begins to fall,
the Moorish procession ends, leaving the
visitor with the sensation of having seen
something really special, yet hungry to see
more. And there is more. Much more…
I f the visitor
is lucky enough
to be able to stay beyond the first day, he will
discover that the second day celebrates the
patron of the festival, Saint George, the martyr of
Cappadocia, a small town in Turkey, who is known
throughout the world and who in the festival is
represented as a child and is the indisputable
leading character of the celebrations, loved and
admired by all. From early morning until late
into the night, the visitor can enjoy morning
and evening processions, with more opportunity
to see the incredible costumes of the festival’s
main protagonists, and above all to see the
admiration and love that the whole city feels for
Sant Jordiet, the boy who represents the figure
of Saint George.
The third and final day
is the festival’s gun battle. This begins with a verbal battle
between ambassadors from the two sides, followed by a symbolic
representation of the gun battle that took place in the city.
Squadrons from each side march through the city firing their
booming arquebuses, a type of black powder musket, leaving the
city submerged in the atmosphere of a great battle. This part of
the festival is not for those of a sensitive nature. Both sides, Moors
and Christians, take turns to re-take the castle in Plaza España,
as Alcoy fills with gunpowder smoke and the peculiar smell of
the arquebus being fired, a smell which will linger over the city
for days afterwards. Finally, as evening falls, in the battlements
of the castle, recreated for the occasion, Sant Jordiet appears
astride his white steed, recreating the miracle that the city has
been commemorating for hundreds of years. This is the end of
this year’s festival, and the beginning of next year’s, leaving the
visitors who have been part of this wonderful celebration with an
experience that they will never forget.
 Ayuntamiento
de Alcoy

[Photograph]
Asociación de Sant Jordi y
Fotos Paco Grau.

[Printing]
Artes Gráficas Alcoy

TOURIST INFO ALCOY Plaça d’Espanya, 14 • 03801 ALCOY (Alicante) Spain • Tel 96 553 71 55 • Fax 96 553 71 53 • alcoi@touristinfo.net • www.alcoyturismo.com