Festivals & events in Santiago de Compostela

Santiago doesn't need much of an excuse to celebrate, but it does have a handful of dates that genuinely shape the year. If you're planning your trip around a specific event, here's what you need to know, with confirmed dates for the 2025-2026 and 2026-2027 seasons.

The calendar at a glance

The Feast of the Apostle

The city's great patronal festival, running from 22 to 31 July, with 25 July marking St James's Day and Galicia's National Day. The most photographed moment of the year is the Fuegos del Apóstol fireworks display, launched over two nights — 24 and 31 July in 2026 — from 23:30, lasting 15 to 18 minutes. It's fired simultaneously from three points across the city — the Alameda, the Cidade da Cultura and Parque de Carlomagno — forming what locals call the "crown of fire," visible from several viewpoints around the city, not only from Praza do Obradoiro. If you want a good spot, arrive early: the old town fills to capacity those nights.

Ascension: the warm-up act

Ten weeks earlier, in mid-May, come the Ascension Festival — from 13 to 17 May in 2026, with Thursday 14 as the central day — traditionally regarded as the appetiser for July's bigger celebrations. There's a livestock fair, funfair rides for all ages, the Romaría das Flores, and the ComposFest concert series, plus the pulpo á feira stalls that set up in the Alameda fairground. It's a more local affair, with fewer tourists and more neighbourhood atmosphere.

Holy Week

In 2026 it runs from 27 March to 5 April, with eleven brotherhoods organising a total of seventeen processions through the streets of the old town, accompanied by drums, gaitas (Galician bagpipes) and municipal bands. It's the first year an indoor backup plan has been designed for the processions in case of rain — hardly unusual in Galicia at this time of year — so if you're coming to watch, bring an umbrella and have a mental Plan B.

Festivals: O Son do Camiño and Feito a Man

O Son do Camiño is the city's big music festival, held at Monte do Gozo — the same spot where pilgrims on the Camino Francés catch their first glimpse of the Cathedral's towers. The 2026 edition runs 18, 19 and 20 June, headlined by acts including Linkin Park, Katy Perry, The Chemical Brothers, Bad Bunny and Liam Gallagher; a three-day pass starts at 59 €. In August, smaller and free, comes Feito a Man, a street festival born in 2003 that fills the old town's landmark squares — more than thirty events in all — with concerts and cultural activities: Praza de Feixóo, Rúa de Xelmírez, Praza da Quintana and San Paio de Antealtares.

Film and culture: Cineuropa

Every November, the Cineuropa Film Festival turns central Santiago into a permanent European cinema. The 39th edition, held from 7 to 23 November 2025, screened more than 140 films at Teatro Principal, Salón Teatro, NUMAX and Auditorio de Galicia, under the slogan "Out of autumn and out of the shadows." If you're travelling then, it's worth checking the programme even if you're not much of a film buff: many screenings are free or very affordable.

Christmas in Compostela

The light switch-on marks the start of the Christmas season — 28 November in the 2025-2026 edition — lighting up Praza da Quintana, the Alameda and the whole historic centre until after Epiphany, on 6 January. The city sets up several markets, among them the Carreira do Conde market and the Mercado da Estrela, whose fourteenth edition ran from 19 to 21 December. There's an ice rink, a visit from the Apalpadora — the traditional Galician figure equivalent to Santa Claus — a New Year's Eve run, and a Three Kings' Parade. It's one of the best times to see the old town with fewer tourists and more lights.

Xacobeo: the year that changes everything

The Xacobeo, or Compostelan Holy Year, is a jubilee year celebrated only when 25 July falls on a Sunday, following an irregular cycle of 6, 5, 6 and 11-year intervals. During that year, pilgrims who complete the Camino, visit the Cathedral and pass through the Holy Door can obtain the plenary indulgence. The last Xacobeo was celebrated exceptionally as a double cycle, 2021-2022, extended because of the pandemic. The next natural Holy Year is Xacobeo 2027, and the Holy Door will open solemnly on the afternoon of 31 December 2026, staying open for all 365 days of the following year. After 2027, the next Holy Years fall in 2032, 2038 and 2049.