Almost all of us have seen pictures and videos of this crazy festival. Of course, I had too, and like everyone else, wanted to witness it in person. As a matter of fact, it is actually very easy to participate in the festival if you have a plan. So, in this blog, I would like to share 10 tips for visiting the craziest festival in Spain: La Tomatina, which I would have personally wished to have known before my visit.
About the La Tomatina Festival
The La Tomatina Festival happens once a year on the last Wednesday of August. In fact, 160 tons of tomatoes are thrown at each other by 20,000 people during the biggest food fight of the world. It happens in a tiny village called Buñol in the Valencia province of Spain. To sum up, it is one of the craziest and messiest festivals in the world, but also one of the most fun.
Getting to the La Tomatina Festival
The easiest and most fun way to visit the festival is to book an organized trip, which are not very expensive. Alternatively, you can also visit on the morning of the festival on a train from Barcelona or Valencia but arrive at least 2 hours before the festival to avoid extremely crowded trains.
There are different kind of organized trip packages. Some of the added advantages of the organized trips are that they are inclusive of a before and after party as well as free sangria and paella. However, to save money we booked the package that included a bus ride to and fro Barcelona and we bought the festival tickets after getting there.
Tip: An organized trip is advantageous for various reasons. For instance, you get to leave all your belongings safely in the bus during the festival time. Another option is to leave them at a local store for a fee but it is definitely not safe.
We booked our trip from here.
10 Tips for visiting La Tomatina
1. Carry waterproof cover for your phone if you want to take pictures. You can also buy a phone cover and goggles at the venue, but they could be very pricey.
2. Do not wear expensive sunglasses or shoes if you don’t want to ruin them.
3. Carry a change of clothes and shoes.
4. Wear something comfortable and something you can throw away after the festival.
5. Do not wear flip flops because you may slip or break them. Wear an old but sturdy shoe that you can throw away after the festival.
6. Do not carry much luggage in case you are not visiting with an organized trip planner.
7. If you wear lenses, carry your glasses and lens case. Alternatively, if you wear glasses, do cover them with swimming goggles or snorkelling gear or you will not be able to see anything.
8. Carry some dry food and water.
9. Do not carry cash or anything valuable in the festival area.
10. Lastly, abide by the rules of the Festival or you could be disallowed.
Our story
The La Tomatina Festival is best enjoyed with friends and so did I. We had made plans 3 months in advance. In fact, we were visiting the festival from Barcelona with an organized trip. Our bus was supposed to pick us up from the centre of Barcelona at 2:30 am in the night.
We were waiting there eagerly along with plenty of fellow passengers. All the organizers had their buses assigned, and were leaving around the same time. Eventually, we got on our bus the moment it arrived, and the journey began. It was a very fun journey and we reached Buñol around 7:30 am in the morning.
The scene after we got down was crazy. For instance, thousands of people had arrived from all over the world to visit the festival. They were singing, dancing and just having a lot of fun. We had to buy the tickets to the festival on spot, so we stood in a queue and bought it. It was very well-managed, and everyone got their tickets on time.
After that, we quickly made our way to the festival area and waited for it to begin. And then there was a loud honk and that was the signal for the start. We entered quickly and saw trucks full of tomatoes coming towards us. In a minute or two, the whole place was covered with tomatoes and people covered in it. At that moment, everyone became friends with everyone and started having pure fun.
Rules for the La Tomatina Festival:
1. Do squeeze your tomatoes before throwing them because you may hurt someone.
2. Do not pull on the clothes of the fellow festival attendees.
3. Do not go in front of the trucks loaded with tomatoes.
4. Do not carry any items that may hurt others during the fight.
5. Lastly, You must stop throwing tomatoes the moment you hear the loud honk.
The next hour just went in a breeze. It was an hour of fun, excitement, and a lot of energy. The trucks full of tomatoes kept coming and throwing more them at us. Within minutes, we were completely drenched in tomato puree. There was loud music, and everyone was screaming happily at the top of their lungs. In conclusion, everyone had the time of their lives in those 60 minutes.
After the Festival
After it was over, the friendly neighbourhood took over in getting the people cleaned. Suddenly, there were water hoses everywhere. Some of them were just throwing water with buckets from their balconies.
We walked until the end of the road to find a few showers and a natural waterfall with a small pond. After that, we went straight into the waterfall to get ourselves cleaned as much as possible. Then, we changed into fresh clothes and slowly walked back to our buses. We had some lunch on the bus and were back on our way to Barcelona by late afternoon.
Thus, ended a day full of excitement that will remain inscribed in my heart forever.
Bonus Video
Where to Eat
You could find food all around the festival area, but they could be on the expensive side. I would highly recommend you bring some dry food like cookies, bread, etc.
Where to stay
Staying in Buñol could be very expensive. I would suggest you stay in Valencia or Barcelona and visit on the day of the festival.
Budget
80-100 Euros for a day including an organized trip.
