Easter in Malaga is a great event where the called Semana Santa (Holy Week) takes place in Malaga inside an atmoshpere with a strong smell of burning wax mixed with the drums sounds that sounds during the parade through the streets of the city, a perfect opportunity to enjoy the good weather in Malaga during the spring season.
If you want to discover Easter in Malaga and the called Semana Santa the best place to start is Andalucia, we can only recommend our city, a destination where you can enjoy fantastic beach days, a tasty gastronomy and all our culture.
Semana Santa parade in Malaga had a religious origin but today is mostly a cultural event.
When is Easter in Malaga?
The date for Easter in Malaga is variable but usually takes places before the 25th in April and as soon as late March, depending on an astrological phenomenon. This phenomenon marks the begining of the Holy Week and is related to the Council of Nicaea where it was decided that the so-called Easter would took place on the first Sunday after the first full moon of spring.
How to get a seat?
The most traditional way for enjoying Easter is on foot or from the so-called ‘Tribuna de los Pobres’ where anyone can seat for free if there is enough space. but if you already know Semana Santa, you might wonder about those who have a chair where sitting and maybe how to get one of those.
There are devotees every year who book in advance a chair to watch the parade from a closer and more comfortable distance.
The price for a seat during the Holy Week is about 60 euro while a 6 seats box costs around 500 euro. If you want to rent a chair use the following phone number: 0034 952 210 400
Another option is to rent a balcony, many are for rental during this week but price per day is not cheap.
Easter parade itinerary
The route of the parades at Easter can vary every year so it is not something predictable in advance, if you want you can find it days before the event at any tourist office in Malaga.
Itinerary must pass by some os the most popular streets and areas like ‘Tribuna de los Pobres’ at Carreteria street where people have the option to sit for free. Another location which doesn’t change is the origin of the parade at some churches and brotherhoods homes.
Origin of Easter and Semana Santa in Malaga
The begining of the brotherhoods in Malaga happen after the conquest of the city by the Catholic Kings in 1487, however the origin of this kind of event is located much back in time. It was the Greeks who already held religious parades, something that would be copied by the Catholics.
The groups associations known as brotherhoods were originated during the 5th and 6th centuries and were related to funerals. From the 12th century those brotherhoods begin to associated by different trade unions or ethnic origin.
Few centuries ago it was common the use of a mask for those penitents who flagellate their backs to find salvation using self punishment, this practice still can be found in some towns in Spain but not in Malaga.
