Discover the excitement of Easter Week in Asturias

Easter in Asturias is a time of traditions, processions, events and alternative plans. An ideal time to come to Asturias, to feel and to enjoy a holiday or a getaway to the fullest, both in the cities and exploring rural tourism.

The history of Holy Week in Asturias is intense and extensive, and dates back to the Council of Trent, held in the 16th century, which introduced important changes in the Catholic Church at that time, determining the birth of Holy Week as we know it today.

The rise of the Brotherhoods, which began in the 16th century to relive the Passion and Death of Christ, also reached Asturias, and in 1622 the Brotherhood and Brotherhood of Nuestro Padre Jesús Nazareno (Our Father Jesus of Nazareth) existed in Oviedo/Uviéu. Likewise, the first penitential brotherhood documented in Oviedo/Uviéu was that of Misericordia y la Orden Tercera de Penitencia (Mercy and the Third Order of Penitence), which had its headquarters in the old convent of San Francisco.

Furthermore, in Luarca/Ḷḷuarca in 1682, the Real Hermandad de Nuestro Padre el Buen Jesús Nazareno de Luarca (Royal Brotherhood of Our Father the Good Jesus of Nazareth of Luarca) began its activities, establishing a School of Christ there.

So the Baroque in the 17th century was the seed of the Semana Santa in Asturias, which later in the following centuries, had periods of greater or lesser splendour, depending on who governed in Spain. We reach the convulsive 20th century and it was in the 40s when the brotherhoods reappeared, only to regress in the 60s, and to recover their boom from the 80s and 90s of this century onwards.

Nowadays, Easter Week in Asturias has numerous brotherhoods and processions, and is experiencing a real boom!

Holy Week in Asturias preserves curious and happy traditions. One of them is to wear a new item of clothing on Palm Sunday, as popular memory has it that "whoever does not wear a new one on Palm Sunday has neither hands nor feet".

In addition, another of the most beautiful traditions is that on Palm Sunday, the godchildren take the palm to their godparents, who hang it from their balconies or keep it in their homes until the following year. Although it is true that a more recent tradition is to give the godmothers, instead of the palm, a bouquet of flowers.

On the other hand, after receiving the palm from the godchildren - or even if they do not take it - at the end of Holy Week, there is a tradition that the godparents give them a gift. Some still opt for a cake or a chocolate figure, the types of which change according to fashion, along with the typical Easter egg or bunny figures. Although the bun - the name given to this gift - does not necessarily have to be a sweet, it can in fact be another type of gift. And by the way, tradition says that this annual gift from the godparents ends when the godchild marries.

Acolourful and tastytradition are the shop windows and displays of the confectioners' shops, which display the best works of their master chocolatiers inspired by monuments, characters and all kinds of creations and recreations.

When it comes to cakes, many towns in Asturias have their own traditional creations, including the Roscón de Pascua de las cuencas mineras, a puff pastry filled with almonds, meringue and coloured feather decorations, which can have several tiers. The predecessor of this roscón was the famous Pegarata, a bun made with bread dough and shaped like a cake in which boiled eggs are embedded, which can be four, six or even twelve, as it all depends on the size of the pegarata, and which also contains chorizo, bacon and ham.

Another very typical Easter bun is the traditional Mantecado de Avilés or Mantecado Imperial de Avilés, which used to be given by the godfathers and godmothers of the city to their godchildren on Easter Sunday. Today it has become a typical Easter dessert that everyone buys or makes, because it is delicious.

Torrijas, slices of bread soaked in milk or wine and coated in egg batter, fried and sweetened, are another of the traditional Easter sweets in Asturias. There are also pestiños, a sweet made with a dough of flour and eggs which, cut into small, thin pieces, is fried in plenty of oil and then dipped in honey or sprinkled with sugar. And of course the casadiellas, very Asturian, which are eaten all year round at celebrations, including Easter.

Not forgetting that some brotherhoods have the tradition of accompanying so many sweets with a special lemonade, made from lemon juice, homemade and various liqueurs, adding cinnamon and sugar.

Easter Week in Asturias offers many events and attractions. Among them are the Asturias Festivals of Tourist Interest, seven of which are held during the Easter holidays.

Easter Week in Avilés has been declared a Festival of Tourist Interest in Asturias since 2003 precisely because of the history and quality of its processions, which have been held without interruption since 1948, and have their roots in the tradition of brotherhoods and processions that have been organised in this council since the 17th century.

There are 9 brotherhoods in the city with more than a thousand members, and during Holy Week, which begins with the Palm Sunday processions, there are more than 10 processions with 23 processions and 16 processional images. The processions in Avilés end on the Saturday of Glory.

In Avilés, the end of the calendar of processions gives way to another important festival declared to be of National Tourist Interest, the Fiesta del Bollo.

This festival is held on Sunday and Easter Monday. On Sunday there is a parade of floats and folklore groups, and on Monday, after the mass in San Nicolás de Bari and the corresponding proclamation, there is a multitudinous fraternisation meal in the streets of the old quarter of Avilés.

Incidentally, the festival takes its name from the bun or sponge cake given by the godparents to their godchildren on Easter Sunday.

Easter Week in Villaviciosa is one of the oldest in Asturias, as its origins date back to around 1668, when the people of Mali began to commemorate the mysteries of the Passion and Death of Jesus of Nazareth.

More than 300 years of religiosity, culture and art are combined in the Holy Week of Villaviciosa, which displays religious images of great artistic value. Likewise, the celebrations, especially on Good Wednesday and Good Friday, are particularly significant, and on these days you can witness the Encounter and the Descent from the Cross or Desenclavo (Descent from the Cross or Disenclavo), veritable autos sacramentales of great dramatic force.

The village of Villanueva de Oscos makes a display of imagination and devotion during the Easter holidays, staging a popular theatrical representation of the Passion according to Saint Mark on Maundy Thursday. This event, the Living Stations of the Cross, is widely attended by local residents.

The beach of Santa Marina, in Ribadesella/Ribeseya, becomes every year a natural racecourse of immense attraction for the thousands of enthusiasts and tourists who come there to feel and enjoy the strength and beauty of the Ribadesella Beach Horse Races, one of the most original events held during the Easter holidays in Asturias.

The setting of this urban beach in Riosella is truly spectacular. A series of buildings of Indian architecture, representative of a whole period of Asturian history, mark out the seafront promenade. In addition, the chapel of the Virgen de Guía to the east, and the cliffs of Punta'l Pozu to the other - with their dinosaur footprints - complete a very striking landscape. And it is in this scenery that the Horse Races put their note of plasticity and sport.

The Salmon Fair is an ideal opportunity to get to know Corniana/Cornellana and all the natural and cultural beauties of its surroundings in the council of Salas. The month of April, when the closed season for fishing with death is open, is the ideal time for this original event, which this year coincides with the beginning of Easter Week, and which is dedicated to salmon and its environment.

In addition, the fair has the added attraction of the auction of the Campanu de Asturias ( the first salmon of the season), which becomes a social, sporting and cultural event.

Parallel to the fair, activities related to the attractions of Corniana/Cornellana and the Narcea river are programmed, such as a guided salmon route, or some visits to the imposing monastery of San Salvador de Cornellana, one of the most significant landmarks of the Way of St. James.

The Plaza Mayor in Gijón/Xixón is the venue for this market, which will be a meeting point for Asturian crafts and gastronomy for four days at Easter.

Woollen blankets, leather bags, jet earrings, watercolour landscapes, ceramic bowls or wood carvings among an endless number of pieces filled with the art of the expert hands of the craftsmen.

Almond sweets, fruit preserves, wild boar sausages, goat cheeses, a selection of vegetables and marc liqueurs fill the market with flavour and aromas. Traditional, local and organic products to make sitting at the table a pleasure for the senses.

In addition to the classic and well-known Festivals of Tourist Interest, other places in Asturias celebrate Holy Weeks to fully enjoy this time of leisure.

Easter Week in Oviedo/Uviéu has a great tradition, and in addition to the religious events typical of these dates, there is a wide cultural and gastronomic offer, with the famous "Bocados del Cofrade" as the protagonists.

On Palm Sunday the palms take centre stage, filling the stalls of El Fontán market from days before along with the laurel branches, and it is quite a spectacle to take a stroll around this place. From that moment until Easter, different processions are held in the city, whose origin dates back to the 16th century, although throughout history there have been periods of decline and even suspension, with a recovery and boom beginning in the 90s of the 20th century. There are currently 9 processions.

The most important activities of Holy Week in Gijón/Xixón begin on Palm Sunday, with the blessing of the branches in the portico of the Chapel of Los Remedios. Throughout Holy Week there are processions that start from the Church of San Pedro and go through the historic centre of the city and the neighbourhood of Cimavilla. Of all of them, the most outstanding is the procession of the Borriquilla, which is held on Palm Sunday and is dedicated to children.

Gastronomy is an important part of the events of Easter Week in Gijón/Xixón, and during these days there is a Sidracrucis - a cider procession that stems from the tradition of the espichas at Easter -, and for this purpose the cider bus is set up, to enjoy visits to traditional cider houses.

The Holy Week of Luarca/Ḷḷuarca has especially attractive processions, reaching its climax on Maundy Thursday, with the night-time ascent of the Nazarene, preceded by the Christs of several Luarca families, from the parish church to the hermitage of La Atalaya, under the attentive gaze of thousands of visitors.

The procession of the Holy Burial on Good Friday, and that of the Soledad on Saturday of Glory, complete the remarkable cast of the Holy Week of Luarca/Ḷḷuarca.

Easter Week in Lluanco/Luanco is characterised by its great seafaring tradition. During the Easter holidays, several religious events and solemn processions take place around the old quarter of the fishing village. Of all the processions, one of the most outstanding is the Procession of the Callandinos, held on Good Friday, in which the Virgin is carried in silence from the parish church to the Chapel of the Conception.

Easter Week gastronomy in Luanco is special, and this is due to the Marañuelas Festival which is held during these days.

Easter Week in Candás is also a time of great tradition, devotion and religious fervour. On these dates, various religious events and solemn processions are held throughout the historic quarter of the fishing village. Of all the processions, one of the most outstanding is the Procession of the Encounter, which is held on Easter Sunday, the big day of Easter Week in Candás.

The capital of Piloña, L'Infiestu, celebrates every year on Maundy Thursday, a representation of the Last Supper of Jesus in the parish church, as well as the Prayer in the Garden of Olives in the main square. This event is more and more popular every year, and hundreds of actors take part in it.

The "Fiesta de los Huevos Pintos de Pola de Siero" is always celebrated on the Tuesday following Easter Sunday. From the early hours of Easter Tuesday, the centre of La Pola Siero has an incredible atmosphere, mainly around the market where there are dozens of stalls decorated for the occasion where you can see and buy Pinto Eggs, with a wide variety of decorations and sizes, although most of them include in their artistic design motifs alluding to traditional Asturian culture, as well as different phrases and symbols.

A very special moment of this festival is the Blessing of the Pinto Eggs in the Town Hall square, and from that moment onwards there is cider, good food, bagpipes and festivities, culminating in a verbena that lasts until the early hours of the morning.

What the weather will be like at Easter in Asturias is always a recurring and necessary question when making holiday plans.

Usually at Easter in Asturias, the weather is spring, as it corresponds to the season of the year in which we are. And precisely because it is spring, it can be subject to some instability.

To be sure of the forecast, it is best to consult the Aemet website a few days before the start of Easter Week.

Easter Week in Asturias offers you, in addition to the most typical processions and events of this time of year, a whole host of alternatives.

The different museums and cultural venues have a specific programme for the Easter holidays.

The Tito Bustillo Cave Art Centre (Ribadesella), the Jurassic Museum of Asturias (Colunga) and the Teverga Prehistoric Park organise children's workshops and activities for all the family, as well as their permanent exhibitions and some temporary exhibitions.

The Centro del Prerrománico, in Oviedo/Uviéu, invites you to a concert of medieval music.

The Ethnographic Museum of Grandas de Salime "Pepe el Ferreiro" has live demonstrations of traditional trades, as well as children's workshops and a temporary exhibition on the knowledge and tasks of women in the rural world of western Asturias.

Another option for a happy Easter Week is a guided visit to Laboral City of Culture, including a climb to the viewpoint - with splendid views -.

Among the gastronomic plans, it is worth mentioning the Taramundi Cheese Fair, which is held on Easter Saturday.

So Asturias is an ideal destination for different experiences at Easter!