Our Lady of the Rosary

The Grand Day of this festival is the ultimate festive day in the Asturian summer: August 15th. The Virgin of the Rosary embodies the maritime virgin, and this is evident in the procession where her image sails on a decorated boat, accompanied by other equally adorned boats. The procession, which begins with a rocket salute, becomes a tribute that combines devotion to the virgin with the remembrance of fishermen who lost their lives at sea. All the boats sound their sirens and toss bouquets and wreaths of flowers into the Cantabrian Sea as a heartfelt and emotional homage to the absent ones.

The festive days are completed with a multitude of recreational, sports, cultural, and traditional activities related to the sea, music and dance, and culture, designed for children and adults. Luarca/Ḷḷuarca, the capital of the Valdés municipality, becomes during those days an authentic and warm festive destination on the western coast of Asturias.