La Mercè

The festival

What is La Mercè

La Mercè is Barcelona’s biggest festival. Around September 24, the day of Mare de Déu de la Mercè, the Virgin of Mercy and patron saint of the city, Barcelona devotes several days to an intense program of Catalan popular culture, music and street performances. Most events are free to the public and take place in squares, parks and avenues, from the old town to the waterfront.

Devotion to the Virgin of La Mercè is longstanding in the city and is linked to the Mercedarian order, founded in Barcelona in the 13th century to redeem captives. According to tradition, at the end of the 17th century, after a locust plague, the city chose her as patron saint, and the religious celebration gradually gained an increasingly large civic program until it became the citywide festival. The basilica of La Mercè, near the port, houses the image of the patron saint.

Catalan popular culture is at the heart of the program. The city’s festive procession, with the gigantes, the eagle, cabezudos and fire figures, parades through the center, and colles from other towns in Catalonia also participate. On the 24th, Plaça de Sant Jaume, in front of City Hall and the Catalan government palace, hosts the Mercè’s diada castellera, where casteller groups build multi-level human towers. There are sardana circles and demonstrations of traditional dances, and fire plays a central role: the correfoc, in which figures of devils and dragons move through the streets scattering sparks to the beat of drums, is one of the most popular events.

Music fills the city. Concerts by local and international artists take place on stages in squares and parks, and the Mercè music festival brings new proposals to various points around the city. Each year, a guest city brings its culture and music to the program. There are also street art performances, activities for children, open days at museums and municipal buildings, and scheduled light shows. The closing event is a pyromusical, a fireworks display synchronized with music.

For visitors arriving in Barcelona in late September, La Mercè shows the city celebrating its traditions, with human towers, gigantes and fire in the streets of the Barri Gòtic, and offers a chance to enjoy an outdoor program in a month with still-mild weather.