Saint John’s Night is a very old celebration which is held in honour of the arrival of the summer sostilce in the northern hemisphere and the main ritual is to light a bonfire.

The ritual is intended to “give the sun strength“, as it gets weaker and weaker from this day onwards, during the shorter days leading up to winter solstice. Symbolically fire was also thought to “purify” those that gazed at it. This feast is celebrated in many parts of Europe, although it is well established in Spain and in particular in Alicante because it’s the feast day of the local patron saint.

In Benidorm this deeply-rooted festivity is celebrated with the spectacular Saint John’s Bonfire called Hogueras de San Juan. The different associations that celebrate this feast including la hoguera de la Cala, la hoguera del Mercado put their bonfire monuments and figures on display for a few days for locals and tourists to see. The city is decorated for the special occasion and numerous events are put on to be enjoyed.

The big party though is held at night on the 23rd of June SAINT JOHN’S NIGHT, where the city of Benidorm takes over the beaches from early on in the evening. Families, friends, tourists light their bonfires, put down their towels and get ready to have lots of fun on the shortest, most magical night of the year.
It’s custom to take everything needed to make the festivities on the sand a great success: wood for the bonfires, wishes made on pieces of paper to be burnt, good music and an appetite for scrumptious things to eat.

At 12:00 midnight the neighbourhood bonfires are burnt and the young people jump over the embers, go for a swim in the sea, jump over waves and make three wishes. The party is a guaranteed success, open-air celebrations and dances, games, swims in the sea, fireworks, nobody wants to stay indoors.  Come and find out what Saint John’s night is like in Benidorm.

There are great deals to be had when you make your reservation to share the magical Saint John’s night with us. Don’t forget that if you book before the 30th of June you’ll get a 5% discount. Don’t miss out on this offer.