Feel the Gunpowder at 2pm in Plaça de l'Ajuntament
You hear the mascletà before you understand it. From the first week of March until the 19th, every day at 2:00pm, Plaça de l'Ajuntament fills with a crowd that has come to feel rather than watch: a daytime barrage of gunpowder designed to register in the chest, building to the terratrèmol, the ground-level bangers that close the display. It is very loud — over 120 decibels — so bring foam or loop earplugs, which many pharmacies in the city sell during the festival. Arrive by 1:00pm if you want a position with a clear view.
- La Crida: the festival opens at the Torres de Serranos, where the Fallera Major de València and the Fallera Major Infantil address the city and issue the call, followed by fireworks. In 2027 this falls on the last Sunday of February — February 28 — and the square fills early. Pair it with a walk through El Carmen to see neighbourhood fallas.
- Daily mascletàs: March 1–19, 2:00pm, Plaça de l'Ajuntament.
- La Nit del Foc: on March 18, the festival's biggest fireworks display, over 30 minutes, launches at midnight from the old riverbed near Paseo de la Alameda. Spectators line the Turia; get there by 10pm for an unobstructed view.
Watch a City Build 750 Monuments, Then Burn Them
Over the nights of March 15 and 16, every falla commission in Valencia raises its monument. The children's monuments — fallas infantiles — stand by the morning of March 15; the adult monuments — fallas mayores — by 08:00 on March 16. That is more than 750 sculptures across the city, from a few metres tall to 25-metre structures of wood, cardboard and papier-mâché, filled with satirical figures called ninots. Walk the streets on the 16th and you are moving through an open-air exhibition that has existed for hours.
It all ends on March 19, La Cremà, when every falla in the city is burned in a single night. Children's fallas go up from 10pm, the main fallas from midnight, and the municipal falla in Plaza del Ayuntamiento last, around 1am. Firefighters hose down the facades of the surrounding buildings as the flames rise. If you want a spot for the final burning, claim it by 10pm.
- Ruzafa: creative neighbourhood fallas and bars that stay open late.
- Na Jordana / El Pilar: the Na Jordana commission consistently produces prize-winning fallas.
- Exposició del Ninot: the public votes here to pardon one adult and one children's figure — the ninot indultat — which is spared the fire and goes to the Museu Faller.
Join the Flower Procession to the Plaza de la Virgen
On March 17 and 18, tens of thousands of falleros and falleras in traditional dress process commission by commission to the Plaza de la Virgen, carrying flowers for the Mare de Déu dels Desemparats, Valencia's patron Virgin. The bouquets are woven into a giant mantle stretched over a wooden frame, and the design changes every year — so what you see being assembled is being made for this festival only. You do not need to wear traditional dress to watch; a bata fallera or blusón is optional, and casual clothes are fine for spectators.
Eat Buñuelos in the Street and Paella Cooked by the Commissions
Fallas food is street food. Stalls across the city sell buñuelos — pumpkin doughnuts — and churros con chocolate, and falla commissions cook paella in the street, often for anyone who turns up. Many restaurants also offer special Fallas menus for the duration. Expect to budget roughly €50–100 a day for food and drinks if you are eating out; the festival itself costs nothing, since the monuments, mascletàs and Cremà all happen in public streets. Supermarkets get very busy during Fallas week and some smaller shops close March 17–19, so stock up before March 15. Mercadona stays open, but with queues.
Plan Around the Closures, the Noise and the Late Trains
Hundreds of streets close during Fallas, and driving and parking become impractical — use the metro. Metrovalencia runs extended evening service throughout the festival and all-night service on Nit del Foc (18–19 March) and La Cremà (19–20 March); on other nights the last train is typically around 02:00. Taxis are scarce at peak evening hours. March temperatures in Valencia run roughly 12–22°C, so dress in layers and wear comfortable shoes — you will walk 15,000 steps or more in a day. Firecrackers thrown in the streets are the main hazard for children, and pets are highly stressed by the noise.
March 19, La Cremà, is also the feast day of San José and a public holiday in Valencia; some companies give March 17–19 off. For accommodation, book by January: prices triple during Fallas week and availability drops sharply. Benimaclet and Campanar offer better rates than the centre.
Start with the dates: the 2027 festival runs March 14–19, opening with La Crida on February 28 and daily mascletàs from March 1. Book your room before January, buy earplugs when you arrive, and plan your evenings around the metro. Then all you have to do is stand in the square at 2pm and let the city shake.