Semana Santa in Seville: Holy Week 2017

For Holy Week Celebrations, Semana Santa in Seville is the Most Famous in Spain:

Semana Santa in Seville is one of the most important religious events on the Sevillian calendar and Seville’s Holy Week celebrations are also one of the most well-known in Spain. As such, Seville’s Semana Santa attracts many Spanish devotees and hordes of tourists.

Semana Santa Dates for 2017

Holy Week in Spain is a week-long celebration running from Palm Sunday to Easter Sunday.  The Semana Santa dates for 2017 are April 9th to April 16th.

Semana Santa Pasos

On each day of Holy Week, there are various events taking place in Seville. However, the central activities of any Semana Santa celebrations are the procession of pasos. Visitors to Seville can expect to see over 100 gilded floats inching their way through the streets. Brotherhoods of robed men carry pasos bearing life-size sculptures and religious images depicting the Virgin, Christ or scenes of the Passion. Most brotherhoods usually carry two floats, one with Christ and the other with the Virgin. However, some do carry a third float.

Tips:
1. Do not walk in front of the pasos
2. As a mark of respect, maintain silence and don’t eat or drink during the passing of the pasos.

Holy Week processions are organized by the hermandades and cofradías.  These are the brotherhoods whose religious associations care for the images of Christ and Mary used in the processions.  There are some 60 brotherhoods in Seville and each of these will  pay a visit to the Cathedral of Seville during Holy Week.

The Penitent Ones

A spectacular sight at the procession are the nazarenos (penitent ones).  Dressed in penitential robes and hoods and they are usually accompanied by brass bands.  Many of the processions pass through an official viewing area which includes some of Seville’s main streets. Beginning in Campana, they go through Calle Sierpes, Plaza San Francisco, and Avenida de la Constitución, before reaching the Cathedral.

The celebrations ramp up a notch during the final few days before Easter. In the early hours of Good Friday emotions run high when the images of the Virgen de la Macarena and the Virgen de la Esperanza of Triana appear from their churches.

Accommodation in Seville

Seville is a hive of activity during Holy Week. If you are planning on joining in the celebrations, you should book your Seville hotel and flights no less than three months in advance. Hotels in districts like Macarena and Triana will be in high demand because the Virgen de la Macarena and the Virgen de la Esperanza of Triana are housed in their respective churches in Macarena and Triana.
For the complete list of hotels in Seville, see HERE.

Semana Santa in Seville  is a spectacle and an experience not to be missed. But if you don’t like crowds and the craziness during Holy Week, then this is not for you.

See more Seville Info HERE

Map of Seville:

Things to do in Seville

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How about you, what do you think?