Murcia promotes culture and festivals at FITUR ahead of landmark 2026 anniversaries.
Photo Credit: @AytoMurcia / X
MURCIA has prepared a shining presentation to represent the city and the region at FITUR 2026, the world’s largest international tourism fair, taking place in Madrid from January 21 to January 25. The promotional campaign will revolve around culture, gastronomy, and Murcia’s shining heritage, and will be a wonderful opportunity for Murcia to attract new visitors to its beautiful shores and charming inland towns.
From Murcia to the world: Focusing on FITUR 2026
Murcia’s week of activities during the busy fair, taking place at the IFEMA event venue in Madrid, will include a programme of meetings and presentations to strengthen its profile as a cultural and gastronomic hub in Spain. This year’s FITUR participation is especially important, since 2026 will see the 175th anniversary of the Bando de la Huerta and the Burial of the Sardine festivals, both beloved and emblematic events in the Region of Murcia.
Murcia’s popular springtime festivals, the main attraction at FITUR
The Bando de la Huerta Festival is one of Murcia’s most anticipated springtime events, in which locals dress up in traditional costumes and the streets of Murcia overflow with parades, colour, and festivities. The streets turn into an open-air celebration with wine, food, and dancing.
On the other hand, the Burial of the Sardine Festival is the grand finale of the springtime festivals in Murcia and features over-the-top parades with mythical figures, symbolising the arrival of joy and abundance along with the arrival of spring. It ends with the burning of a giant sardine and bright fireworks lighting up the sky.
‘People want to come to Murcia and not just pass through’
The intention for this year’s participation in FITUR, according to the Murcia City Councillor for Tourism, Jesús Pacheco, is “to gradually become a top destination and to ensure that by 2026, people want to come to Murcia and not just pass through.” This year’s programme involves the celebration of the institutional event Day of the Region of Murcia, meetings with representatives from Airbnb, presentations for major milestones and upcoming events including the aforementioned festivals and Holy Week 2026, and much more.
With its FITUR 2026 programme, Murcia continues to strengthen its tourism prospects, attracting visitors with its special events and activities.
FITUR will see participation from regions all over Spain, with hundreds of stands and hundreds of thousands of attendees. The event is known as one of the largest and most important annual fairs not only in Spain, but in the whole of Europe, and is an essential event for networking, innovation in tourism, and showing interested holidaymakers which regions will be the hotspots for 2026.
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