Experience an exceptional Carnival in Sitges, the cute village next to Barcelona

Sitges Carnival is known as one of the top ten carnival celebrations in the world. Situated in the Spanish Mediterranean, this beautiful city hosts the hottest winter carnival in Europe. This year, the celebration is different due to Covid-19, but If you are living and working in Barcelona, don’t miss the alternative party! Here is everything you need to know about this traditional festivity and how it’s changing in 2021. 

It’s Carnival !!!

Sitges is experiencing an exceptional Carnival in 2021. Living in Barcelona you should be missing those days before Covid-19 with Sitges Carnival just 38 km away from home! With people from around the world parading between its historic streets with nice costumes, live music and festive spirit. The Sitges Carnival has over 100 years of history: it’s one of the most emblematic of Europe and it’s not going to stop this year. 

Even if in 2021 Sitges Carnival has cancelled the mass events due to the Covid-19 pandemic, they propose an alternative and creative celebration. Join the digital party, with a program of events that can be followed mainly on social media. The atypical carnival includes virtual activities as well as special Cassoletes Carnavaleres menus at the best restaurants in town, a thematic exhibition at Miramar cultural centre and decorating contest: neighbors are doing their best to embellish windows, balconies and facades to keep alive the tradition. 

Of course, it’s not the same, Sitges Carnival is one of the world’s top 10 carnivals! But we can still experience an exceptional Sitges Carnival that preserves the essence of the ritual. Don’t miss the local tradition as part of your Work and Travel Barcelona experience. If you like the idea of living near SItges, the best urban beach in Europe according to New York Times, we can find you a job opportunity in Barcelona. We have plenty of jobs in Spain for German and Dutch-speakers. 

Apart from beaches, tourists best valued the amability and friendliness of local people, together with safety and restaurants as the study prepared by the Barcelona Provincial Council confirms. According to this report, travelers score the city with 8.50 out of 10. It’s a favourite destination of the gay community, as Sitges is the self-proclaimed gay capital of Europe and follows a single law which is ‘in carnival, anything goes’, so throw all your inhibitions out the window. Sitges is famous for its tolerance and multicultural atmosphere: everyone is welcome.

How to live the Carnival on the street

The Carnival Commission wants to maintain security and physical distance in its proposals, but also a sense of humor. Thus, the Cap de la Vila is decorated during the week of Carnival and there is a custom dress code that indicates the accessories to wear during the week of Carnival. Today, if you are living in Sitges, you should go to the market with a bow or a tie. Tomorrow with a hat. On sunday, with a wig. 

Neighbors of Sitges will also play a key role this year, with their participation in the 4th Balcony, Facade and Window Carnival Contest. The commission trusts their decorating skills, as they have already shown on other occasions, such as Corpus Christi or Festa Major. The streets of Poble Sec will offer a musical thread that can also be heard at www.radiositges.com

Sitges Carnival 2021 opened the exhibition The Carnival of Sitges at the first floor of the Miramar, which turned the Cultural Center into an immersive space to navigate the craziest week of the Sitges calendar through traditional characters, anecdotes and other essential elements of the celebration until the end of February. 

At the main commercial areas of the town, groups that usually take part in the streets are present in the store’s windows with the show Ens vestim de Carnaval. The public will be responsible for choosing the winners through a digital platform. 

The Carnival Casseroles are back this Carnival. Until 17 February, 10 local establishments of Sitges are serving a tasting menu to discover the flavors of Carnival. With the title Deconstruction of the Xató, a typical Catalan sauce made with almonds, hazelnuts, breadcrumbs, garlic, olive and nyora pepper, often served with an endive, anchovy, tuna and bacallà salad. If you want to go to Barcelona, don’t forget to try this spectacular winter salad. 

100 years of celebration

If you are working in Barcelona, you might have experienced Sitges Carnival last year. 2020 celebration was awesome, feel grateful to have been part of it. Every edition, Sitges Carnival attracts more than 250,000 people over 7 days with colorful parades. What is the history of the tradition? The origin is over 100 years old. The legend talks about Carles de Can Torras, a court jester of the XV century who died on Ash Wednesday. People from Sitges continued to remember him over the years and his name was continuously mis-spelt and came to be known as Carnestoltes. The King of Sitges Carnival is a fictional character who is based on him. Join our call center Barcelona and enjoy the catalan culture all year round! Send your CV and get a job in Barcelona in your native language. 

Actually, we have new jobs in Barcelona for Germans. Browse our job boar and find yours! If you are a Dutch-speaker and you are looking for jobs in Barcelona, at our e-recruitment agency we also have new dutch job offers. Barcelona Job Offers is here to help you find your dream job in your beloved Catalunya. We want to inspire your passion for the Mediterranean lifestyle with our language job offers in Barcelona. Apply now and we will do the rest!