Hello.

What do you think about "La Feria de Abril" in Sevilla?. Have you ever been there?. It's the most famous "Feria" in Spain but it is not the best one for the normal people. In Sevilla the "bars" inside the Feria are private bars and you're forbidden to come in unless you have a friend working in the bar.

For this reason, most of the people prefer Malaga and Granada's Ferias.

�Aza, Kiyo, Arriquitaun!

I've never heard about Granada's Feria. But I've been told that the best one is M�laga's. Anyway, the most famous is Seville's, so if anyone knows anybody in any "caseta" (the private bars), please let me know, I want to go next month!

Hey Guys, had fun out last night, wass good to put faces to the names here

I went to the Feria de Abril in Sevilla years ago (my youth ) and back then the "casetas" were not private at all, when dod tyhey change this?or am I thinking of a differnt area of the Feria where it is all open to the public?

One thing that did stick in my mind was the seriously expensive food and drink at those makeshift bars

Also, the disaster left after the feria was impressive (in a bad way), they leave the fair grounds worse than a major Botell�n in the Plaza de Dos de Mayo

�Viva la fiesta espa�ola! ("Long live the Spanish festivals!")

Saludos,
jer...

I've been checking with my Sevillian friends (including Liz-joquecalor, the Sevillian girl from NYC), and with some web pages, and the "casetas" had been private or kind-of since the beginning of the Feria as a cattle market in 1847. The reason for that is that the "casetas" were set up by the Sevillian aristocracy in the first years of the Feria, and some of them are kept by the same family for around a century. Nowadays there are only ten free access "casetas", out of more than 225 of them. That's why "la Feria de M�laga" in August is a good choice to enjoy Andalucian fiestas, since all "casetas" are free in M�laga.

the feria de abril is the last week of april from monday to monday. every year a new portal is put up and lit entirely at exactly 12pm on that first monday. the cool thing is to wait outside the portal along with over a million other thirsty souls and then push like crazy to get in!! don't worry nobody has ever died. when its lit everybody starts screaming and popping corks..so watch yo' head!! hee- hee..
once inside..go to the calle del infierno this is a great spot to drink cheap and in copious quantities at the feria de abril! wine is poured out of oak barrels for about 100 pesetas a shot! once you have had your fill there you can head back to the casetas because by then they are open (everybody's drunk and doesn't care who comes and goes) around 3 am.
please don't go to the feria until around 12am anyways because this is when the party people show and assuming you are one this is the time to hit it up!!
around 7am head to the calle virgen de lujan for choc & churros..then try to sleep because rememeber you have six more days to go!!
ps..if by chance you do get up early...then you can see beaaaaauuutiful processions of jinetes with elegantly dressed "to be seen" sevillanos parading into the fair in the morning..these are the shots that end up in hola..you know "esther canadas looking dazzling in feria dress"..so if you can muster this up its great people watching!!
fyi..feria de malaga is not as chic or exclusive or for that matter that popular but it is excellent. its just more for the masses...whatever that means!!

Hey joquecalor, thanks for the play by play

Saludos,
jer...

for anyone interested in going to the feria this year the dates are from the 16th to the 21st of april. the portal lighting will be on the 15th at 12 midnight.
here are links for the fair:
feria 2002
andalunet
feria de abril

There is a Feria de Abril in Catalu�a too, as maybe 40% of Catalu�a is Andaluzes. All of the casetas are free and the Feria is very well attended and quite good.