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Barcelona’s main festival is a riotous week-long celebration in honour of La Mercè (Top 10 Catalan Saints & Virgins). The night sky lights up with fireworks, outdoor concerts are held, and there’s barely a bottle of cava left in the city by the festival’s end. Processions and parades feature gegants (giant wooden figures operated by people).

On this spring day, Barcelona is transformed into a vibrant, open-air book and flower market. Men and women exchange presents of roses, to celebrate Sant Jordi (Top 10 Catalan Saints & Virgins) and books, in tribute to Cervantes and Shakespeare, who both died on 23 April 1616.

In celebration of Saint John, and the start of summer, this is Catalonian’s night to play with fire and play they do, with gusto. Fireworks streak through the night sky and bonfires are set ablaze on beaches and in towns throughout the region.

During this week-long festa , (the largest party of the summer), revellers congregate in Gràcia’s decorated streets. Parades, open-air concerts, fireworks and plenty of beer and cava fuel the infectious merriment.

The buzzing beach town of Sitges (Costa Daurada & Stiges) explodes during Carnaval, celebrated in flamboyant fashion. Over-the-top floats parade among drag queens, lip-synching contests and a fresh-off-the-beach crowd warmed by sun and plenty of beer.

The village of Berga (90 km/ 60 miles north of Barcelona) hosts one of Catalonia’s liveliest festivals. The event gets its name from the folks who used to chant patum (the sound of a drum). Streets spill over with merrymakers as fireworks crackle and dwarfs, devils and dragons dance atop parade floats.

The small town of Cervera (100 km/62 miles west of Barcelona) erupts with parties, parades and concerts for this festival. The epicentre is C/de les Bruixes, a medieval alley that cuts through the old town.

Castells is one of Catalonia’s most spectacular folk traditions. Trained castellers stand on each other’s shoulders to create a human castle – the highest tower takes the prize. The crowning moment is when a child scales the human mass to make the sign of the cross. Castells are often performed in Plaça Sant Jaume.

“The magnificent, moving ring” is how Catalan poet Joan Maragall described the sardana , Catalonia’s regional dance. Subdued yet intricate, it is performed to the tunes of the cobla , a traditional brass and woodwind band. Sardanes can be seen in Plaça de la Seu and Plaça Sant Jaume year round (Activities in Barcelona).

The Nadal (Christmas) season begins on 1 December with the arrival of the festive artisan fairs. On 5 January is the Cavalcada dels Reis, the spectacular Three Kings Parade. In Barcelona, the kings arrive by sea and are welcomed by city officials in front of transfixed children.