September 6-7 Yecla Grape Harvest Fair and Folk Festival celebrates local wine and tradition

Two days of grape treading, folk dancing, wine and tapas in Yecla

Yecla is ready to welcome the annual Wine Harvest Festival and National Folklore Festival on September 6 and 7, bringing together the best of the region’s culture, traditions and gastronomy. Held in Constitution Park and the Basilica of the Immaculate Conception, the event is organised by Yecla’s Tourism and Culture Departments along with local folk groups and the Yecla Wine Route.

The weekend begins on Saturday evening with an official reception for the choir and dance groups taking part, including the Francisco Salzillo groups from Yecla and Murcia and the La Esteva Dance Group from Segovia. The celebrations get lively at 8pm with the traditional grape treading ceremony, welcoming the new harvest season, followed by tasting the first must (fresh grape juice).

This year’s special toast will be made by Doña Carmen Rodríguez Tomás, a long-time member of the Francisco Salzillo Choir. At 95 years of age, she has always belonged to this group, helping since the 1940s in the research and recovery of our city's costumes and dances.

The folklore performances by these esteemed groups continue the festivities, while visitors can enjoy wine tasting from the Yecla Denomination of Origin paired with local tapas. The Yecla Wine Route offers tasting packages that include three tapas and two wines, specially priced and available to book online in advance.

On Sunday from 12pm, the three groups will celebrate a sung Mass featuring the blessing of the first grape must, followed by a final folklore show in the Atrium of La Purísima. Wine tasting returns to round off the festival, leaving guests with a memorable experience of Yecla’s rich heritage.

Councillors involved highlight how the festival keeps the local culture alive by combining music, dance and the grape harvest. Daniel Jiménez Ortiz, the Councillor for Culture commented that this festival aims to “keep folklore alive, which is the essence and identity of our town, essential to keeping our traditions alive.”

It’s a perfect chance for residents and visitors alike to savour the flavours and spirit of Yecla in early September.

For more information visit: www.turismoregiondemurcia.es

Image: Ayuntamiento de Yecla

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Oficina de Turismo de Yecla

In early 2025, due to renovation work at the usual office, the service is located on the other side of the Plaza Mayor at Calle Epifanio Ibáñez nº 2 (click for map).

Yecla Tourist Office Yecla is a large municipality in the north of the Region of Murcia, home to just under 35,000 people, and these days is best known for its wines, which enjoy Denomination of Origin status, and its furniture production, which has its origins in the abundance of pine trees on the mountainsides and the high plateaux.

Yecla Tourist Office While visitors in the 21st century may be attracted primarily by wine tourism, the town (or city, as it was proclaimed in 1878) also has a wide historical, cultural and natural heritage, and an identity quite different from the coastal areas of the Region of Murcia. For this reason it is often grouped together with its neighbour and fellow wine-producing area Jumilla as part of the Altiplano area.

Yecla borders with Castilla-La Mancha and the Region of Valencia and is closer to Alicante coastal areas than much of Murcia. These visitors come to see the historic old town itself - an atmospheric and interesting place, crammed full of history - the natural beauty of Monte Arabí, with stunning views for those who enjoy the outdoors, the gastonomy and of course the wine route.

Yecla Tourist Office Yecla boasts cave paintings from 10,000 years ago in Monte Arabí, a Bronze Age settlement at El Arabilejo, Iberian remains in El Pulpillo and a Roman administrative centre at Los Torrejones as well as the remnants of the 11th century Moorish castle on the hill behind the town. More modern (and complete) testimony to the past are the buildings in the town centre, which include the grandiose Basílica de la Purísima, with its striking blue dome, the archaeological museum and the attractive Plaza Mayor, where the 16th century Town Hall stands alongside the Renaissance Casa de los Alarcos, the clock tower and the old grain store.

Yecla Tourist Office The tourist office holds a full selection of leaflets, maps, pre-planned routes, accommodation and restaurant options and information about visiting Yecla for both individuals and groups.