From Navarre to Seville from Valencia to the Canary Islands, the zest for festivity is spread all around the country, far and wide. Here’s a guide through Spain’s burgeoning cultural scene and the raucous local festivals every avid traveller should bookmark…

From throwing tomatoes at one another to running with the bulls. A day-long wine fight to celebrating seafood and partying around bonfires. Spain hosts some of the most out-of-the ordinary festivals, around the year. Arrive. Celebrate. And then leave with memories that’ll last a lifetime.

In many ways, a festival is the ultimate holiday. A life-changing experience, crammed into a few days, which transforms you from a jaded, itinerary-bound commuter into a free spirit, opening your mind through art, music, performance, food and culture. This is what travel is all about, after all. And when you come to a destination as diverse, exciting and stunning as Spain, with fiestas steeped in tradition, history and meaning, you know you’re in for a real treat – the very embodiment of viva la vida, if you may. Here is a peek inside some of the fiestas you can indulge in, but there are many more to explore as well.