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August 26
Day Trip From Madrid
We hope you’re as excited for La Tomatina as we are!
#stoketravel #getstoked #LaTomatina
Meeting Spot for bus:
Carrer del Montserrat, 9
Centro, 28015
Madrid, Spain
Be at the spot by 4am, latest departure is at 4:30am
includes:
- Round private coach trip from Madrid
- Stoke Travel pre-party in Buñol (La Tomatina site) with breakfast rolls and flowing drinks to prepare you for the fight
- Your official La Tomatina Ticket
- Transfers to and from the Tomato fight
- Festival info & tips
- Guides to lead you into the mayhem
- Beach Trip to Pucol, Valencia, with drinks and free time at the beach, and time to grab a late lunch
DON’T FORGET
- A change of clothes for after the fight. You won’t be allowed on any busses covered in tomatoes!
- A towel
- Your white top for the fight
- Bring shoes that are either waterproof or that you can throw out after the fight because they will be destroyed by the end of it! White canvas shoes are a good choice, thongs (flip flops) will also work but prepare to have your toes stepped on.
- Goggles! Tomatoes in your eyes can really sting
- Sunscreen! Looking like a lobster is only cute if you’re actually a lobster
- Bring swimwear and a towel for a post-fight dip at the beach
- A water bottle to fill up. You’ll be saving the environment and staying hydrated all at the same time! How good!
- Tomatina ticket (worth €25) included – SUPER IMPORTANT, YOU WON’T BE ALLOWED INTO THE FESTIVAL WITHOUT IT
STOKE TRAVEL’S COMMON SENSE GUIDE TO STAYING SAFE In the festival
Some of the festivals that we attend obviously come with some risks attached. Fear not though, we’re pretty much pro’s at this point. We’ve put together a list of our hot tips, follow them closely and in a perfect world, we all leave the festival unscathed.
- Wear closed toe shoes – The festival takes place in a tight, narrow street filled with thousands of people who are excited and probably drunk. Your feet will not be their top priority. Please protect your toes by wearing appropriate footwear. We recommend buying a cheap pair and then throwing them out afterwards.
- Crush whole tomatoes with your hands before you throw them – You may not have experienced it before, but being hit by a whole, sometimes not very ripe tomato, really hurts. We’re all here to have a good time and come away without a black eye so think of your fellow revellers and make sure you squish those bad boys before throwing.
- Invest in some goggles – Tomato in your eyes HURTS! If you value being able to see clearly and your eyes not stinging, goggles are the way to go. Protect your peepers!
- Only take what you need into the festival, leave the rest behind – Festivals like this are a goldmine for pick-pockets. While you’re busy throwing tomatoes, they’ll reach in and steal your phone from right under your nose. Keep your things in a waterproof bag around your neck if you can, and under your shirt when you’re not using them to avoid them being ripped off you. Be savvy and keep your wits about you and you’ll be fine. (keep in mind selfie sticks are not allowed)
- Keep an eye on your friends – It’s a big, big festival with looooots of people around. No one likes losing their friends and things like this are way more fun with people you like. When you enter, stick together and even choose a meeting point for after the fight if you get lost. There’s nothing worse than being lost in a crowd of thousands of people covered head to toe in red mush, when all you wanna do is find your pals.
- Don’t grab at peoples clothing – This is just generally not a nice thing to do, and even less nice when you’re squished in with hundreds of thousands of strangers. Personal boundaries are still a thing and we still need to respect them. Torn t-shirts aren’t cute, you wouldn’t like it if someone was grabbing at you willy-nilly, so don’t do it to anyone else.
- Take care of your wristband – You will be given your wristband at the hotel, make sure you keep it in pristine condition as you won’t be able to get in without it, and there is absolutely no chance at all that you’ll get a replacement.
WHAT TO BRING
- Cash. There’s no ATM’s on site so you won’t be able to get cash out until you’re in the city centre
- Your white outfit for the fight. THIS IS SUPER IMPORTANT!
- A change of clothes for after the fight. You won’t be allowed on any busses covered in tomatoes!
- Your best party shirt
- A towel (we don’t sell or rent them on site)
- Portable phone charger
- Swimmers for the post tomato fight dip at the beach/river!
- Bring shoes that are either waterproof or that you can throw out after the fight because they will be destroyed by the end of it! White canvas shoes are a good choice, thongs (flip flops) will also work, but prepare to have your toes stepped on
- Goggles! Tomatoes in your eyes can really sting.
- Sunscreen! Looking like a lobster is only cute if you’re actually a lobster.
- A water bottle to fill up. You’ll be saving the environment and staying hydrated all at the same time! How good!
Guides Guide
We probably don’t even need to be telling you this, but La Tomatina is Spain’s famous tomato fight and the world’s biggest food fight.
The history is a lil hazy when it comes to it’s humble beginnings, but the most generally accepted theory is that a spontaneous food fight broke out back in 1945, when a local man became super mad after being pushed over in the street. He retaliated by grabbing market tomatoes to hurl at everybody in sight. The following year, the local youngens turned up on the same day, prepared for the battle with tomatoes in tow of course. In the 1950s authorities banned La Tomatina, so it took on more of a rebellious vibe, with some seeing it as a way to act against the Spanish dictatorship. In 1957 authorities gave in, realised how much fun could be had, and La Tomatina became the official party we all know and love!
The fight is held every year on the morning of the last Wednesday in August, in Buñol, a little town west of Valencia. More than 40,000 people get in on the madness, from all over the world, ready to throw more than 15 tonnes of tomatoes.
From 8am on the day of La Tomatina, a big slippery ham is hung on the top of a greased up pole in the packed town square. The aim of the game is to be the first person to climb up the slippery pole and grab the ham, with the crowd yelling and screaming (all the while being drenched with water from hoses, because a tomato hitting a wet person hurts way less than a dry person ). They have from 10am – 11am, and the moment the ham is grabbed, a pistol goes off, the tomato trucks appear, and it’s go time. If no one reaches the ham by 11am, the fight will begin.
As seems to be Spanish tradition, everyone wears white, probably to see exactly how much of a mess tomatoes can really make on white clothes. In saying that, you’ll see plenty of Spanish men chucking tomatoes at each other in their undies, while heaps of people wear goggles or snorkelling gear to keep the mush out of their eyes and nose.
6 trucks filled with tomatoes will move through the streets over the course of an hour, leaving everyman for himself behind them. The fight is officially over at 1pm, but the masses of crazy tomato covered people will often hang around a little bit longer and throw some more, take pics for the gram, and splash around a bit before they head out. On the way out, locals will be standing on the street with their hoses ready to spray you down, usually for a €1 donation. If you’re savvy, there’s also a little river on the way out that you can stop at to rinse off in.
Itinerary
ITINERARY
Please make a note of the following times so you don’t miss out on all the fun and important transport departure times!
4am check in for a 4:30am departure – Onefam Madrid Hostel, Carrer del Montserrat, 9, Centro, 28015, Madrid, Spain
Around 9AM: Arrive in Buñol, and head to the Stoke Travel pre-party to fuel up with some drinks and breakfast rolls. Meet the rest of the crew and make allies before preparing for battle
11am: Head into the main event – the scramble to reach a leg of ham balanced on a 5m high wooden pole begins! When (if) someone reaches this ham, the tomato fight officially begins!
12pm: If no one reaches the ham before 12 pm a shot is fired and trucks carrying tonnes and tonnes of tomatoes are dumped throughout the street. Prepare yourself for about an hour of absolute carnage of throwing fleshy fruit at strangers, friends, family, locals and tourists alike.
1pm-2pm: Following the fight we’ll head back towards the buses. You can stop off to be rinsed for a coin donation by locals with their garden hoses. Remember to bring a spare change of clothes!
2pm: Be at the bus by this time at the lastest, as we’ll check back in and head to the beach. Final departure is at 2:30pm, and we can’t wait for stragglers!
3:30pm-6:15pm: Beach time! Relax and recover from the morning’s chaos – enjoy the sun, swim in the Med, grab a late lunch, and have a cold beverage.
6:30pm: Final bus departure time! Make sure you’re back and ready to go at no later than 6:15pm, so we can head home to Madrid
10/10:30pm: Arrive back in Madrid (traffic dependent)
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