Contact Us




























    Why Sitges Carnival Is The Gayest

    Stokepedia

    Posted by Stoke Media Team
    5 years ago | February 12, 2018

    Why Sitges Carnival Is The Gayest

    Stoke Travel’s Sitges Carnival bus trip is the biggest event of the winter, with more than 1000 party animals joining us every year. In fact, we sold out last year in advance of the event, with over 1200 tickets sold. You’d better book your ticket now!

    It’s the gayest time, the most merry and lovely and enjoyable time. Not only is it carnival, that global celebration once-upon-a-time marking the last hurrah before the 40 days of Lent’s abstinence, but it’s carnival done Spanish style, done Catalan style, done in a way that’s befitting of Barcelona. Sitges carnival is the gayest time because everybody is just so happy, and dressed up so wonderfully, and with all the sequins and glitter, and hunky guys on floats with their tops off despite the cold, and women wearing next to nothing kissing other women wearing next to nothing…

    Sitges carnival is also the gayest because Sitges is one of Europe’s gay capitals, a seaside resort that has long enjoyed the patronage of LGBTQI+ sunseekers and party animals.

    Now carnival in Sitges isn’t a specifically gay event, but there’s no denying the influence that the local community have on proceedings, making it an absolute delight of a party to participate in, or just watch from the sidelines. If you’ve never celebrated carnival before, you’re in for a surprise, and if you have you’ll know to dress up, paint your face, grab some beads and let loose for one night.

    Why do people celebrate carnival?

    So Lent is supposed to be a period of intense abstinence leading up to Easter, a period when catholics would give up vices, like drinking and cigarettes, as well as not so vices, like eating red meat. They say that carnival came about because everybody had a lot of meat that they had to get through before the period of no meat, but that’s just the vanilla version. More likely is that everybody wanted to get fucked up and bang each other before the 40 days without. Also, the word carnival derives from the latin carne vale, which means farewell meat. Now you could think that they were talking about the meat from the kitchen, but we’re pretty sure that they were saying goodbye to trouser meat.

    So now carnival is celebrated in the old and new catholic worlds, including famous events in Venice, Italy, Cologne, Germany, Rio de Janeiro, Brazil, New Orleans, USA, and our own special Sitges, Spain (Catalunya!). All of these celebrations are about covering your identity a little so you can truly get up to mischief you won’t be held responsible for at a later date. Wear a mask, cover yourself in feathers, grab some beads, and just go wild! You’re probably not going to abstain afterwards, but any excuse for a good party…

    What’s good in Sitges?

    Well, it’s a gay hub, which means that it attracts plenty of visitors, so shopping, restaurants, clubs, etc are all of a high standard with plenty of variety. There are a bunch of beautiful beaches, a great old church that overlooks the sea, an old town that features windy, narrow streets with all those bars and restaurants and clubs littered along it, and it’s just down the road from Barcelona, so you can get there and home without too much hassle (but make sure you get to the train before it closes, and forget about it all together on Carnival night — too busy, not enough options, and you don’t want to be stuck there in the cold). For more information on Sitges, check out our guide.

    The Sitges carnival is a parade and a street party. There will be floats with gaudily dressed performers, scantily dressed performers, not dressed at all performers, and we’ll be drinking and dancing away while they go past, sometimes participating ourselves. Once that’s done we’ll continue grooving in the streets, hit up some bars and clubs, and then stumble back to the bus home.

    What’s the deal with Stoke Travel’s Sitges carnival trip?

    We’re going to roll in to Sitges on Fat Tuesday, aka Mardi Gras, after our pre-party in Barcelona, with an hour of open bar from 4:30pm. Our private coaches will take us to Sitges and bring us back home when it’s done, and there’ll be a litre of sangria waiting for you when you arrive. We’ll have guides to help guide you through the madness, but if you get lost don’t worry, just go with the party and make your way back to the buses when it’s time to go. Every year we take hundreds of partiers from Barcelona to Sitges, and this year will be no different. Let’s say goodbye to meat and get buck wild for Carnival 2018, Sitges style!

    Sitges Carnival is on the 25th of February. Book your trip now, it’s only €25 for what might just be the best night of your life… 

     

     

    Related Trips
    Barcelona Wine Tours And Tastings
    Barcelona
    Poble De Los Freaks | La Terrrazza Club
    Barcelona
    Barcelona Cocktail Class
    Barcelona
    The Spanish
    Spain
    Barcelona City Break 2022
    Spain
    Barcelona Boat Party and Cruises
    Barcelona
    Barcelona Cooking Class
    Barcelona
    Barcelona Kayaking & Snorkeling Costa Brava
    Europe
    San Juan
    Europe
    San Vino Wine Fight Festival Spain 2023
    Haro
    Sonar Festival
    Europe
    Sitges Carnival
    Europe
    Related Articles
    Let’s Talk Rebrands: An Open Letter From Gravy, Stoke Travel CMO

    This feels like a terribly self-indulgent thing for me to do – you know, who cares about what the piddling CMO from a middling youth travel company has to say…

    Read More

    Five Reasons Why The Stoke App Will Make Travelling Europe Wonderful

    Maybe you’ve heard, perhaps you haven’t, but Stoke Travel has made an app! Rather than let the pandemic and dissolving of youth travel kill our momentum, we decided to use…

    Read More

    Surviving Lockdown in Barcelona

    10 Tips to keep you sane during Barcelona Lockdown  So whilst bars and restaurants and our usual indulgent spots may be closed for the foreseeable future, here’s some survival tips…

    Read More

    Wearing Party Masks Is The Right Thing To Do

    But that doesn’t mean they have to be boring! Let’s conquer COVID and protect our communities with Stoke Threads party masks, while showing the world that no matter how messed…

    Read More

    A New Normal For Barcelona Boat Parties

    Barcelona Boat Parties are back on for 2020! We’re operating according to COVID-19 regulations in the new normal, and partying on a boat is one of the few things we’re…

    Read More

    The Best Places To Eat Paella In Barcelona

    By K.P. our resident food critic Paella is one of Spain’s national joys (as you probably know) and is hands down the one dish you HAVE to wrap your mouth…

    Read More

    Best Tapas In Barcelona

    By KP, our resident food critic Now we’re talking, good old authentic tapas, shared plates of deliciousness – Spanish specialities done in Barcelona with a particularly Catalan flair. These little…

    Read More

    The Best Brunch In Barcelona

    By KP, our resident food critic Surely you know that StokeTravel do a bottomless brunch with unlimited mimosas at all of our destinations, because we know that nothing beats a…

    Read More

    Which European festivals and events have been cancelled due to coronavirus? 

    An updating list of the music and cultural festivals, and sporting events, across Europe that have been cancelled, postponed, or rescheduled in 2020 due to COVID-19, and those that remain…

    Read More

    Best Coffee Spots In Barcelona

    By KP, our resident food critic Us Stokies know good coffee (comes with being so regularly hungover/busy), and while Spain has always had a coffee drinking culture of some sort,…

    Read More

    Best Burgers In Barcelona

    By KP, our resident foodie Up there with kebabs and curries as the ultimate hangover food, there’s nothing quite like chewing away the previous night’s sins – or doubling down…

    Read More

    Best Italian Food In Barcelona

    By KP, our resident food critic Italian food is a classic favourite amongst the masses. To be fair, I don’t think I have ever met a soul that didn’t enjoy…

    Read More

    Search Stoke Travel Search by Trip, Destination, Month...