July 25 and 26 Gastronomy and fiestas in Caravaca de la Cruz
A themed dinner is followed by an evening of free live music in Caravaca
The Town Hall of Caravaca, in collaboration with the regional tourist board of Murcia and Estrella Levante, has announced additional events in late July to celebrate the Holy Jubilee Year which is being held in 2024, consisting of a special themed dinner and an evening of popular musical entertainment entitled “Noche Viva”.
The date of the “Ex Tunc” dinner is Thursday July 25, starting at 20.30 at Restaurante El Horno (Calle Mayor 9), which is promised to be full of atmosphere. The menu is being put together by chef Coral García of the El Horno restaurant, the wine list is in the hands of sommelier Ismael Galiana of YaVino and those attending are asked to dress in the colours of the coat of arms of Caravaca (blue and red, with a medieval touch if possible!).
The price of this event is set at 58 euros and bookings can be made through online here.
The following evening the gastronomy moves to the Plaza de San Juan de la Cruz at 20.00 for the “Noche Viva”, where it accompanies an evening of free live music from artists including the group Stolen. Food trucks and arts and crafts stalls will also be set up for the evening and there is a ceramics workshop for all the family, also starting at 20.00.
Further information about Caravaca and the Holy Jubilee Year in 2024 is available from the tourist office (Plaza de España, 7, telephone 968 702424, email turismo@caravacadelacruz.es).
Or for more local information, including the Holy Jubilee Year as well as local news and what’s on, go to the home page of Caravaca Today.
Oficina de Turismo de Caravaca de la Cruz
More information about the places of interest which can be visited in the municipality of Caravaca de la Cruz, along with what's on and local news can be found in the Caravaca Today.
Caravaca de la Cruz, in the north-west of the Region of Murcia, is one of only 5 Holy Cities in the Roman Catholic world, a centre of pilgrimage, along with Rome, Jerusalem, Santiago de Compostela and Santo Toribio de Liebana, and is home to the Cross of Caravaca, the Vera Cruz.
The status of Holy City was bestowed by Pope John Paul II in 1998, granting the City a Permanent Jubilee year every 7 years for perpetuity, the first one held in 2003 and the next in 2024.
The strategic and natural advantages of Caravaca de la Cruz have attracted the attention of settlers for more than 800,000 years, the Cueva Negra yielding remains of Homo Heidelbergensis, forbears of the Neanderthals and the municipality also houses important archaeological remains from the Argaric, Iberian and Roman cultures. many of these can be seen in the Municipal Archaeological Museum.
As a border town caught between the Catholic forces of Castille and the last remaining Moorish stronghold in Spain, Granada, Caravaca had a turbulent medieval history, but it was during this period that the legend of the Cross of Caravaca was born, bringing the religious orders which shaped the structure of Caravaca today, with its impressive hilltop castle and eclectic collection of churches and monasteries, religious tourism today being a backbone of the town´s economy.
Caravaca de la Cruz is a municipality with important natural resources, including extensive forests, part of which have protected status due to their wealth of flora and fauna, and due to the abundant water supplies is also a major area for canned fruit production, apricots in particular being an important crop.
Caravaca is renown for its important May Fiestas, held in honour of the Vera Cruz, which also incorporate the Moors and Christians celebrations and the Running of the Wine Horses.
Caravaca de la Cruz is also the home of Europe´s largest collection of ethnic instruments at Barranda, the Museo de Música Étnica Barranda and is the location of the Barranda festival de Cuadrillas, which celebrates the Region's ethnic music traditions.
The municipality is home to around 26,000 inhabitants and sahres boundaries with Moratalla, Cehegín, Lorca, Puebla de Don Fadrique in the province of Granada and Vélez-Blanco in the province of Almería.
Opening times:
Weekdays: 10.00 to 14.00 and 16.30 to 19.30
Saturdays: 10.30 to 14.00 and 16.30 to 19.30
Sundays and public holidays: 10.30 to 14.00
Click for map, Caravaca de la Cruz Tourist Office