Venue
Ibi, Alicante, Spain
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Els Enfarinats Festival guide
Flour, eggs and a mock coup in Ibi.
In short
Els Enfarinats takes place every year on 28 December, the Day of the Holy Innocents, in a toy-making town inland from Alicante. It suits travellers who do not mind getting messy, as a fake army seizes the town and battles a rival gang with flour and eggs. Spectators get no protection, so decide whether you will throw or watch.
Els Enfarinats is a mock coup staged every year in Ibi, a toy-making town in the hills inland from Alicante. A band of men in fake military uniform seizes the town for a day, passes absurd laws and defends its rule with flour, eggs and firecrackers against a rival gang trying to restore order.
It belongs to the Day of the Holy Innocents, Spain's version of April Fools' Day, and the joke has a generous side. Every fine the rebels collect goes to the Sant Joaquim care home and other good causes in Ibi, so being caught out is part of the fun.
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Key Facts & Stats:
Where: Ibi, Spain
Venue: Town centre
Held: Every year
Type of event: Cultural Events, Folk Festival, Social Festivals
Currency: Euro (EUR, €)
Time zone: Central European Time, UTC+1 (UTC+2 in summer); Canary Islands UTC+0
Language: Spanish (Castilian); co-official Catalan, Galician, Basque
Map
Getting around
Hotels near the venue fill up around the event dates.
Clothing and goggles for egg and flour
Dress as if you will throw everything away afterwards, because you may have to. Egg and flour dry into something close to paste, and they get everywhere.
- Old clothes, and closed shoes with grip. Flip-flops are a bad idea with firecrackers going off at your feet.
- Goggles or glasses against the clouds of flour.
- Hair tied back or covered.
- A waterproof pouch for your phone, and nothing else of value.
- A warm layer underneath. Ibi stands at about 816 metres, and late December mornings are cold.
Pack a full change of clothes and a plastic bag in the car or at your hotel. You will want them by lunchtime.
Paying the made-up fines with good humour
Being fined is the point of the game. The rebels stop people in the street for breaking laws they have just invented, and the expected response is to laugh and pay. Carry a pocket of coins for exactly this.
Play along with good grace. Arguing only prolongs the scene and draws a crowd, and every coin ends up with a local charity at the end of the day. Officials of the mock government may ask for a name or make a show of writing you up; that is theatre too.
Where spectators can stand once firecrackers start
Onlookers are not protected in any way, and the line between audience and battlefield moves all morning. If you only want to watch, stay well back from Church Square and keep a side street behind you as an exit.
- Firecrackers are thrown throughout the morning fighting. Keep small children well back, and consider ear protection for them.
- Do not stand on steps or walls where a sudden rush could knock you off.
- Go easy on alcohol. The streets are slippery with egg, and a clear head helps when the crowd surges.
What happens on the day
- About 08:00
The New Justice takes power
The Enfarinats seize the town in their mock uniforms. In the 2022 programme this was the opening act of the day.
- 09:00
Mock court at the Town Hall
A staged hearing chooses the Enfarinats' mayor, and the fines and silly laws start soon after.
- 10:00
First battle in Church Square
The rebels move into the Plaça de l'Església, and flour, eggs and firecrackers fly. A second round followed at 10:30 in 2022.
- Midday
Dancing at headquarters
Fighting in the square winds down, and the Enfarinats dance at their base on Les Ànimes Street.
- Early afternoon
The Arreplegada
The collection procession heads for the Sant Joaquim care home, where the dancers performed for residents at 15:15 in 2022.
- 17:00
Peace is made
The rebel government's authority runs out, the two sides shake hands and the whole town dances. Times shift a little each year.
Deciding whether to join the flour fight or just watch
Make one decision before anything else: throw, or only watch. The town will not make the distinction for you. Spectators get no special protection, and anyone who drifts close to the fighting is fair game, so even a watcher needs to arrive dressed for the worst.
Plan the day in two halves. The morning, when the fighting happens, is loud and messy and over by lunchtime. The afternoon is calmer and more local, with music, dancing and the handing over of the money. Bring a full change of clothes and a bag to put the ruined ones in, and you can stay for both.
The mock coup of the New Justice and its officials
The whole day is played like a script. A group of men in mock military uniform takes over in the name of New Justice, with a full cast of officials: a mayor chosen by fake election, plus a judge, a prosecutor, a secretary and trustees. Laws follow, each sillier than the last, and anyone caught breaking one is fined on the spot.
Their rivals, La Oposició, spend the day trying to restore the old order. Flour bombs and eggs are the weapons, firecrackers the soundtrack. Nobody really wins. By evening the opposition concedes, both bands shake hands, and the cash raised over the day goes to good causes in town.
Written records of the custom go back at least to 1862, and some accounts claim more than 200 years. It disappeared with the Spanish Civil War of 1936 to 39 and only came back in 1981, six years after the death of Franco. Ibi has held on to it ever since. This is a local fiesta first, run by people who know each other, and visitors are guests at someone else's joke.
Getting there
Flying in
Alicante-Elche is the nearest international airport, roughly 37 minutes from Ibi by car in light traffic.
By road
Ibi sits beside the A-7 motorway on the route that climbs from the coast towards Alcoy. A hire car is the practical choice, and an early start on the 28th beats the parking squeeze in the centre.
In town
Head for the Plaça de l'Església, where the Enfarinats set up base and most of the morning fighting happens. The side streets around it are where onlookers gather; the further from the middle, the cleaner you stay.
After the flour
The Valencian Toy Museum, a nod to Ibi's toy-making past, fills a quiet afternoon once the square has been hosed down.
Where to stay during the festival
Beds in Ibi are few, and the date falls in Spain's holiday week between Christmas and New Year, when Spanish families are travelling too. Book as soon as you decide to go.
Alicante and the coast hold far more rooms and are the usual base for a day trip. Sleeping in Ibi or a neighbouring hill town the night before lets you walk in while the first battle is still forming.
Weather and what to pack
Late December on the Costa Blanca is mild and mostly dry. Alicante, on the coast, averages a daytime high of about 18°C and a low of 7.5°C in December, with roughly 25 mm of rain over three or four wet days (1991-2020 normals).
Ibi lies inland at around 800 m, so expect a noticeably colder morning than on the coast, and a chilly wait in the square before the fighting starts.
Worth packing
- Old clothes you are happy to throw away afterwards
- A full change of clothes and a bag for the ruined ones
- A hat, the traditional look for La Oposició
- Swimming goggles or glasses to keep flour out of your eyes
- A warm layer for the cold early start
- Coins for the Enfarinats' fines, which go to charity
Car hire in Ibi
Airport transfer to Els Enfarinats Festival
Met at arrivals and driven door to door to Town centre.
Restaurants and food in Spain
Places to eat in Spain before or after the celebrations.
Ganbara
Calle San Jerónimo 21, 20003 Donostia San Sebastián, Spain
Cuisine:BasquePintxos
- Dine-in
- Bar
- Counter seating
El Rinconcillo
Calle Gerona 40, 41003 Seville, Spain
Cuisine:AndalusianTapas
- Dine-in
- Bar
- Counter seating
El Celler de Can Roca
Carrer de Can Sunyer 48, 17007 Girona, Spain
Cuisine:Contemporary CatalanTasting menu
- Dine-in
Sobrino de Botín
Calle de los Cuchilleros 17, 28005 Madrid, Spain
Cuisine:CastilianTraditional Spanish
- Dine-in
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Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs)
General
It is Valencian for 'the floured ones', the name of the group that seizes the town for the day. By the end of the morning the name fits nearly everyone in the square, on both sides.
The date is the Day of the Holy Innocents, which recalls the New Testament story of King Herod ordering the killing of infant boys. Over time Spain turned the day into one for pranks and practical jokes, and Ibi's fake coup is the most elaborate of them.
By tradition the group is made up of married men from Ibi. They take the roles of the mock government for the day, from the mayor down to the officials who hand out fines.
Yes. Outsiders who want to throw are expected to fight with La Oposició, the side trying to bring the old order back, and a big hat is part of the look. Otherwise, watch from the edges and accept that you may still get floured.
The collection procession that winds through Ibi around the middle of the day, gathering donations on its way to the Sant Joaquim care home. It is one of the quieter, more local parts of the fiesta and a good moment to see the town's own crowd.
In a recent programme the day closed with a free public dance at the Municipal Sports Hall from 10.30pm, and the town invited everyone to come in traditional costume. Check that year's programme, as the evening plan can change.
Yes. Since its revival the Valencian regional government has declared it a festival of tourist interest, a status given to fiestas with a strong local tradition behind them.
In Ibi itself the Hotel del Juguete is the obvious choice. More rooms are a short drive away in Alcoy, where the Sercotel Ciutat d'Alcoi and Hotel Reconquista are options, and in Biar at the Hotel Villa de Biar. Alicante works too if you have a car.
Prices & payment
You can, but then you are threatened with 'jail', in keeping with the game. Nobody is actually locked up, but refusing spoils the joke, and the money goes to charity anyway, so most people pay up with a smile.
Stay & facilities
Several. La Tomatina in Buñol, near Valencia, is the famous tomato battle, and the wine fight at Haro in La Rioja is the wettest. Ibi's is the only one built around a fake government and a day of fines.
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