Viva La Fiesta! Old Spanish Days Celebration 2022!

For the first time in three years, Santa Barbara is celebrating Old Spanish Days again! This Wednesday, as is tradition, the official opening of Fiesta will be held at Mercado De La Guerra counting down to the opening of the Mercados at 11 am. 

For more information about this incredible event visit Old Spanish Days – Fiesta

“Old Spanish Days” is Santa Barbara’s largest celebration and one of the top regional festivals in the United States.  It is expected to attract more than 100,000 people this year, making it one of the biggest to date.

This year “Fiesta!” is a celebration of the community that fondly looks back to a period when Santa Barbara was a remote rural area under the influences of Spanish, Mexican, and local Native American cultures.  Fiesta celebrates a period of romance and hospitality through pageantry, dance, music, custom, and cuisine. 

Event Calendar

Every August, the spirit of old Santa Barbara comes alive as the new Santa Barbara celebrates the traditions of our City’s founders. Old Spanish Days Fiesta is an annual community-wide, five-day festival that begins on the Wednesday before the first Friday in August. The first local Fiesta celebration was held in 1924.

After a brief hiatus due to the pandemic, the City will have a complete Fiesta this summer with the return of the historic parade, both Mercados, and a variety of dances and celebrations throughout the community.

As is tradition, the official opening will be held at Mercado De La Guerra, just outside City Hall, counting down to the opening of the Mercados at 11 a.m on Wednesday, August 3. City officials will be on hand to cut the ribbon and open Fiesta for its 98th year. Mercado del Norte at McKenzie Park will also open at this time and that evening, Fiesta Pequeña once again takes place on the steps of the Old Mission.

Thursday, August 4, is highlighted by the first night of Noches de Ronda in the sunken garden of the Santa Barbara County Courthouse, and the Fiesta Rodeo at Earl Warren Showgrounds.

El Desfile Histórico, the Fiesta Historical Parade, which takes place on Friday, August 5, will have a new route this year, running the length of Cabrillo Boulevard from the traditional parade start at Castillo Street to the Hilton Hotel. Participants will then return to the Carriage Museum, once again along Cabrillo Boulevard.