La Tomatina

La Tomatina began in 1945, by most accounts as a scuffle at a parade in which participants grabbed vegetables from a market stall, and it repeated, was banned, was reinstated, and by the 2000s had grown so large that Bunol, a town of nine thousand, was receiving fifty thousand people. Since 2013 it has been ticketed and capped at around twenty thousand. Trucks bring in over a hundred tonnes of overripe tomatoes grown specifically for it, the signal is given, and for one hour the crowd throws them at each other in a narrow street until the ground is ankle-deep in pulp. Rules require tomatoes to be squashed before throwing and no other objects. Fire hoses wash down the street and the participants afterward.

What you actually see

• The tomato hour - a hundred tonnes thrown in one street from eleven to noon.
• The palo jabon - a greased pole with a ham on top, climbed before the start.
• The hose-down - fire hoses washing the streets and crowd afterward.
• The capped crowd - around twenty thousand ticketed participants.

When to go

The last Wednesday of August, the fixed date; tickets go on sale months ahead and sell out. Most visitors come on organised coaches from Valencia, since Bunol has no capacity to host them.

Honest expectations

Tickets are required and the event sells out. Clothes worn will be ruined, and goggles are strongly advised since tomato acid stings badly. Phones need waterproof protection. Injuries from crushing in the packed street occur, and it is not suitable for children or anyone uneasy in crowds.

Nearby

Bunol's castle and the Turia gorge are in the town; Valencia lies thirty-eight kilometres east.