Holidaymakers heading to Spain this year might want to consider visiting Murcia for its popular spring festival.

The event takes place on the first Tuesday after Easter every year and sees the city's parks and other public spaces transformed into markets and "barracas" where visitors can sample some traditional local cuisine.

Local residents dress up in colourful costumes, while the highlight of the festival comes when a massive parade - which first took place as part of the festival in the 19th century - makes its way through the streets of Murcia.

This year, visitors to Spain can also expect to see the famous Entierro de la Sardina, or Burial of the Sardine, on March 29th.

The ritual involves entertainers and dance groups accompanying a fleet of floats as their occupants throw toys to the crowd, following which an effigy of a sardine - a fish that is eaten in vast quantities over the Lent period - is burnt to much cheering.

For more information, see the Murcia city council website.

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