Méndez Núñez
Mediterranean Balcony House
A bright base in the centre of Tarragona, close to the Rambla Nova, the Balcó del Mediterrani and an easy walk from the historic centre.
Tarragona, as we live it
Sant Magí:
live Tarragona
like a local
Water carried across the countryside, horse-drawn carts, castells beside the Cathedral, giants, gralles and streets full of life. Sant Magí is not simply something to see. It is something you step into.
In August, sometimes you hear the gralles before you see anything. Their sound carries through the old streets, the giants appear, and suddenly everyone is looking upwards as a castell begins to rise.
This is Sant Magí, one of Tarragona's most loved traditional festivals, centred around 19 August.
At the heart of the celebration is water. According to tradition, Sant Magí made a spring appear at La Brufaganya. Every year its water makes the journey to Tarragona, carried by horses, carts and the people who keep this tradition alive.
What I love most is that Sant Magí does not feel like a show created for visitors. It belongs to the city. If you are here at the right time, you simply find yourself inside it.
Following the water
From La Brufaganya to Tarragona
The journey of Sant Magí's water connects the inland landscape with the city, passing through villages, monasteries and the country shaped by the Gaià.
The Gaià
The route begins in the landscape around Sant Magí de la Brufaganya and follows the Gaià country through Santa Perpètua de Gaià, Querol, Pont d'Armentera and Santes Creus before continuing towards Tarragona.
The traditional water route continues through Bràfim, Nulles, l'Argilaga and els Pallaresos before finally entering the city.
Travel the Water Route Slowly →
The water reaches the city
Carts, horses and a tradition Tarragona waits for
The arrival of the water is one of the moments that gives Sant Magí its particular character. Horses and decorated carts enter Tarragona after their journey from La Brufaganya.
The water eventually reaches the Portal del Carro, beside the chapel of Sant Magí, where it is distributed during the festival.
19 August · Plaça de les Cols
And then the square looks upwards
On Sant Magí day, Tarragona's casteller groups gather in Plaça de les Cols, just below the Cathedral.
It is one of those moments when the whole square seems to become vertical: people, music and human towers rising between the stone façades of the Part Alta.
Understand Tarragona's castells →
One of Sant Magí's most unusual traditions
Sant Magí beneath the Mediterranean
A little-known tradition beneath the sea
The festival does not only belong to the streets. Tarragona's diving community also keeps alive an underwater tradition dedicated to Sant Magí.
Divers visit the image of the saint beneath the Mediterranean, taking the celebration from the city into the underwater landscape just off the coast.
From the spring of La Brufaganya, through the Gaià country to Tarragona — and finally beneath the Mediterranean.
Stay inside the story
During Sant Magí, Tarragona is best discovered on foot
From both Tarragona Charming Houses apartments, the historic centre and the main areas of the celebration are within walking distance.
Part Alta
Catedral Charming House
Here Sant Magí is literally outside your door: the Cathedral, Plaça de les Cols and the streets where the festival unfolds are all around you.
Visiting a city is one thing. Waking up inside one of its traditions is something else entirely.
You are not travelling to the festival.
You are already there.