Yzabelle Bostyn
A REFERENDUM is to be held into Sevilla’s Feria de Abril after three MILLION people attended this year’s festivities, bringing in €6bn
This year’s feria has outshone 2022’s two million, with over 1,070,962 more attendees.
On Sunday, Sevilla mayor, Jose Luis Sanz called the event an ‘economic force’ that the city must ‘protect’.
Now, Sevillanos will get to decide how the feria works next year in a referendum taking place from Monday, April 22 at 9:00am to Thursday, April 25, at 08:00pm.
The vote will decide whether the event will run from Monday to Sunday or continue as it is from Saturday to Saturday.
Anyone over 18 registered in the city from February 29, 2024 can take part in the referendum.
Caseta and carriage owners can also take part even if they are not registered in Sevilla.
In this case, the voter must have their official documents from the Delegacion de Fiestas Mayores del Ayuntamiento.
You can vote through the Ayuntamiento website or in district offices.
In both cases, the voters must register on the council website and give a telephone number.
After registering, voters will receive a SMS code to proceed to vote.
The dates of the feria were last changed in 2017 following another vote from the ‘traditional’ Monday to Sunday dates.
In recent years, the feria has been the source of much contention for the city, with some complaining it has been ‘overrun’ by tourists.
The event still maintains its private ‘caseta’ format, where families, business and local organisations have private spaces to enjoy the festivities.
Nonetheless, the floods of visitors from Spain and beyond has put pressure on the event, with crowded public casetas and busy transport systems.
Many have complained about waiting ‘hours’ for local buses, crowded metros and obscenely expensive taxis.
Changing the event may help relieve the pressure on the city by reducing the feria by one day and making it during the working week so tourists are less likely to attend.
