Running with the Bulls – Pamplona Spain

Running with the bulls festival takes place in Pamplona, Spain. It is a process which involves running in front of a small group of bulls that have been let loose.. RUN FOR YOUR LIFE.

Imagine this thing running behind you? Festival takes place every year from July 6th till July 14th.

In my opinion, this is dangerous, but totally worth knowing about!

The festival held in Pamplona lasts for nine-days! It is the festival of Sanfermines in honor of Saint Fermin. [wikipedia]

It has become a major global tourism event, today very different from the traditional, local festival. More traditional summer bull-runs are held in other places such as towns and villages across Spain and Portugal, in some cities in Mexico and in the Occitan (Camargue) region of southern France.

Bull-running was formerly also practiced in rural England, most famously at Stamford until 1837.

I remember being asked to go to experience this festival back in 2012, and my answer was a hard no for so many reasons. That said, it a big part of Spain’s and the Spanish culture.

The origin of this event comes from the need to transport the bulls from the fields outside the city, where they were bred, to the bullring, where they would be killed in the evening. During this “run”, youngsters would jump among them to show off their bravado. In Pamplona and other places, the six bulls in the event are still those that will feature in the afternoon bullfight of the same day.

Every year, between 50 and 100 people are injured during the run. If you plan to go, please don’t do anything crazy! Those who participate in the run are mostly those who know how to deal with the bulls and have been around bulls for a long time (and some crazy tourists, haha!)

Though there is no formal dress code, the very common and traditional attire is white trousers, white shirt with a red scarf around the waist and a red handkerchief around the neck.