It’s a beautiful, sunny, summer Wednesday morning in Buñol, a small town some 40 km west of Valencia. You are admiring the magnificent 12th century Castillo de Buñol, exploring all the nooks and crannies, imagining how it was to be a medieval soldier guarding its massive walls, and looking forward to that authentic paella you're gonna have for lunch.
Valencian city of Buñol and its castle Credits: shutterstock
Suddenly, you hear yelling coming from the town's main square and rush to see what's all the ruckus. Soon enough, you notice that the streets are covered in red pulp. Is this blood? Have you slipped through a wormhole and found yourself in the 13th century, witnessing the attack from some unknown conqueror?
What is La Tomatina?
As stated three times already, La Tomatina is considered the world’s biggest food fight. Once a year, on the last Wednesday of August, thousands of people flock to the small Valencian town of Buñol to do one thing and one thing only: throw a bunch of tomatoes at other people. Yeah, it might sound silly, but so does almost every fun thing in life!
It all began with a Big-Head
There are many legends and theories on when and how this strange event started, but the one that sticks the most traces its roots all the way to 1945. Back then, during the festival of the town’s patron saints, Louis Bertran and the Mare de Deu dels Desemparats, it was a tradition to have a Giants and Big-Head figures parade. It is said that, during the climax of the festivities, one of the Big-Head's participant's heads fell off, which prompted him to go berzerk and start hitting everybody around him. Poor guy must've really liked his big head.
Enraged, some locals started throwing tomatoes from the nearby market stall at the fella, and soon everybody was throwing fruits and vegetables at each other. After all, it's in our nature to throw stuff when we see other people throwing stuff, right? Who knows how long would this produce massacre last if it weren't for the local forces ending this "battle".
The following year a group of mischievous youngsters, who probably found the impromptu fruit war the most exciting thing their quiet, sleepy town had to offer, planned to repeat the fight and brought tomatoes from their home. It was messy but apparently so fun, that they decided to repeat it the next year, and the year after that, and the year after and... well, no. Not that year.
CROWD WAITING FOR THE START OF THE BATTLE Credits: Shutterstock
Turbulent history of La Tomatina
As it appears, the notorious Spanish dictator, General Francisco Franco, didn't find this food fight thing the least amusing. His regime concluded La Tomatina has no religious gravity, the festival was banned in 1950. Talk about a buzzkill...
The ban was lifted in 1959, after the uproar of the locals who even staged "The Tomato's Funeral", a parade with a giant tomato in a coffin that was followed by a band playing sorrowing funeral music. Some conditions were set for reinstating the festival, and the first concrete set of rules was written, many of them still in force to this day.
In the 1980s, the town's council took over the organization of La Tomatina, and the festival grew in scope year after year, becoming one of the most popular events in Spain. The word of this crazy food bash spread worldwide, and that's why in 2002 the Secretary Department of Tourism declared it "a festivity of international tourist interest".
The art of building anticipation
La Tomatina is all about the tomato fight, but every show must have a good prelude. In this case, it is "jabon de polo" competition. Anyone with some knowledge of the Spanish language can immediately recognize that this translates to "ham on the pole", and it's exactly that: a tall, greased-up pole with a juicy leg of Jamón Serrano on top. The objective is to reach the ham by climbing the pole, a feat that maybe sounds feasible but is almost impossible.
Climbing that greasy pole Credits: flickr
This fool's errand lasts until noon, when participants of La Tomatina start chanting "Tomate! Tomate!", as the trucks filled with ripe tomatoes start arriving at the Plaza del Pueblo and Calle del Cid, where the main event is being held. The tomatoes traditionally come from Extramadura, where they are a surplus that is just not edible due to their poor quality. Because of their poor quality, they have a low price, which is why they are the perfect choice for a giant food fight.
The tomato mayhem
After the clock strikes noon and a start signal is heard, all hell breaks loose. Designated „tomato unloaders“ hurl thousands and thousands of tomatoes at the cheering crowd, and what ensues next is an hour of epic battle royale, where everyone fends for themselves. Then and there, you don't have a friend, a wife or a husband, a girlfriend or a boyfriend, son and daughter or mother and father — everybody is your enemy!
And so it begins... Credits: Shutterstock
The first barrage is hits hard as you still try to evade tomato projectiles, but after a few minutes, you are drenched in the red pulp, and the cobblestone beneath your feet becomes an impassable mush. And that's just the first round! The trucks with new tomatoes just keep on coming. After all, at least 120 tons of this versatile red fruit need to be unloaded on the heads of people who, by all means, crave it!
The tomato mayhem Credits: shutterstock
And then, at precisely 1 PM, a signal stops everything. The battle is over. All that is left is the red tomato sea, and the second half of the madness — getting everything clean. The streets are washed by fire trucks, and the participants are left to mend for themselves. Some will take a dip at the nearby Buñol river or jump into the natural Los Peñones pool, and some will be hosed down by kind locals. The aftermath: crystal clear streets of Buñol due to the acidity of tomatoes and thousands of happy faces that had a chance to experience something truly unique.
Hosing down is La Tomatina triage Credits: Shutterstock
Rules of engagement
Although all of this may seem a bit chaotic, there is no place for anarchy at La Tomatina. Firstly, there is a limit to the number of participants, and it currently stands at about 22 000 paid ticket holders. Second, you must be at least 18 years old if you want to participate in the grand tomato tossing.
Participants are not allowed to bring bottles or any hard objects on the field of battle, and it is advised to squash the tomatoes a bit before throwing them so the hits hurt less. It is also prohibited to tear your or anybody else's shirt during the battle, and everyone should keep a safe distance from the trucks that bring in fresh tomatoes. Last, but not least: when the second signal goes off, EVERYBODY must stop the food fight!
Other than that, everything else is up to you. It is, however, recommended to come in old clothes and wear comfy shoes. Many participants wear goggles because that tomato juice can sting the eyes, but you can also ensure that you always have something clean to wipe your face.
Well, there are worse ways to spend your Wednesday Credits: Shutterstock
So, when is it and how do you join?
La Tomatina was canceled in 2020 and 2021 because of COVID, but it's back now and will be held on the 31st of August. If you want to be among the 22 000 lucky participants, you will have to reserve your ticket (just 10 Euro for the basic cannon fodder experience, or 750 Euro if you want to be the person on the truck throwing the tomatoes at the crowd). Also, it is recommended to buy a tour package from more than a dozen websites like La Tomatina Festival.
If you are interested in something more than mindless tomato throwing, you can stay in Buñol for a whole week, enjoying the festival to the fullest! There are parades, dancing, fireworks, paella cooking competitions - you know, your regular awesome Spanish fiesta stuff.
La Tomatina parade Credits: Shutterstock
But wait! There's more!
La Tomatina might be the biggest and most well-known food fight festival in the world, but there are a few others that might tickle your curiosity and grab your attention.
In the Northern Italian city of Ivrea, thousands of people gather every February for an orange battle in the festivity known as Battaglia delle arance. It's a bit more violent than La Tomatina (if anything, because oranges are tougher than tomatoes), and the participants are divided into teams. However, in the end, it all comes down to throwing fruit at other people.
Battaglia delle arance - hardcore version Credits: Shutterstock
More of a drink fight than a food fight, La Batalla del Vino is an annual festival held in the Spanish city of Haro on the 29th of June. Locals and tourists spend the first half of the festivity in a civil procession, wearing white shirts and red scarves, and carrying jugs of wine. In the second half, as you might've guessed, it's wine tossing time — the participants throw wine at each other. And also drink that same wine. A lot. So yeah... that's what would constitute “an epic party“.
La Batalla del Vino - drunk version Credits: Shutterstock
A pie in the face is an old slapstick staple, but that doesn't mean we don't want to do it! World Custard Pie Championship in the English town of Coxheath could be just the thing we're looking for. The rules are simple: teams of four are paired against each other, and the objective is to hit the other team's players. The points are scored depending on where you hit your nemesis (pie in the face is, of course, a jackpot), but you have to throw the pie with your left hand. And the best thing is that, even if you lose, you can still eat the pie!
World Custard Pie Championship - slapstick version Credits: Flickr
