San Cecilio Festival in Granada - Celebrations in Honour of the City's Patron Saint

On February the 1st Granada celebrates the day of San Cecilio, the first bishop of the city when Granada was called Ilíberis and Romans ruled it. It is a tradition to hold a procession and visit the catacombs at Sacromonte Abbey.

Since the 1st of February is usually a working day, celebrations take place on the first Sunday of the month.

In 2025 the festivities of San Cecilio will take place on Sunday 2 February.

A short procession will be held on February 1st around San Cecilio Church in the Realejo Quarter.

A Brief History

It is believed that San Cecilio was one of the three disciples sent by St. Peter to Spain for evangelization. The other two were Isio and Tesifon.

When they gathered in the catacombs of this mountain with nine other priests, they were surrounded by the Romans and martyred.

His disciples wrote the story in a lead sheet and hid it between two stones, one white and one black, and were thrown into the river Darro.


They were discovered in 1595 and sent to Rome in order to confirm its authenticity. The originals are still preserved there.

After that an abbey and college were built near the catacombs.

There is an old popular tradition about the stone located in the abbey. You should touch the white side of the stone if you want to get married soon.

Where Is San Cecilio Celebrated?

The first part of the festivity takes place on the 1st of February at the church of San Cecilio, near Campo del Príncipe in the Realejo quarter.

There is also a mass following the old Hispanic-Mozarabic rite in the Sacromonte Abbey at 17:00.

Then, on Sunday 2 February 2025, a very popular pilgrimage will take place around the Sacromonte Abbey.

Many people will walk all the way up from Granada to celebrate and visit the catacombs of the saint.

Inside the Sacromonte Abbey, a religous ceremony is held at 12:00. From 16:00 to 17:30 you can visit the catacombs, which are free only this day.



Around the abbey you will see lots of people gathering for lunch.

There is usually some typical food provided by the Town Hall.

These traditional snacks includes some "salaíllas" (a salty bread with olive oil) and fresh broad beans (habas) from Granada´s best fields.

There will also be great folk music and dancing.

How to Get to the Sacromonte Abbey

By Bus

At Plaza Nueva you can get on the bus route C34, which goes to Sacromonte.

There is usually lots of people waiting for the bus on this special day. Please, take into account that you could wait for a long time before you can actually get on the bus. There are few places and long queues.

Alternatively, at the same bus stop you can take bus routes C31, C32, which go to Albaicín, and get off at the bus stop called Calle Peso de la Harina (on Cuesta del Chapiz, just before Camino del Sacromonte).



Altough these buses do not reach the Sacromonte Abbey, they can be a good option since Calle Peso de la Harina is about 1000 meters from the Abbey. Just follow the groups of people who are going there too. It is a very nice walk.

By Car

You can not get very close to the Abbey of Sacromonte by car on this day. You could drive to Caretera of Murcia, then take Camino Viejo del Fargue and park just 1000 meters away from the Abbey.

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