Sant Jordi is the festival of books and roses that, every 23 April, turns Barcelona into a celebration of love. Inspired by the legend of the knight and the dragon, the tradition centres on giving books and roses to the people we care about. Bookshops and flower stalls spill into the streets, mixing the scent of blooms with fresh pages. It is a day for wandering familiar streets, discovering new stories and spending time with others. For a few hours, the city becomes a vast open-air bookshop where love is written and exchanged.
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Along streets such as La Rambla and Passeig de Gràcia, bookshops spill out into stalls, with authors signing and events running throughout the day.
Take time to wander the stalls in neighbourhoods such as Sant Antoni or Gràcia, where emerging writers are often there to sign copies themselves.
According to tradition, a rose bush of red roses sprang from the body of the dragon slain by the knight.
Sant Jordi has been the patron saint of Catalonia since the 15th century and is often seen as the Catalan equivalent of Valentine’s Day.