LA TOMATINA
RULES OF ENGAGEMENT

It has to be said that the Spanish may sound like lawless funsters who disobey all the rules but the reason that La Tomatina and other fiestas in Spain are fun and relatively accident free is that they do in fact respect the rules.

La Tomatina lasts for exactly one hour from the cannon shot, once the Ham has been won from the 'Soap Pole'. It ends with another cannon. The Spanish rarely continue after the cannon.

The Organisers tell you to squash tomatoes prior to hurling them, They can really hurt if they hit you, whole, in the face.

T-shirts must never be knotted and thrown, a wet t-shirt with a knot in can do serious damage.

Ladies, do wear a bather under your t-shirt or top, you will more than likely lose your top during the battle...

FlipFlops, don't wear them!, you will come out without or with one of someone elses after the battle...believe us, it's true

Never take valuables or passports into the fray - there is a serious amount of pickpocketing at La Tomatina each year - make sure, if you are on a coach, that they will look after your belongings while you battle. Or leave your things for a few euros with one of the villagers offering the service on the way into the village.

Oh, and bring a change of clothes, and if you are on our tour, bring your swimmers

FULL DETAILS OF OUR TOUR ARE HERE

RULES AND SUGGESTIONS FROM THE ORGANISERS OF LA TOMATINA

These are virtually verbatim from their copy, we've changed a bit of spelling and grammar, but 'tip for enjoyment' number four is classic,
so we left it unchanged.

RULES

The City Hall of Buñol has prepared a list of rules which will ensure that the Tomatina remains a celebration. These simple rules of civic responsibility and cohabitation are important for the festival to develop as usual, without any problem:

· You must not bring bottles or other type of objects which could cause an accident.

· You must not break(knot) or throw T-shirts.

· The tomatos must be squashed before throwing them, to avoid hurting people.

· You must be careful of any lorry.

· When you hear the second shot, you must stop throwing tomatos.

TIPS FOR ENJOYMENT

ONE
Do not wear flip-flops, wear old sports shoes

TWO
Do not wear clothes that you want to wear again in the future, it is likely they will be ruined.

THREE
Goggles are very practical, because the tomatos cause itchiness in the eyes. (Later, your skin will be very smooth due to the tomatoes.)

FOUR
Enjoy it the most. It is great to be able to do something as nonsense as throwing tomatoes to anyone moving for an hour. You can relieve all your tightness. We should celebrate it more often.

FIVE
If you want to take pictures, you need an underwater waterproof camera.

SIX
Do not bring a video camera.

SEVEN
Never, and we mean never, climb on a gate, window, wall, etc. to be able to watch the battle, you will became the target of 40,000 people.

EIGHT
Don't miss the ‘soap-post’ a pole rubbed in soap with a ham leg hanging at the top. If you can reach the top, the ham leg is yours.

LA POBLA DEL DUC - RAIMÀ GRAPE FESTIVAL- 28 AUGUST

CAN'T MAKE IT FOR LA TOMATINA? YOU MAY WANT TO TRY CHUCKING GRAPES AROUND - 40 TONS OF THEM(!) AT THIS RIVAL TO BUÑOL'S MADNESS. AT 12 MIDDAY FOR AN HOUR OF FRENZIED AND VERY SWEET BATTLE. THE GRAPE YOU WILL BE CHUCKING IS THE GARNACHA TINTORERA. INTERESTED IN VISITING LA POBLA DEL DUC FOR THIS FIESTA? CONTACT US HERE

MORE PHOTOS HERE