- The celebration pays homage every October to Miguel de Cervantes in his hometown and turns his figure and work into the axis of a wide cultural program.
- The Cervantino Market, the civic procession with the baptismal departure of Cervantes and the popular reading of Don Quixote are among its most representative acts.
- Cervantina Week was declared a Festival of National Tourist Interest in 2018 and now takes a new step with its international recognition.
- The distinction recognises the uniqueness of a celebration that unites literature, heritage and history in a city declared a World Heritage Site by UNESCO.
- The government delegate to the Community of Madrid, Francisco Martín Aguirre, has made the statement public at an event held at the Parador de Alcalá de Henares.
The Ministry of Industry and Tourism, through the Secretary of State for Tourism, has declared the Cervantine Week of Alcalá de Henares as a Festival of International Tourist Interest, in recognition of the uniqueness and projection of a celebration that pays homage to Miguel de Cervantes and maintains a close link with the historical and cultural heritage of his hometown.
The Cervantina Week is celebrated every month of October coinciding with the commemoration of the baptism of Miguel de Cervantes, which took place in Alcalá de Henares on October 9, 1547. During those days, different spaces of the historic center host a program dedicated to the figure and the work of the writer.
One of its main events is the Cervantino Market, which transforms the historic center of Alcalá de Henares with a recreation inspired by the Golden Age and brings together cultural activities, crafts, theater, music and gastronomy.
The celebration also includes the civic procession of the baptismal departure of Miguel de Cervantes, which transfers this document from the City Hall to the chapel in which the writer was baptized, as well as the popular reading of El Quixote in the Corral de Comedias.
The Secretary of State for Tourism, Rosario Sánchez, stressed that “the declaration of Cervantina Week as a Festival of International Tourist Interest recognizes the uniqueness of a celebration that turns the legacy of Miguel de Cervantes into a cultural manifestation closely linked to the history and heritage of Alcalá de Henares”.
Sánchez has also pointed out that “this distinction reinforces the international projection of a celebration that has in literature and in one of the universal figures of our culture its main signs of identity”.
The program is completed with the Cervantes Gastronomic Days, the Ancient Book and Occasion Fair, theatrical performances, music and other cultural proposals related to Cervantes, his work and the Golden Age.
With this declaration, the Secretary of State for Tourism recognizes a celebration that projects the figure of Miguel de Cervantes from his hometown and turns the literature, history and heritage of Alcalá de Henares into the central elements of a cultural proposal with an international vocation.
It is the second Festival of International Tourist Interest of the Community of Madrid, and number 91 throughout the country.
Francisco Martín makes the announcement public
The Government delegate in the Community of Madrid, Francisco Martín Aguirre, was in charge of publicizing this recognition in an event held this morning in the Parador de Alcalá de Henares where he has valued the heritage of the Complutense city.
“From the splendid setting that represents this Parador de Alcalá, and believe me that with great satisfaction, I inform you that the Government of Spain has declared the Cervantina Week of Alcalá de Henares as a holiday of international tourist interest, in recognition of the uniqueness and projection of a celebration that pays homage to Miguel de Cervantes” he said.