Valencia News: March 16, 2026 | Ninot Winners & Morrissey’s Fallas Hell
Bon dia! Some wind and isolated showers are forecast for the final days of Fallas, but AEMET doesn’t expect conditions bad enough to cancel any events. Felices fiestas!
Top News: Spain’s centrist parties rebound in Castilla y León
Spain’s most closely watched regional election delivered a significant result this weekend. The conservative Partido Popular secured a record 54% of the vote in Castilla y León, while the Socialists (PSOE) consolidated and made modest gains. The far-right Vox — which had surged in recent elections in Aragon and Extremadura — managed only one additional seat. Analysts are reading this as a potential turning point as Prime Minister Sanchez weighs calling early general elections.
Source: El PP gana las elecciones y contiene a Vox en Castilla y León mientras el PSOE se recupera — El País
City & Economy
Fallas tourism hits record highs. The economic impact of Fallas continues to grow. Hotel stays have increased fivefold over five years, with international visitor numbers up 90% in the same period.
Mercadona posts record profits. The Valencia-headquartered supermarket giant Mercadona reported revenues exceeding €40 billion in 2025. President Juan Roig announced the results alongside a new store format called “Store 9,” emphasizing fresh produce, ready-made foods, and an in-store cooking and packaging area.
Sources: Mercadona da una vuelta a su modelo de tiendas — Valencia Plaza | Mercadona pone en marcha un nuevo modelo de tienda — Valencia Plaza
City & Policing
Police had a busy Fallas weekend, with multiple security incidents, including a fire inside a Ruzafa bazaar that was started when minors threw fireworks into the premises.
Sources: Seis detenidos y 45 actas por petardos — Levante EMV | Desalojan un bazar en Ruzafa tras un incendio — Las Provincias
City & Society
Morrissey’s night of Fallas “hell” The former Smiths frontman cancelled his sold-out concert at Les Arts on March 12 — his first-ever Valencia performance — after a sleepless night at his hotel on Plaza Manises. His team described the experience as leaving him in a “catatonic state,” with Morrissey himself calling it an “indescribable hell” that would take a year to recover from. The Spanish Embassy in London joined in the mockery, posting footage of the Fallas celebrations with the caption: “The Fallas festival in Valencia has already begun, and we have had our first casualty. The cancellation was his sixth of 2026. He did go on to play Zaragoza and Seville.
Source: The nightmare of organizing a Morrissey concert — El País English
Two Ninots spared from the flames This year’s Ninot Exhibition produced two memorable winners. The adult Ninot Indultat went to falla Sueca-Literato Azorín, with a striking figure by artist Pedro Santaeulalia depicting a girl dreaming of the end of war — a poignant choice given Spain’s current anti-war mood. The infantil winner, from falla Espartero-Gran Vía Ramón y Cajal, depicts an elderly Falla craftsman at work in his workshop, with a father, his two children dressed as fallera and fallero, and their dog framed in the doorway. The winning artist Zvonimir Ostoic, known as “Zeta”, is the first foreign artist to win such an honor. Both figures will be preserved permanently in the Museo Fallero.
Sources: ¿Quien es el artista fallero ganador del ninot indultat infantil? — Levante-EMV | Sueca se estrena en el Ninot Indultat con una niña que sueña con el fin de la guerra – Las Provincias
What to Expect This Week
The city center will be largely closed to traffic on Tuesday and Wednesday for La Ofrenda processions. Plan accordingly.
- March 17–18 — La Ofrenda: The emotional floral tribute at the heart of Fallas
- March 18 night — Nit del Foc: The massive fireworks display in Turia Park
- March 19 — La Crema: The fiery finale. Public holiday — shops and markets will be closed.
Source of the Week
El Turista Fallero: The official Fallas magazine is the ultimate guide to navigating the monuments around the city. Available at newspaper kiosks in a 150+ page print edition (Spanish only), it covers every Falla commission, profiles of the artists, and the Fallera Mayor and her court. There’s also a digital version and an Instagram page — but the print edition is the real Fallas bible.
