The best known Ronda festival is the ‘Feria Goyesca de Pedro Romero’ which takes place during the first week of September every year. The main attraction of this fiesta is the bullfight which takes place on the first Saturday of the month in the Real Maestranza bullring. Before the bullfight there is a procession of horse drawn carriages through the streets of Ronda with everyone dressed in 18th century Goyesque costumes. The matadors themselves also wear this traditional attire.
The tradition of dressing in these 18th century costumes, from the times of the celebrated Spanish painter Francisco de Goya, dates back to just 1954 when local bullfighting hero Antonio Ordóñez arranged the first Goyesque festival in honour of the 200th anniversary of Pedro Romero who is generally considered the founder of modern bullfighting. Goya painted a famous portrait of Pedro Romero which is currently on display at the Kimbell Art Foundation in Texas. You’ll see old black and white photos of Antonio Ordóñez for sale in some shops in Ronda in which he’s standing at the bullring with his great friend Ernest Hemingway.
This Ronda tradition of dressing for the Goyesque bullfight continues to this day and is now arranged by Francisco Rivera Ordoñez who is the grandson of Antonio Ordoñez. Thousands of people from all over the world head to Ronda for these days so accommodation in Ronda hotels is scarce as are tickets for the bullfights.
For confirmation of dates of the bullfights and matadors take a look at this Ronda festival website and for tickets try calling the ticket office in Ronda on (+34) 952 876967. Ticket sales normally begin at the beginning of July.