Fair's fair in Cocentaina
NOW in its 674th edition, the first Fira de Tots Sants ( All Saints fair) took place in Cocentaina in 1346, thanks to a privilege granted by Pedro IV of Aragon.
Since that date it has continued to celebrate the municipality’s land and traditions, as well as the dynamic and entrepreneurial spirit of the people, meaning that it will take something more than a pandemic to bring this unbroken chain to an end.
This year’s ‘ special’ edition, which runs from November 130, features a total of 64 exhibitors from throughout the Valencia region, who will be making promotions and special offers to visitors.
Exhibitors will be offering goods such as agricultural machinery, vehicles, home accessories, textiles, technology and the environment, health and beauty, sports and food products, amongst others.
In a forced change from previous years the participating businesses will be making their offers and promotions from their premises as opposed to having a stand in the usual fairground. The change has been adopted to prevent large numbers of people gathering in the street.
In order to encourage people to visit the different exhibiting shops, the Fira website www. firadecocentaina. org will host an online directory, containing details of all of the participating establishments, including their contact information, location and promotions, enabling visitors to plan an itinerary based on their individual interests and needs.
As with previous years, the fair will feature a number of leisure and cultural activities, although on a much more reduced scale than usual.
From a health point of view, this year’s fair aims to respect capacity limitations and the safety and hygiene measures established by the health authorities against Covid19.
The organisers have said that the leisure and cultural activities will take place only at weekends. According to councillor, Eugenia Miguel: “Throughout the month, visitors who traditionally come to Cocentaina will be invited to go to the different participating establishments to make their purchases, thus creating an autonomous, Fira de Tots Sants commercial network of business establishments and hoteliers, whose dissemination, promotion and publicity will be undertaken by the town council.
“All participating businesses are required to comply with health and safety regulations, which include the wearing of masks, sanitising gel and the cleaning and disinfection of establishments.”