What is the ‘Our Lady of Mount Carmel’ Day?
The ‘Our Lady of Mount Carmel Day’ is celebrated every year in Valletta, on the 16th July. It’s a catholic feast, and it appears that most of the city participated. For those of you who aren’t too keen on religious festivals – I’d still suggest you go. It’s a huge part of their culture and the atmosphere of the band, the locals bringing out tables and drinks into the street and the costumes all made it worth it.
There was a procession of the statue of Lady of Mount Carmel down the street, with around six men carrying her. I watched pass through the streets at around eight, and she continued to move until she was brought back to the church at around half ten. If you do want to watch her be brought back into the church, you will have to contend with plenty of crowds. It appears that the whole city comes out to watch the final part of the procession, which ends in a church service.
When should you go?
If you do want to see city decked out in the glory for the feast, you will need to be there on the 16th. By the morning of the 17th, all the red and gold banners had been removed. Over the course of the next week, the statues slowly seemed to disappear too. In saying this, I would argue that this time frame is the perfect time to travel to Malta. I managed to take in both this cultural feast and the MTV music festival – Europe’s largest free music festival – in the week I spent in Valletta. And that’s not even mentioning the international food festival they were also hosting at this time!
Interested in visiting Malta?
What to Do for a Week in Malta – wanderlust and a rucksack
Wanting more information on visiting the Basilica or Malta in general? Check out this website: Basilica of Our Lady of Mount Carmel (visitmalta.com)