Destination wedding Spain | 5 lesser known facts about Spain to impress your wedding guests with
Thinking of a destination wedding in Spain and you are curious to know a bit more about this beautiful land, rich in culture, tradition and amazing cuisine.
There are plenty of reasons that make Spain one of the top destination wedding locations in the world, for starters it’s a breathtakingly romantic and exotic country, with everything from rocky beach coves to delicious food, distinctive culture to Mediterranean warm weather.
But did you know that Spain has more bars than any other EU country? (Which may well entice you more than the warm weather! )
Today we are going to look into this and four other fun facts about Spain which, though some might not be as impressive as knowing Spain has more drinking holes that Ireland (despite all the pubs there), but will definitely serve as entertaining bits of trivia to impress your wedding guests with when your big day comes around.
Did you know…
Spain has a staggering total number of 279,243 bars across the whole country, meaning there is one bar for every 169 residents. In fact, Andalucía (southern Spain) alone has as many bars (includes pubs and cafés) as Ireland, Denmark, Finland and Norway combined.
Spain is home to the oldest restaurant in the world.
In the centre of Madrid sits Sobrino de Botin, sometimes referred to as Casa Botín, a classic Spanish restaurant founded in 1725. According to the Guinness Book of Records the restaurant, which still uses their famous wood-fired oven to cook delicious traditional cuisine, is the oldest in the world.
Casa Botin is a benchmark of Madrid’s best cuisine, famous for their suckling pig.
Spain boasts the world’s third-largest number of UNESCO World Heritage Sites. Only Italy and China have more.
In fact, there are a whopping 47 UNESCO World Heritage Sites spread throughout Spain, with the Sagrada Familia cathedral in Barcelona probably one of the most famous. The construction on this building began in 1882 and has been under construction for more than 130 years. It’s expected to be completed in 2026.
Other noteworthy UNESCO World Heritage Sites classics include: The Alhambra, Generalife and Albayzín in Granada and the Cathedral, Alcázar and Archivo de Indias in Sevilla.
Spain is also home to the smallest church in the world.
According to the Guinness World Records, the church in Castillo de Colomares, located in the town of Benalmadena, is officially the smallest church in the world. At just 1.96m2, the church will make you feel as though you’ve entered the tiny island kingdom of Lilliput. However, despite its smurf-like size it has the status of a church having been consecrated by the Prior of the Monastery of La Rábida (a Franciscan friary in the southern Spanish town of Palos de la Frontera, in the province of Huelva) and has been used to officiate weddings and has everything necessary for the services.
Spain is also famed for it’s delicious cuisine, so it may not come as a surprise to know that it also boasts the world’s biggest food fight known as “La Tomatina.”
A tradition which started in 1945 when, allegedly during the town celebrations, a group of young people stormed the stage in an impromptu attempt to join in with the performers. As a result, one of the musicians fell from the stage and knocked over a market stall full of fruits and vegetables. The disgruntled crowd then started throwing the fruit and veg at each other, until the authorities were able to break up the chaos.
The following year, the fight was repeated, but this time purposely organised with people bringing tomatoes to the festival to use as “weapons.”
The initiative picked up, but it was banned in the 1950s after receiving many complaints from the older population of the town, but reinstated in 1957 when residents held a funeral for the festival – complete with a tomato in a coffin, and La Tomatina Buñol became an official festival.
Fun facts aside, a destination wedding in Spain will let you create a lifetime of memories for you and your guests. Whether you want to explore the beaches, visit UNESCO World Heritage Sites, revel in the cuisine, or drink at one (or ten) of the 279,243 bars found across the country, Spain has it all.