Zaragoza: Popular Festivities – The “Other” Pilar Fair

If you think Zaragoza’s bullring only opens at 5:30 pm during El Pilar, you don’t really know the city—or its festivals. Come this October to the banks of the Ebro and, from morning to night, discover endless bull-related events that will leave you amazed.

Zaragoza’s bullring is much more than the arena where the city’s final major fair of the year takes place. The capital of Aragón offers a rich array of bullfighting experiences, filling the historic arena designed by Ramón Pignatelli up to three or four times a day.

And the action isn’t limited to the afternoon shows. Every morning, the city hosts vaquillas (young bulls) from different breeders—including Hermanos Oliva, Virgen de Sancho, El Ancla, and Hermanos Navarré—while mid-day brings recortes, roscaderos, and anillas competitions, and the evenings feature toros embolados or fire bulls. It’s a bullfighting paradise for all tastes and ages.

Although Zaragoza has several key spots during “Los Pilares” (Independence Avenue, the Basilica Square, or the inter-peñas area, to name a few), none is as captivating as the bicentennial bullring, especially when attracting such a diverse audience depending on the event.

The programme includes national-level championships, such as the XLII Spanish Championship of Recortadores with Anillas and the XXXIX Spanish Championship of Roscaderos. It also features the final of the 2025 Aragón Grand Prix and the Concurso de Recortes with Fire Bulls. On Sunday 12 October, the day of El Pilar, the XXV Spanish Goyesco Championship of Recortes with Bulls will take place.

Complete Schedule:

Morning Young Bulls:
Every day from Sunday 5 October to Monday 13 October, at 8:00 am.

Sunday 5 October, 11:30 am – XLII Spanish Championship of Recortadores with Anillas.
Friday 10 October, 11:00 pm – XXXIX Spanish Championship of Roscaderos and Opening of Cages.
Saturday 11 October, 11:30 am – Final of the 2025 Aragón Grand Prix.
Saturday 11 October, 11:00 pm – XLIII Concurso de Recortes with Fire Bulls.
Sunday 12 October, 11:30 am – XXV Spanish Goyesco Championship of Recortes with Bulls.
Sunday 12 October, 11:00 pm – Concurso de Emboladores and an exhibition of Arriazu bulls, arguably the most renowned and locally beloved breeder, famous for the explosiveness of its Casta Navarra stock.

These festivities, which also include exhibitions and complementary events for attendees, perfectly complement the religious ceremonies, with the central offering of flowers to the Virgin, as well as the concerts at El Pilar Square and Valdespartera—the ideal way to conclude each night of this intense festival, open to people of all ages and backgrounds.