Just one hour from Madrid you can find a little town called Brihuega in the region of Guadalajara. During this month the Lavender Festival takes place. This means that there are 31 days of activities that go from concerts to a unique race around the fields.
UPDATE JUNE 2022
After two years without celebrations due to Covid-19, the Lavender Festival is back! It will take place on July 16 2022.
Visiting the Lavender Fields and the charming town of Brihuega, Spain
Brihuega is a beautiful town. Even if it wasn't for the lavender fields, it's worth visiting. It has a lovely old town and many balconies and streets have lavender ornaments. Worth seeing are:
After visiting the village we took the car to find the fields. You can imagine the excitement when we saw a sea of purple hills from the road. It looked so beautiful!
The best time to photograph the fields it's either very early in the morning or just before sunset. Unless you want to get there around 7 or 8 am, I suggest you choose the latter. Yes, there will be more people but there are so many fields and so big that you can get your perfect shot without anyone on it. The pictures below show you how different photos are depending on the hour.
- The Royal Cloth Factory of King Charles III. You can't visit the factory but you can see its beautiful French style romantic gardens. The name comes from the unusual round building -it looks like a bullfighting ring- in which cloth was made for military uniforms. Entrance to the gardens is 2€
- the many well preserved churches
- Peña castle built not for a king, but for archbishops who happened to be in the area
- The fountain of the 12 spouts
- the tourist information office which used to be a Royal prison
- Piedra Bermeja castle built by the moors and later expanded by the Christians
After visiting the village we took the car to find the fields. You can imagine the excitement when we saw a sea of purple hills from the road. It looked so beautiful!
The best time to photograph the fields it's either very early in the morning or just before sunset. Unless you want to get there around 7 or 8 am, I suggest you choose the latter. Yes, there will be more people but there are so many fields and so big that you can get your perfect shot without anyone on it. The pictures below show you how different photos are depending on the hour.
This is what the lavender fields look like around 7 pm. These photos are a result of a lot of trial and error. I suggest you work with light, take pics from all possible angles until you find what works best. At this time hard shadows still appear on the face.
These are the fields before sunset (from 9:20 to 9:40pm). Nothing beats the golden light of sunset, right? Backlit photos will look amazing at this time. Another option is finding a spot lit by that last ray of light and placing your subject there.Tips for Visiting the Lavender Fields in Brihuega, Spain
- Watch for the bees! These busy insects will be at work while you visit the fields. The later you go, the least you will find.
- You can take a 1 hour tour for 3€ or get amazing views from hot air balloons.
- Entrance to the fields is free (at least to the ones we visited), owners just ask you to respect the plants in exchange. Previous to our trip I had read online that owners charge 2€, I guess it depends on the field.
- You can find GPS coordinates to the fields here.
- Where to eat: we had booked a table in advance at Princesa Elima Restaurant. Both service and food were really good.
- Parking in the village is hard because there's a lot of people to see the lavender festival, be patient. There are parking areas close to the lavender fields.
Planning a trip to Brihuega in 2022? Check out the Festival's official website for more info.
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Best Colors to Wear When Visiting the Lavender Fields
The tourism board of Brihuega advises you to wear white as the color that goes best with lavender. However, there are in my opinion other colors that go just as well. I considered wearing this white dress but in the end I opted for this marigold one instead because it creates a very interesting contrast with lavender, especially at golden hour. Lilac would work really well too since you'd be matching the surroundings.Liked this post? Pin it and save it for later
Beautiful place and pictures! Thanks for sharing and happy Monday xx
ReplyDeletehttps://4highheelsfans.wordpress.com/2018/07/20/back-in-time/
So so beautiful!!! You look like a ray of sweet sunshine in that darling yellow dress!
ReplyDeleteWhat a heavenly post!! I would go in a flash if I wasn't allergic to bees. Loved seeing this post though, thank you xx Passion fruit, Paws and Peonies
ReplyDeleteLavender fields have such a heavenly scent - you must have felt like you were in paradise. Thanks for sharing!
ReplyDeleteOh my, what a beautiful sight and pretty lady too!
ReplyDeleteA beautiful place!! I loved the details of the photos.
ReplyDeleteOh, I didn't know there were lavnder fields in Spain too. Your photos look so beautiful. I like your outfit too.
ReplyDeleteVeronika
https://brunettefromwallstreet.com
Fantastic lavender fields! Your pictures and outfit look absolutely amazing! ❤
ReplyDeletexoxo,
Jessica | New post: http://whattostyle.blogspot.com/
Instagram
these shots are breathtaking! i've always wanted to go to a lavendar field and this is making me want to go even more!
ReplyDeletexx jen
http://lilthoughtswithjen.com/
Lavender fields is gorgeous! What a lovely place indeed. Your photos are sooo cute too dear.
ReplyDeleteJessica | notjessfashion.com
Love Lavender fields, though I have yet to find any to visit! Would love to frolic though them! Pinned! #FarawayFiles
ReplyDeletegorgeous hots in the field! #farawayfiles
ReplyDeleteAhhh how gorgeous!!! And you picked a perfect dress for that location! I recently went to a lavender garden here in the wine country and it smelled so good!
ReplyDeleteSending love from Napa Valley!
Paulina | SHENSKA
Lovely photos and some good tips in your post about this lesser known town in Spain. Thanks for sharing. #FarawayFiles
ReplyDeleteBeautiful! I've always wanted to visit a lavender field (in Hokkaido!) but never went during the proper time of year. Thanks for the warning on the bees too - I'm really not a fan of those, so if I make it out there I'll heed your advice and go later in the day!
ReplyDeleteI hadn't realised that there were lavender fields in Spain either. Good on you for finding them! This town certainly does look worth a visit in any case. Thanks for sharing on #FarawayFiles
ReplyDeleteI LOVE all of these pictures! Your yellow dress is so beautiful! I’d love for you to join our link up today!
ReplyDelete-Adriele
StyleAssisted.com
Absolutely gorgeous and picturesque! You're right, photos taken at sunset are more beautiful than during the day. Oh your marigold dress goes really with the landscape :-) #FarawayFiles
ReplyDeleteGorgeous photos, all of them, especially the ones where the sun sets over the lavender fields... Seeing your photos is like seeing them double because I took photos of so many of the same things hehehe ps. I never saw the umbrellas :(
ReplyDeleteWe probably went to the same field :)
ReplyDeleteWe found the umbrellas randomly, wandering the streets. So many hidden gems in Brihuega.
Thanks for inviting me, Adriele!
ReplyDeletewow this is gorgeous!
ReplyDeleteSo beautiful! Going to a Lavender festival sounds like an amazing idea. I like the name of your blog. :)
ReplyDeletewww.madisontaylor.co
What an incredible place to visit. I especially cannot get over the light during sunset. I know that the sun goes down late in Greece too but I did not expect it to be so bright. Beautiful shots, all of them!
ReplyDeletelooks great! If I go August 4/5, would I still be able to experience the lavender ?
ReplyDeleteThanks
Funmi
Hi Funmi!
ReplyDeleteYes, the fields will still be in full bloom. Let me know how it goes!
Hello! If we go visit by August 15, are we not late for lavender bloom? We don't want to be travelling far and it's already harvested☺️
ReplyDeletethanks!😊
Hi Cris! I'm afraid that's too late, lavender will have been harvested by then. Is it possible for you to go next summer?
ReplyDeleteWhen are the best dates to go? If I go in the beginning of July is that good?
ReplyDeleteHi! Best time to go is around mid-July. This year there won't be a festival or celebrations because of Covid-19 but you can still visit the lavender fields.
ReplyDelete