Disclaimer: Please make sure you are up to date with the government’s latest foreign travel advice during the coronavirus before booking a holiday. It is also worth noting that, due to COVID-19, some attractions listed in this blog post may not be currently operating.

Easter Sunday 2021 falls on the 4th of April next year. With the school holidays usually straddling the weeks either side, this makes a two-week sunny holiday possible between Saturday 27 March and Sunday 11 April 2021. The only question is where to go?

Today we will be looking at Easter holidays you can enjoy during Easter 2021 where the weather is warm. There’s often something special going around Easter, like fairs or festivals, that can be reached within a three-hour flight.

Catholic countries are often the most lively when it comes to Easter celebrations with spectacular festivals and parades happening throughout Spain, Portugal, Greece, Cyprus and Italy during Easter. These festivities often take the form of parades with gigantic religious figures parading down the streets and church icons wheeled out to tour the cities. 

The Easter celebrations are a time for children too and events are held with the children in mind. Many of the festivals and processions include children in them and there will certainly be cakes, chocolate eggs and sweets available for the kids out in the streets on Palm Sunday.

Seville and Andalucia:  Semana Santa

Semana Santa literally means Holy Week. In Seville, Easter celebrations really do take an entire week with the celebration beginning on the Monday before Easter Sunday. 

This April in Seville will be extra special as Semana Santa will likely be held at the same time as the similarly extravagant April Fair celebration. The fair showcases the three F’s that matter most to Andalusians: food, flamenco and fino (sherry, that is). So while the very serious and grand Easter processions take place, in all their spectacle, there will be some R&R and respite in the form of the fair to enjoy afterwards.

Easter Sunday in Seville consists of gigantic statues representing characters from Christ’s Passion processing along the streets for up to 12 hours. Everybody, and we really mean everybody, will be out on the street to watch the event.

If you want to combine your trip to Seville with a beach holiday, then before the festivities, or after, you could head down to the Costa del Sol and enjoy a week on the beach TOWIE style and live it up in Marbs. If Marbella is a bit too crowded and flash, how about a quieter fortnight in Nerja, which has its own celebrated Easter event? Wherever you choose in Andalucía you will experience a most festive Easter as they celebrate the event more than the other regions of Spain (but the rest of Spain is pretty up for it too).

Check out this blog post for Spain’s latest coronavirus travel updates.

Rome and the Vatican

It is pretty difficult to celebrate Easter in more style than they do in St Peter’s Square and perhaps you’ll even get a glimpse of the Pope himself! Easter in Italy, like Spain, offers a week of celebration and Catholics from around the world descend on Rome during Holy Week to witness the Pope’s tour through the city and enjoy the local festivities and processions. 

Rome itself is great for a city break and there is no finer place to spend Easter than in Italy - but at the end of March there can be some chilly and rainy days. And when it rains in Rome, it really rains; it rains bouncing rain! So why not combine your weekend in Rome with a week down the coast on the Amalfi Coast or, for even better weather, a week in Sicily.

Sicily itself also takes Easter very seriously with Santa Pasqua filled with ancient rites and traditions. The week leading up to Easter is packed with religious events, foodie festivals, processions and parades. A visit to any small town in Sicily will have its own local version of the religious traditions and its own parties, pastries and idiosyncrasies.

The Sicilians like to celebrate Easter with food and everyone will be enjoying marzipan sculptured lambs, pastieri (below) or picureddi, as well as the traditional and locally caught fish platters on Easter Friday.

Corfu, Greece

Spain and Italy were the obvious choices for sunny holidays during Easter where the Easter event has significance but how about Corfu?

The kooky tradition of “pot throwing” (similar to the Greek “plate smashing”) takes place on the Saturday morning, the day before Palm Sunday. The local residents throw pots, pans and even plates from their windows, breaking them on the street below and creating a sea of rubble by Saturday afternoon. Be sure to be safely ensconced in your hotel room during those hours or with a Corfu friend on their balcony!

We’re not sure where this custom comes from but it could be from the Venetians who used to throw their old pots and pans out of the window on New Year's Day to make way for new crockery. Whatever the reason, it’s smashing fun.

Corfu is perhaps the best choice for your Easter holiday 2021 as it combines fabulous festivities and you’re already on the beach. We recommend a stay at the stunning Mayor Capo di Corfu, which is both on the beach and a short walk to vibrant Lefkimi, which has its own Easter celebrations.The kooky traditional of “Pot Throwing” (similar but different to the Greek “plate smashing”) takes place on the Saturday morning, the day before Palm Sunday. The local residents throw pots, pans and even plates too from their windows, carelessly breaking them on the street below creating a sea of rubble by Saturday afternoon. Be sure to be safely esconsed in your hotel room during those hours or with a Corfu friend on their balcony!

Check out this blog post for Greece’s latest coronavirus travel updates.