Malaga province celebrates Virgen del Carmen with processions through the streets and along the shores

Thousands of people gathered on many beaches along the Costa del Sol to at the weekend to celebrate the feast day of Virgen del Carmen on Sunday 16 July.

The image of the Virgen del Carmen is often carried in a procession through the streets and then taken out to the sea, where it is watched by huge crowds of people on the seafront promenades, beaches or from recreational boats close to the shore.

The processions acknowledge the patron saint of the seafarers, sailors and fishermen - and it is a ritual that occurs every summer from Nerja in the east, through Malaga city and along towns on the western strip of the Costa del Sol to Manilva. Some inland towns in Malaga province also mark the occasion such as Yunquera and Teba, as well as the mountain village of Montecorto.

There were more than 20 processions in total, including the one that draws huge crowds each year in the Pedregalejo district of Malaga city, which started at 6pm from the Corpus Christi parish church.

Some children carried model boats and fishing tools such as baskets, nets and oars, while women with traditional white veils carried rosaries and biznaga flowers, before the Virgin was taken to the sea while a ceremony was held on the beach.

In another popular procession, hundreds took to the streets of Malaga's El Palo district despite the heat of the afternoon on Sunday.

Across the province, processions were also held in La Cala de Mijas, Benalmádena, La Carihuela, Fuengirola and Los Boliches, Marbella, Estepona, La Cala del Moral, Rincón de la Victoria, Benajarafe, Almayate, Las Melosas de Torre del Mar, Caleta de Vélez and Nerja, with the embarkation at the La Torrecilla beach and disembarkation in Calahonda.