La Tomatina de Buñol

La Tomatina is a food fighting festival held every year on the last Wednesday of August in the town of Buñol near Valencia, Spain. Thousands upon thousands of people come from all over the world to fight in this “world's biggest food fight”, where over a hundred tons of overripe tomatoes are thrown into the streets.

Prior to 2013, between 40,000 and 50,000 people (up from 50,000 in 2012) crammed into this huge tomato battle, greatly expanding Bunol's normal population of 9,000. Since 2013, official ticketing has been in place limiting the number of participants to just 20,000 lucky ones.

There are a limited number of accommodations for people coming to La Tomatina, so many people choose the simplest option of staying in the nearby city of Valencia , just 38 km from Bunol by bus or train. In anticipation of the mess that will ensue, shopkeepers are using huge plastic covers over their storefronts to protect them from the carnage.