More than four centuries after three Spanish Armada ships were wrecked off the Irish coast, Spain is returning to the same corner of Ireland this September for a remarkable four day festival. Spanish Navy sailors, musicians and visitors will gather in County Sligo from September 17 to 20 for Remembering the Armada 2026, with concerts, Spanish food, historical events and a ceremony on the beach where around 1,100 Armada men lost their lives in 1588.

It is a piece of shared Spanish and Irish history that is surprisingly little known outside the area.

And what happened at Streedagh Beach was considerably more dramatic than the rather neat version of the Spanish Armada story many of us probably remember from school.

Three Spanish ships and a disastrous night off Ireland

The Armada had set out in 1588 as part of Philip II of Spain’s attempt to invade England. When that failed, the fleet was forced north around Scotland and down Ireland’s Atlantic coast on the long journey home.

For three ships, La Lavia, Santa María de Visón and La Juliana, that journey ended at Streedagh in County Sligo.

A huge storm struck the coast on September 21, 1588. All three ships were driven onto the shore and wrecked, with around 1,100 soldiers and sailors believed to have died. The wrecks are still there.

In fact, Streedagh is the only known beach where three Spanish Armada wrecks lie together. Archaeological work has recovered an extraordinary collection of material from beneath the sea, including cannon from La Juliana, gun carriage wheels, cannonballs, smaller guns and pieces of the ships themselves. Twelve Armada cannon recovered in 2015 were taken away for conservation. But one of the men who somehow made it off the beach alive left behind something even more valuable: his story.

The Spanish captain who survived and wrote it all down

Captain Francisco de Cuéllar survived the wreck and then found himself stranded in a country he knew virtually nothing about, with English forces looking for Spanish survivors.

What followed was an extraordinary journey through Ireland.

Some Irish people helped him, others robbed or threatened him, and local chieftains offered shelter despite the danger of being punished by English authorities for assisting the Spanish.

De Cuéllar eventually left Ireland and lived to write an account of what happened.

His letter disappeared for centuries before turning up in a Spanish archive in 1895. It has since become one of the most important contemporary accounts of the Armada survivors in Ireland and of life in the country during the late 16th century.

That story is still very much part of the landscape around Sligo today, where visitors can follow the De Cuéllar Trail through places connected with his escape.

During September’s festival, his words will return to the story once again.

A live reading of Lost Sailor of the Armada, based on de Cuéllar’s writings, takes place in Grange on Saturday, September 19.

By then, however, the Spanish presence in Sligo will already be difficult to miss.

Spanish Navy returns for the 2026 Armada festival

The festival begins on Thursday, September 17, with an official opening in Killybegs.

A coach will leave Grange at 9.30am, taking visitors to Killybegs for a tour of the Spanish Navy vessel OPV Centinela, followed by lunch and a visit to Donegal Castle.

Later that evening the history books are put aside for a while.

Spanish and Irish musicians will take over Connolly’s Bar in Sligo for a traditional music session from 9pm.

Friday gets considerably more serious in the morning, with an Armada conference at the National Surf Centre in Strandhill bringing together experts for lectures and discussions about the events of 1588.

There is then a heritage walk through Sligo in the afternoon, including a musical event at Sligo Abbey.

By 8pm attention moves back to Grange, where the Spanish Navy Band joins the Atlantic Ensemble for the festival’s gala concert at the Church of Mary Immaculate.

And anyone who does not fancy going straight home afterwards can head to Moran’s Bar for the Armada Club and a pint.

It is that mixture of proper historical commemoration and a fairly relaxed Spanish and Irish gathering that makes the programme a little different from the usual heritage festival.

Streedagh Beach becomes the centre of the story again

Saturday is when the festival moves closest to the events it is actually remembering.

There will be a historical display of 16th century life in Ireland from 11am, followed by the de Cuéllar reading at midday. At 1pm, a new Armada monument supported by the Spanish Navy and Spanish Embassy in Ireland will be unveiled at the Spanish Armada Visitor Centre in Grange. Then at 3pm people will gather at Streedagh Beach.

It is here, looking out towards the places where the three wrecks still lie beneath the water, that the annual commemoration remembers the approximately 1,100 men who died.

The location makes the story rather difficult to treat as distant history.

Those sailors had left Spain expecting to fight a war in England. Instead, hundreds ended their lives on a beach in the west of Ireland, while the handful who survived suddenly depended on local people they had never expected to meet.

The connection that grew from that disaster is what the festival now celebrates.

Saturday evening finishes with a Mass and Ceremony of Friendship in Grange, accompanied by Spanish and Irish music, before another Armada Club evening at Lang’s Bar.

You can actually walk above the Spanish Armada wrecks

Sunday morning offers perhaps the most unusual event of the weekend.

After a 9am yoga session and optional Atlantic swim, visitors can join the Armada Shipwrecks Walk and Talk at Streedagh Beach at 10am.

Guides will identify the wreck sites offshore and explain how they were discovered and investigated.

For anyone accustomed to seeing Armada artefacts behind museum glass, standing on the beach with the ships themselves still beneath the water is a rather different experience.

At midday, the festival closes at Streedagh with a salute to the OPV Carnota and its crew, accompanied by a flotilla of boats in the bay.

There is one final Spanish touch later in Sligo, with Latin music and tapas beside the Garavogue river from 6pm.

An Armada themed art and photography exhibition will also run throughout the four days in Grange Hall, including photographs of local discoveries made in 1985 and 2015.

Many of the events are free, although the Killybegs trip, conference, gala concert and some evening events require tickets. The organisers have published the full Remembering the Armada 2026 programme and booking information through Spanish Armada Ireland.

For anyone travelling from Spain, it is certainly not the most obvious Irish weekend away.

But 438 years after three Spanish ships disappeared beneath the Atlantic at Streedagh, there are not many places in Ireland where the connection with Spain runs quite as deep.

Seatbelt fastened, hand luggage stowed, tray table up and the captain’s familiar muffled announcement playing overhead. Then comes the safety briefing, and now, if you’re flying with Ryanair, this section will be over a little quicker than what you’re used to

What has Ryanair changed?

Ryanair has introduced a shorter version of its pre-flight safety briefing, with the airline’s updated recording reportedly around 40 seconds faster than the version used previously. The change has attracted attention after some Ryanair cabin crew reportedly said they are finding it difficult to keep pace with the new recording while carrying out the accompanying safety demonstration.

The previous English-language safety demonstration used in 2025 lasted around three minutes and 25 seconds. The new version is reported to be nearly 40 seconds shorter. As many will know, Ryanair’s safety demonstration is carried out by cabin crew, who physically show passengers procedures including how to fasten and release a seat belt, use an oxygen mask and use a life jacket.

According to reports, the change followed feedback from cabin crew who had considered the previous announcement too slow. Some crew members have now said that the revised version has made the routine more difficult to perform in time with the recording. Some cabin crew have described the new timing as difficult to follow when moving between the different demonstration steps. One crew member described the movements as being like “spinning like ballerinas”, while another commented that there was not enough time to pick up the next demonstration kit.

Will the change affect passengers?

For passengers, the main difference is purely the faster pace of the safety demonstration and no actual content has been amended on what you need to know on board or if an emergency occurs. The usual advice remains the same as always, pay attention to the safety demonstration before take-off, even if you regularly fly with Ryanair. Passengers should take note of the location of their nearest emergency exit and listen to the instructions given by the cabin crew.

The latest change is primarily about how quickly the safety briefing is delivered, rather than a new procedure for passengers.

Are you an avid listener of the briefing? Or a headphones in and straight into your downloaded series traveller? Either way, Ryanair will be explaining what to do, even if it is like a spinning ballerina in a life jacket.

RIYADH

Spain is establishing a strong presence at the 2026 International Falcon Breeders Auction, organised by the National Centre for Falcons in Malham, north of Riyadh, and running through Aug. 25. Building on its falconry heritage and growing investment in specialised breeding farms, Spain has become an increasingly important contributor to the global falcon market, with greater focus on producing high-quality breeds that meet falconers’ requirements and compete in racing and other competitions.

Spain is home to several well-known falcon breeding farms, including Jerez, Rubio, RA and BCN, among others that have chosen to take part in the international auction. Their participation reflects the auction’s growing status as a platform bringing together breeders and buyers in a specialised market, while giving Spanish breeders direct access to a broad base of falconers and enthusiasts.

The presence of these farms highlights the transformation of falconry in Spain from a heritage-based pastime and hobby into a sector where passion and expertise intersect with investment and production. Breeders are increasingly focused on improving the quality of their stock, selecting breeds and drawing on accumulated expertise to strengthen their competitiveness in international markets.

The significance of Spain’s participation goes beyond displaying falcons. It also provides breeders with an opportunity to test the market value of their birds among buyers from different markets, making the auction a practical indicator of demand for Spanish breeds and their ability to attract falconers seeking specific qualities and competitive prospects.

The owner of one of the participating Spanish farms said the International Falcon Breeders Auction has become the preferred marketplace for many Spanish breeders, who are keen to bring their birds to Riyadh because of the opportunity it provides to access a specialised market and meet buyers directly, as well as the platform’s growing profile and reputation among international breeding farms.

Sales activity has translated this presence into tangible results. On the third night of the auction, a young Gyr-Peregrine from a Spanish farm attracted strong interest from buyers before selling for SAR 42,000 (≈ €9,690). On the fifth night, two Gyr-Peregrine falcons from Spain’s Rocio and Jerez farms sold for a combined SAR 70,000 (≈ €16,150), in deals reflecting growing demand for Spanish-bred falcons and demonstrating the auction’s ability to turn international participation by breeding farms into direct economic value.

It is worth noting that the ongoing edition of the International Falcon Breeders Auction saw this year’s most expensive falcon sold, a Super White, for SAR 1.3 million (≈ €299,900).