Moors and Christians & Fiesta of San Antonio de Padua (Berber Landing on the Beach)
Carboneras' signature historical fiesta re-enacts a Berber landing on the beach and a battle for the San Andrés Castle, with roughly fifty Moors and fifty Christians fighting at the water's edge, plus processions for patron San Antonio de Padua. A free, spectacular open-air event. The 2026 edition (11-14 June) has just passed; it returns around mid-June 2027.
Most Moors and Christians fiestas play out in town squares, but Carboneras does the unusual thing and stages its battle right on the sand. Boats bring the Berber landing party ashore, and from there it builds into a noisy scrap for the Castillo de San Andrés, roughly fifty fighters on each side, all gunpowder smoke, robes and clashing steel against the sea. Even if you don't follow a word of the staging, the spectacle carries itself.
Wound through the fighting are the quieter processions for San Antonio de Padua, the town's patron, which give the whole thing its anchor in mid-June. It costs nothing to watch, the setting is the beach itself, and locals turn out in force. The 2026 run finished on 14 June, so you're looking at around the same time in 2027 if you want to plan a trip.
Source: https://www.festivalesdeespana.com/festival/moros-y-cristianos-de-carboneras