Villajoyosa runs a year-round food calendar under the name La Vila Gastronómica, and two of its events fall this autumn: the Setmana de l’Arròs (Rice Week), from 19 to 25 October 2026, and Xocolatíssima, the town’s chocolate week, from 17 to 20 November 2026. Both draw on what the town is known for: rice dishes from its seafood-cooking tradition, and a chocolate industry that goes back to the 17th century. This guide covers the confirmed dates, what each event has involved in past years, and what is still to be announced.
Villajoyosa’s Autumn Food Events at a Glance
Both events sit under La Vila Gastronómica, the brand the town hall uses for its food events, built around restaurants, chocolate and fishing. The essentials, checked in September 2026:
Setmana de l’Arròs: Monday 19 to Sunday 25 October 2026
Xocolatíssima: Tuesday 17 to Friday 20 November 2026
Also this autumn: G de Tapas, a tapas and pinchos route, from 8 to 12 October 2026
Where: restaurants and venues across Villajoyosa
Programme status: the 2026 restaurant list, menu prices and daily programme had not been published when this was checked
Setmana de l’Arròs: 19 to 25 October 2026
During the Setmana de l’Arròs, restaurants across Villajoyosa each present a set menu whose main dish is rice. The town council and local restaurateurs created the event in 2011 as a lighter-format follow-up to the Mostra de Cuina Marinera, a format that lets more restaurants take part than the Mostra does.
The 2025 edition gives a good idea of the format. It ran from 17 to 26 October, with eleven restaurants each offering a €35 menu of starters, a rice main and dessert. The 2025 participants were El Nàutic, El Trébol, Cabannon by Samoki, Casa Elordi, Club Nàutic, DRoca, El Pòsit, Hogar del Pescador, Kyomu Izakaya, Made and Ca Marta.
Those details are from last year. The 2026 participants and prices should be confirmed before booking, and in past editions the menus were published on the town’s official tourism website.
The week starts on a Monday and ends on a Sunday. If Sunday lunch is the plan, note that Vilamuseu, the town museum, is closed on Mondays and free to enter on Sundays, so a Sunday visit can be paired with lunch.
Xocolatíssima: 17 to 20 November 2026
Xocolatíssima is Villajoyosa’s chocolate week, and in 2026 it runs from 17 to 20 November. The town hall says this year’s edition includes the premiere of the documentary Poble de xocolate and the second edition of a public chocolate dessert competition.
The town’s chocolate makers are part of the event. In 2024, Valor, Pérez, Clavileño, Marcos Tonda and Turrones Carremi took part in organising it. Valor is also the company behind the free Valor Chocolate Museum described in the complete guide to Villajoyosa, which also covers Vilamuseu and the old town.
The 2025 edition, held from 19 to 21 November, gives a sense of the mix. It opened with a talk by the pastry chef Paco Torreblanca on the Wednesday at 20:00 in the Teatre Auditori, included the first public chocolate dessert competition, and ended on the Friday at 18:00 with a free chocolate-drinking session in the park of the Casa Museo La Barbera dels Aragonés. The 2026 daily programme had not been published when this was checked, so the format may change.
G de Tapas: 8 to 12 October 2026
The autumn programme opens earlier with G de Tapas, a route of tapas and pinchos through bars and restaurants across the municipality, scheduled from 8 to 12 October 2026. It is only days away, so it is worth a look for anyone already in the area. The 12th is also a national holiday in Spain.
Getting There and Planning Ahead
Villajoyosa is about 8 km from Benidorm and roughly an hour by road from Alicante–Elche Airport, according to local guides. The Alicante–Dénia TRAM stops at Creueta, which makes the town easy to reach without a car. The guide to public transport on the Costa Blanca covers routes and timings, and the Villajoyosa hub page collects everything else on the town.
For weather at this time of year, see Costa Blanca weather: what to expect all year round.
More Food Events on the Costa Blanca
Villajoyosa has its own stand at Alicante Gastronómica 2026, where the town hall plans to present its 2027 gastronomic calendar. Elsewhere along the coast, D*na Festival in Dénia and La Mar de Tapas in Jávea cover similar ground, and the Benidorm Fancy Dress Party on 12 November falls in the same season, just before Xocolatíssima.