Nine straight days of festivities with hundreds of thousands of visitors take a real toll on the city. In recent years, Pamplona has significantly strengthened its sustainability and coexistence initiatives, and as a visitor you can — and should — play your part in that effort.
Reusable cups and recycling
One of the most visible changes is the reusable cup system for €1, available at most drink stalls across the festival grounds, designed to sharply cut single-use plastic consumption. Alongside it, recycling bins and selective collection points are installed all along the festival route, with reinforced municipal cleaning crews working shifts throughout the nine days.
Your role as a visitor
Using a reusable cup instead of asking for a new one each time, and putting rubbish in the bins provided even if it means walking a few extra metres, are small gestures that, multiplied by hundreds of thousands of people, make a real difference.
Coexistence and safety against assault
Overcrowding and alcohol consumption increase the risk of sexist behaviour and assault during the festival. Pamplona runs active awareness campaigns and has strengthened the purple points (puntos violeta) set up across the festival grounds — check our guide to safety at San Fermín for their locations and how they work — with the aim of guaranteeing a safe, equal festive environment for everyone.
What you can do
If you witness harassment or assault, don't look the other way: go to the nearest purple point or alert the Municipal Police. Citizen cooperation — on cleanliness as much as on coexistence — is, as the City Council itself acknowledges, one of the factors that has most contributed to making the festival a little cleaner, safer and more respectful every year.