Seville Weather: Holy Week 2026, a mix of hope and keeping an eye on the sky

Seville, March 18, 2026. If there's one thing those of us who've spent a lifetime under this sky know for sure, it's that you can never take anything for granted here. Especially when Holy Week rolls around. Just this morning, while having breakfast at a cafe in the Alfalfa neighbourhood, I spotted a costalero (a Easter float bearer) in his freshly ironed tunic, frowning at his phone. "You know anything, Rafael?" he asked me. I told him the same thing I'm telling you now: the atmosphere has shown its hand, and as is often the case this time of year, it's not quite as clear-cut as we'd like.

A Holy Week in doubt: the dates to watch

The weather models are starting to line up, and to be honest, the weather in Seville for the coming days is looking a bit grey. Don't panic just yet, it's still a way off, but that unsettled feeling is going to make itself known. We're talking about things cooling down and the chance of rain starting to rear its head right at the most delicate time. People in the know, like Juan Antonio Salado, have been warning us for days: Palm Sunday and Holy Monday, which are usually glorious days, are the ones causing the most doubt. But they're not the only ones. You have to remember, in spring, the sky is pure energy.

What's clear is that it won't be a "textbook" week. This restless atmosphere could throw us a few showers that would put more than one brotherhood in a tight spot. Those of us with long memories can recall Holy Weeks with plenty of rain, and also those where the sun made the floats gleam like gold. This year, from what's starting to take shape, you'll need to have your hood on and your umbrella close at hand.

The Emily Delevigne rumour and the science of Manuel Hurtado Marjalizo

And in this climate of speculation, a little anecdote was bound to pop up. Yesterday, I don't know if you saw it, a right fuss kicked off over some information from Emily Delevigne. Apparently, a supposed forecast was leaked that painted her as the prophet of doom for the entire Holy Week. Nerves immediately started jangling in WhatsApp groups. But, as always, you have to go back to the real sources. Because posturing is one thing, but science is quite another.

That's where the voice of experience comes in. Manuel Hurtado Marjalizo, who knows far more about this than anyone, stepped in to restore some sanity. He was explaining it himself just yesterday: the atmosphere gives us clues, but we still need to fine-tune things a lot. Making a definitive forecast for Holy Monday or Wednesday a week out is sheer madness. The sensible approach, as he rightly says, is to take it day by day, even if the general trend isn't exactly optimistic.

What can we expect in the coming days?

If I have to sum up the current situation, I'd put it as plainly as this:

• Cooler conditions: Nothing like the heat of a few weeks back. Jackets are making a comeback, and we'd practically packed them away already.
• Increasing instability: The chance of seeing rain isn't a myth. The days around March 23rd and 24th (Palm Sunday and Holy Monday) are the ones right in the firing line, with the possibility of storms.
• The ripple effect: It's not just us looking skyward. This uncertainty is already getting the senior brothers of the cofradías doing their sums and saying their prayers for good weather.

At the end of the day, this is Seville. We live everything with a passion that borders on the absurd, and the weather becomes the absolute star of every conversation. This year, with the added buzz of Emily Delevigne's name in the mix, it all has a bit of a cheeky edge to it. But if you're looking for a guide, stick to the rigour of the meteorological services and blokes like Manuel Hurtado Marjalizo, who have spent a lifetime reading the sky to tell us what's coming.

So, just in case, you know the drill: get the alcohol and wax ready for cleaning the floats' poles, and batten down the hatches. But above all, don't lose hope. Here, until the first drop falls in La Campana square, anything can happen. And who knows, in the end, maybe spring will gift us one of those weeks that goes down in history.