Cala Mijas Festiva, a festival that happens annually during the summer months, will break its streaks for once. The festival that was planned for this year, 2024, as well, has been cancelled. The event dates were previously announced to be August 29th–30th, and the cancellation announcement was just 4 months before. This sudden annulment left both fans and organisers disappointed, as they were all looking forward to the festival. The decision is attributed to a continuous dispute between the Mijas town hall and the event promoters, Last Tour.
Details of the cancellations of Mijas festival
Supposedly, there are several alleged contract breaches coming from both the town hall and Last Tour. According to the event promoter, Last Tour, the cancellation on their side is due to repeated and serious breaches. On the other hand, the Mijas town hall shares that Last Tour did not fulfill their obligations under the agreement. Additionally, the Mijas town hall states that they might take some legal action in this situation.
The most prominent disagreements in this issue involved finance. Last Tour has been claiming that the town hall failed to pay some important sums that they owe from last years festival in 2023. The town hall did not pay that sum back then because their financial auditors said that some sums were not justified. So to counter these claims, the town says that there were mistakes in the invoices and that it was Last Tour’s fault. So basically, since then, they have been arguing over who should pay for what and why.
Other reasons involved
Besides the financial disagreements, there are other reasons that contribute to the decision to cancel. According to Mijas town hall, Last Tour did not present them a lineup for the festival in 2024. This was stated in the contract and not presenting it meant a breach of contract agreement. The town hall also shares that, supposedly, they kept asking and reminding repeatedly for Last Tour to present the line-up. Again, on the other hand, Last Tour also shares that the town hall did not fulfill its obligations. These obligations included not only providing the necessary facilities for the venue but also the overall support previously promised.
This whole situation affects the town of Mijas heavily. Cala Mijas music festival has been a core activity promoting tourism in Mijas and helping the local economy. The sudden cancellation of this festival, which has been taking place continuously since 2021, greatly affects Mijas and tourists. Since the post pandemic days started, this festival has served as a gathering place for tourists and locals wanting to enjoy a fun time outside. A line-up that included famous artists like The Strokes, Arctic Monkeys and Arcade Fire helped attract international attention. Fans hope that the town hall and event promoter navigate this dispute to avoid cancellations in the future.