Mallorca: Emma to play Santa Catalina Tomás in Palma parade

Palma, Mallorca, has a new face for Saturday’s Santa Catalina Tomás parade: Emma Martínez González will play the saint. Organisers introduced her as this year’s “Beateta” — the person who takes that role in the procession — at Santa Magdalena church on Friday, 16 October 2026. The Mallorca Island Council, the Diocese of Mallorca and the canons of Santa Magdalena opened the celebrations there, the council said.

After the presentation, children attended a session about the saint led by Bartomeu Villalonga Moyà, a priest from the Santanyí pastoral district. Mallorca’s councillor for culture and heritage, Antònia Roca, said passing on the island’s traditions to children mattered.

On Saturday, a street procession around Santa Magdalena monastery begins at 10.00. A church service follows at 11.00, with Emma attending alongside the children dressed as angels and farmers. At 18.30, the triumphal float honouring Santa Catalina Tomás sets off through Palma. Its route starts at Plaza del Hospital, passes along the Rambla and Avenida de Jaume III, and ends at Plaza de Santa Magdalena. A floral offering and veneration of the saint’s body follow.

The celebrations come after the Mallorca Island Council formally recognised the Santa Catalina Tomás parades in Palma, Valldemossa and Santa Margalida as part of Mallorca’s intangible cultural heritage.

Topics: Culture · Palma · Santanyí · Alcúdia · Valldemossa · Santa Margalida

Source: Europa Press / Mallorca.com