---
title: 'The last night of gunpowder: the Alameda bids farewell to the 20th International Symposium on Fireworks with over 500 experts from 42 countries'
url: 'https://grav.fallas.es/en/noticias/clausura-simposio-pirotecnia-alameda-2026'
markdown: 'https://grav.fallas.es/en/noticias/clausura-simposio-pirotecnia-alameda-2026.md'
lang: en
date: '2026-10-17'
description: "València closes the 20th International Symposium on Fireworks with a show by Pirotecnia Igual on the Alameda: over 500 participants from 42 countries and mayoress Catalá at the closing of the event's most-attended edition."
taxonomy:
  category:
    - news
  tag:
    - fireworks
    - symposium
    - alameda
    - '2026'
    - isfs
---

![The last night of gunpowder: the Alameda bids farewell to the 20th International Symposium on Fireworks with over 500 experts from 42 countries](https://grav.fallas.es/user/pages/01.noticias/clausura-simposio-pirotecnia-alameda-2026/simposio_clausura_art.png) 

# The last night of gunpowder: the Alameda bids farewell to the 20th International Symposium on Fireworks with over 500 experts from 42 countries

   17/10/2026    [fireworks](https://grav.fallas.es/en/noticias/tag:fireworks) [symposium](https://grav.fallas.es/en/noticias/tag:symposium) [alameda](https://grav.fallas.es/en/noticias/tag:alameda) [2026](https://grav.fallas.es/en/noticias/tag:2026) [isfs](https://grav.fallas.es/en/noticias/tag:isfs)  

The week in which València became the world capital of gunpowder came to an end last night. The **20th International Symposium on Fireworks** said goodbye on Friday **16 October** with the closing show by **Pirotecnia Igual** on the **Paseo de la Alameda**, facing the Palau de les Arts Reina Sofía, and with a record turnout: **more than 500 participants from 42 countries**, according to the city council's figures, in the most-attended edition in the event's twenty-year history.

The mayoress, **María José Catalá**, took part in the last session of the professional conference, held from **12 to 16 October**, which turned the city into the sector's global hub. Catalá herself closed the gathering and highlighted that the activities open to the public —at the **Jardín del Túria** and the **Paseo de la Alameda**— have brought fireworks and music together, "the city's third official language", as she put it.

The finishing touch came with the 10:30 pm show on the Alameda, with the Palau de les Arts as a backdrop. An ending to match a week that began with setbacks —the cancellation of the opening show in Plaza del Ayuntamiento over the "inaction" of the Government Delegation, according to AEPIRO— but which closed with the city's skies lit up by fireworks, a correfoc, a despertà and the drone show by US firm **VERGE AERO**.

València thus reclaims the baton of a gathering it already hosted in 2003, when its seventh edition was held. Two decades later, the city on the Túria once again shows why the international fireworks calendar has it marked in red: with 500 experts from 42 countries and one last night of gunpowder in front of Les Arts, the 20th Symposium leaves the bar high for the next edition.

**Sources:**

- Ayuntamiento de València (valencia.es), 16 Oct 2026 — [València bids farewell to the 20th International Symposium on Fireworks, attended by more than 500 participants from 42 countries](https://www.valencia.es/cas/actualidad/-/content/clausura-encuentro-internacional-pirotecnia)
- Valencia Extra, 16 Oct 2026 — [València closes the biggest fireworks symposium in its history with 500 experts from 42 countries and a final show in front of the Palau de les Arts](https://www.valenciaextra.com/es/valencia/valencia-cierra-el-mayor-simposio-de-pirotecnia-de-su-historia-con-500-expertos-de-42-paises-y-un-espectaculo-final-frente-al-palacio-de-las-artes_601160_102.html)
- Actualidad Valencia, 16 Oct 2026 — [València bids farewell to the 20th Symposium on Fireworks](https://actualidadvalencia.com/valencia-despide-simposio-internacional-pirotecnia/)

*Article written by AI (Notifallas) for fallas.es.*

---

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