Figueres has finalised a comprehensive safety, mobility and cleaning operation for the 23rd edition of the Festival Acústica, running from Thursday 27 to Sunday 30 August. The city will deploy nearly 450 personnel across the four days, including police, civil protection volunteers, private security, access controllers and cleaning staff.

The operation will cover the festival’s three main stages and surrounding areas: the Rambla, Plaça Catalunya and Plaça de la Palmera. The Rambla will have a maximum capacity of 10,500 people, monitored through ten access points. Once the limit is reached, private security and access controllers will block further entry, according to the city council’s plan.

Residents and hotel guests on the Rambla will still be able to reach their homes via control points on Carrer Lasauca and Carrer Girona. A command centre will be set up at Plaça Doctor Ernest Vila, near Font Lluminosa, serving as the central hub for police, medical, emergency and communication coordination.

The safety team includes 95 municipal police officers, with up to 30 deployed daily, and 128 officers from the Mossos d’Esquadra for public order and citizen security. Forty-one volunteers from Figueres’ Civil Protection unit will take part, supported by groups from Vilafant, Girona, Pont de Molins and La Jonquera.

An additional 160 private professionals have been hired by the festival: 100 security guards and 60 access controllers. Around 20 workers from FISERSA will manage special street cleaning. Medical coverage will be strengthened on Friday and Saturday with an extra ambulance, stationed at the upper end of the Rambla and Plaça Catalunya.

Designated areas for people with reduced mobility will be available at all stages. On the Rambla, a platform will be placed on the left side, accessible via Carrer Vilafant and Carrer Lasauca. At Plaça Catalunya and Plaça de la Palmera, adapted spaces will be positioned in front of the stage with lateral access.

The Punt Lila, aimed at preventing gender-based violence and responding to sexist aggression, will operate from 10pm to 5am on 27, 28 and 29 August at Plaça Doctor Ernest Vila, next to the command centre.

Traffic and parking adjustments during the festival

During festival setup and dismantling, from 24 August to 1 September, traffic will be restricted 24 hours a day on the upper section of the Rambla. However, access will remain open: descending via Carrer Lasauca and Carrer Vilafant, and ascending with a detour towards Pujada del Castell.

On 25 and 27 August, from 6am to 3pm, traffic will be cut around Plaça Catalunya due to the relocation of the fruit and vegetable market to Carrer Castelló on those days and on 29 August. On Thursday 27, restrictions in this area will extend from 8pm to 5am.

On Friday 28 and Saturday 29, road closures will affect areas around the Rambla, Plaça de la Palmera and Plaça Catalunya between 6pm and 5am. On Sunday 30, restrictions will focus on the Rambla area from 6pm to 11pm.

Parking will be prohibited in several zones near the stages, including Plaça de la Palmera, Carrer Caamaño, the areas around Plaça Catalunya and Plaça Doctor Ernest Vila, Plaça del Gra, the Rambla, Pujada del Castell and part of Carrer Álvarez de Castro. The Rambla taxi stop will move temporarily to Pujada del Castell, in front of the Dalí Theatre-Museum. Motorcycle parking at the upper end of the Rambla will remain closed until 2 September.

Drivers will have access to around 1,500 free parking spaces in central and fairground areas, including 500 at the former El Far football field, 255 at Parc de les Aigües, 205 on the Llançà road, 160 at Els Fossos, 150 near the Capuchins Auditorium, 146 at Turó Baix and Riera Galligans, and 60 on Carrer Arderius.

Five private car parks will also be available at Passeig Nou, the Hospital, the OMAC building, Garrigal (next to the Dalí Museum) and Plaça Catalunya. Blue zone parking will be free from 8pm onwards and all day Sunday.

Public transport changes

All urban bus lines will be affected by road closures, some from 5pm onwards and others throughout the day. FISERSA has established alternative routes for its four lines serving Figueres and part of Vilafant.

Between 27 and 29 August, several stops on lines 1, 2, 3 and 4 will be suspended, particularly at Font Lluminosa, the Rambla, Plaça Catalunya, Plaça del Gra, Plaça de la Palmera and the Dalí Joies Museum.

From Friday 28 to Sunday 30 August, the shuttle bus stop on the Rambla, which connects Figueres-Vilafant AVE station to the city centre, will be cancelled for the entire day. Services will instead depart from the bus station and Plaça del Sol on the usual schedule.

"We are preparing for one of the largest gatherings in the region this week," said a city council spokesperson, noting expectations of over 100,000 attendees across the festival’s events.

Further details on the full programme are available via the official Acústica 2025 schedule.

Reported by Maria Saguer, Teresa Aparicio, Alba Carmona, festivalacustica.cat, GIRONANOTICIES.COM.