Map of Pamplona's Running of the Bulls
During the Running of the Bulls, or the encierro, in Pamplona, Spain, six bulls and (usually) six steers run a roughly 850-meter course through the medieval streets of the city's "Old Town" neighborhood.
The bulls are released from their corrals on Calle Santo Domingo (where they are brought the night before), and they immediately begin running uphill. Then, they charge across the Town Hall Square (aka Plaza Consistorial) onto Calle Mercaderes, around "La Curva" or "Dead Man's Corner," and then up Calle Estafeta. At the end of Calle Estafeta, the bulls curve past the Telefónica building, run down the "callejón" corridor toward the Plaza de Toros (bullring), and then pass through the "Tunnel of Death," and finally arrive into the bullring.
If you're running with the bulls this year, plan to line up between the barricades on Plaza Consistorial or on Calle Santo Domingo by 7:00am. Around 7:15am, the streets will be officially closed to the public, and a police barricade will form at the beginning of Calle Mercaderes. At this point, no one else will be permitted to run.
From 7:00am until around 7:45am, runners will mingle, warm up, and pray. Then, the first police barricade will break, and runners will be permitted to find their chosen place along the route. Some runners will go to a chosen doorway, others will line up underneath the balcony where their friends or families have rented balcony places, and others will run all the way into the Plaza de Toros before the bulls are even released (these people are sarcastically called "los valientes" or "the brave ones" because they never actually run with the bulls).
The doors of the bull corrals are opened at 8:00am sharp, and a rocket is fired to announce that the bull run has officially begun. Then, usually a few seconds later, a second rocket is fired to signal that all bulls have officially left their corrals and have started charging up Calle Santo Domingo towards the crowd of runners. The bulls will run the entire bull run course in roughly 2 minutes and 30 seconds, before finally arriving in their new corrals in the Plaza de Toros, or the bull ring. A final rocket is sounded to signal that all the bulls are safely in their corrals, and then the streets are reopened to the public to start another day of fiesta!
Santo Domingo Tips: It is not recommended that beginner runners run this stretch of the route. First, since this is the first street of the bull run route, bulls are running at their fastest speed at this point. Second, the street is inclined, so you'll be running uphill. Third, there are small sidewalks and changes in pavement that you won't see on other sections of the bull run, which makes it more likely that you'll trip. Fourth, there are no fences to escape under in the event of an emergency; if anything goes wrong, you'll be pinned between two buildings on a very narrow road if anything goes wrong. Fifth, the street curves, obscuring your view, so you won't know what to expect behind you or ahead of you at any point. If you're running with the bulls for the first time, avoid Santo Domingo, and plan to run Mercaderes or Estafeta instead.
Mercaderes Tips: Since this is a wide street, it's typically easier to get out of the path of the bulls on this street than it is on other sections of the route. However, Dead Man's Corner at the end of this section is particularly dangerous. If you plan to run this section, make sure you run on the inside corner (the right-hand side) rather than the outside corner (the left-hand side). Due to the bulls' inertia and the sharp angle, bulls often run straight into the barricade that cuts across Mercaderes street on the left-hand side in the direction the bulls are running -- and you don't want to be caught between the wall and the bulls horns.
Estafeta Tips: This is the longest stretch of the route, and bulls tend to slow down a bit by this point, which allows more people to run "on the horns" - right in front of the bulls, rather than alongside them. You won't be able to keep up with the bulls for all of Estafeta, since it's a very long street, so you'll want to plan to run one segment and stick with it. The end of Estafeta, starting around Estafeta #65, is much wider than the beginning part of Estafeta. The extra space makes it a bit safer for beginner runners than other parts of Estafeta, especially if you keep to the right side of the street.
General Tips: If you fall down, curl into a fetal position, cover your head, and stay down. Don't get up until someone helps you up or until you've heard the rocket announcing the bull run is over. In the chaos of the moment, you'll have no idea whether all the bulls have passed, and you do not want to get up right in the path of a charging bull's horns. It's much better to be trampled by bulls and other people than it is to be gored. We'll say it again: If you fall down, curl into fetal position, cover your head, stay down.
Don't want to run? We've got you covered. Book your tickets here to watch the Running of the Bulls from the safety of a balcony.