Just like in the UK, there are also many public holidays in Spain every year. We're taking you through the Spanish holidays today so you know exactly what's happening on each date.
In Spain, a distinction can be made between national holidays and regional holidays. The national holidays, as the name implies, apply to the entire country. Because Spain is such a large country and consists of as many as seventeen autonomous communities, there are also regional holidays. These are determined by the autonomous community itself and therefore differ per area. Apart from national and regional, there are also some local holidays – we won’t discuss these in this article.
In this article we will dive into the national holidays, and the regional holidays on the Costa Blanca and Costa Cálida. What do these holidays mean and when will they be celebrated in the year 2023?
In total there will be nine Spanish public holidays in 2023 that are the same for the whole country. We specifically take that year into account in this article, but it will be updated every year. It differs per year which days are public holidays.
On Friday, January 6, 2023, we celebrate the Día de los Reyes Magos, which we know as Epiphany. This is a very important day in Spain: the Spanish families come together to give each other gifts and eat lots of sweets. The most typical is the Roscón de Reyes: a kind of sweet round of puff pastry that is often filled with, for example, whipped cream. There are also parades throughout the country (called the Cabalgata de Reyes Magos) where the children are spoiled with sweets and beautifully dressed figures pass by.
On Friday 7 April 2023 we celebrate Viernes Santo, or Good Friday. Spain is a religious country, and this is an important holiday.
On Monday, May 1, 2023, we celebrate the Día del Trabajo, or Labor Day. Despite the fact that in UK most people do not have a day off on this day, in Spain it is a day off for everyone.
On Tuesday, August 15, 2023, we will celebrate the Asunción de la Virgen.
On Thursday, October 12, 2023, we will celebrate the Fiesta Nacional de España. There is always a military parade accompanying the royal family on this day. The day is also known as the Día de la Hispanidad.
On Wednesday, November 1, 2023, we celebrate Todos los Santos, or All Saints' Day. On this day, the Spaniards commemorate their relatives, friends and acquaintances who have unfortunately passed away. Especially the older generations visit the cemetery on this day and decorate the graves of their deceased loved ones.
On Wednesday, December 6, 2023, we celebrate the Día de la Constitución Española, or the Day of the Spanish Constitution. This commemorates the adoption of the Spanish Constitution on December 6, 1978.
On Friday, December 8, 2023, we celebrate Inmaculada Concepción.
On Monday, December 25, 2023, we will celebrate Navidad, or Christmas. This is the last public holiday of the year, and another important day for many Spanish families. During the Christmas season, they decorate the tree, view the Christmas lights and nativity scenes that can be found in almost every city, buy their ticket for the famous Christmas lottery and eat together on Christmas Eve.
In addition, there are three Spanish holidays that can be divided separately for each area. On the Costa Blanca and Costa Cálida we find two autonomous communities: the Comunidad Valenciana and Murcia.
Below we discuss the regional holidays of each autonomous community. Each autonomous community may therefore organize three regional holidays itself, but each individual municipality also has two more days to divide. We do not include the municipal holidays in this overview because there are simply too many, but the regional holidays do.
In the Comunidad Valenciana, the remaining public holidays are on the following dates.
On Monday, April 10, 2023, Lunes de pascua, or Easter Monday, will be celebrated. San Juan will be celebrated on Saturday, June 24, 2023. Finally, on Monday, October 9, 2023, Día de la Comunidad Valenciana (the Day of the Autonomous Community of Valencia) will be celebrated.
In the Región de Murcia, the remaining public holidays are on the following dates.
On Monday, January 2, 2023, Año Nuevo, or New Year's Day, will be celebrated. This normally falls on January 1, of course, but it is often the case that in Spain a public holiday is moved to Monday, when it falls on a Sunday. Jueves Santo will be celebrated on Thursday, April 6, 2023. Finally, on Friday, June 9, 2023, Día de la Región de Murcia (the Day of the Autonomous Community of Murcia) will be celebrated.
On many Spanish holidays, shops and other businesses close. Some supermarkets do open, but often during only part of the regular opening hours. So take a good look at what opens in your area in advance, so that you do not end up in front of a closed door.
This was the overview of all Spanish holidays in 2023. Please save this page to your favorites, so that you know exactly what will happen on which date.
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