Dave_Ohio

We have booked a trip to Barcelona and Costa Brava at the beginning of April 2012. Staying at a hotel in Figueres, with car, for three days, then moving to an apartment in L'Eixample, without car, for another week. Since it turns out that this time spans Holy Week (Setmana Santa), I wonder whether the notable attractions of Barcelona will still be accessible. Of course the churches will celebrate the sacred liturgies of these days, but will they be open to sightseers at other times as well?

The guidebooks indicate that Good Friday and Easter Monday are holidays. Do any museums, galleries, monuments, forts, etc., close in observance of any of these days? How about cafes, bars, restaurants, markets?

We'll be much obliged to anyone willing to share some Barcelona savvy and help us put together a good plan for this time.

Muchas gracias! / Moltes gracies!

Robert2533

Everything should be open, including the cathedral, the Sagrada Família (www.sagradafamilia.cat) and La Boqueria.

Gordon_R

We were there a few years ago over the Easter weekend. I can't recall anything being closed - it was just much busier and noisier than normal, with long waits at some restaurants for example.

annhig

dave - "catholic" countries tend to be far more what you might see as lax than you'd expect around Easter and Christmas, whereas irreligious England more or less shuts up shop for several days.

we were in Rome and Venice at successive Easter periods and in both, loads of places were open all the time, including the Accademia in venice on Easter sunday.

of course you ought to check the opening times of places that you specifically want to see, but i suspect that for the vast majority, it'll be business as usual.

Pegontheroad

Sometimes I've found closures that I didn't expect. In Schwäbisch Hall, Germany, most stores, except for bakeries, seemed to be closed on the day after Pentecost Sunday.

In Madrid, sites such as the Royal Palace and the Prado were closed on May 1.

Robert2533

1 May in Spain is "Día del Trabajo", Labor Day, and yes, many places are closed so that the staff can take some time off.

Most stores, including El Corte Ingles, will be closed on Easter Sunday because of the law, the main exception will be Chinese junk stores, which seldom close, regardless.

Dave_Ohio

I'm very grateful for this information, and encouraged that Barca is not likely to shut down while we're there!
Thanks, everyone!

Might anyone have a suggestion for a special seasonal highlight that we could look into at that time?

Annhig: You're correct - at Christmas one year I did find that London practically rolled up its sidewalks for about three and a half days. Yet fun could still be had in Trafalgar Sq. on Christmas eve.

Dave_Ohio

A note for future reference from the OP:

Barcelona was definitely NOT shut down during Holy Week! We had a delightful time there. However, there were a few dislocations owing to the holidays: several bars that we had sought out were closed for the long weekend (Fri-Mon), including El Xampanyet, Monvinic, and Xamp?Xampany; some supermarkets observed earlier than usual closing hours; when we visited Montserrat, the boys' choir from the Escalonia (touted by Rick Steves) was home for the holidays and did not perform.

On the other hand, there were some unique and unforgettable moments related to the religious observances. Most impressive for me were the processions of the "Pasos," which were floats containing statues depicting the crucifixion, that converged at Barcelona's Cathedral on Good Friday evening. They were accompanied by mounted escorts, uniformed marching bands, and reigious societies dressed in traditional costumes. Although my photos left much to be desired, Pegontheroad has posted some very nice ones from the observance in Malaga: https://picasaweb.google.com/1092099...57575913903650

Thanks again to all of you for your information!

danon

good of you to report back
Wish more posters would do the same
(might be in Barcelona SS. 2013)