My husband and I will be arriving Barcelona on Palm Sunday (end or our month-long Spanish vacation). We will be there until Holy Thursday. Should we be concerned about being in Barcelona during Holy Week? We have already purchased tickets to the venues we most want to visit - Sagrada Familia, Palau de la Musica, La Pedrera. Are there any Holy Week activities we should seek out?
Posted by
Barcelona (Catalonia)
2942 posts
Hi Deb
I don't quite grasp your question, what would you be concerned about?
Note that we Catalans (and particularly Barcelonans), in this day and age, generally speaking we are mostly non-religious. Therefore, don't expect many Holy Week religious activities in Barcelona, certainly not in the likes of the Spanish, in Andalucia or Madrid for example.
Having said that, and mostly out of tradition rather than out of religious fervour, both in Girona (1h from BCN) and Tarragona (2h from BCN) there are some activities worth exploring.
In Tarragona, the "Processó del Sant Enterrament de Divendres Sant" (https://www.tarragonaturisme.cat/en/events/easter-week), with the impressive presence of the "armats" (Roman soldiers) (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IHUeOl5rWWE).
Also, in Girona (https://web.girona.cat/dinamitzacio/setmanasanta) with the descent of the stairs of the cathedral (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Xo9Vajb7PN4). Incidentally, you might recall these stairs and this cathedral from the famous series "Game of Thrones" (https://www.catalannews.com/life-style/item/girona-to-host-sold-out-screenings-of-game-of-thrones-season-6-premiere)
In Barcelona, there are some activities during Easter (https://www.barcelona.cat/culturapopular/en/festivals-and-traditions/setmana-santa), but nothing on that scale: https://beteve.cat/agenda/setmana-santa-barcelona/
Enjoy!