Increased cost on Dec 12 2016?

They celebrate Saint Lucia Day in Spain? I hope that someone from Spain replies. My online calendar automatically adds holidays from a number of countries to my days and it shows holidays in Spain on December 3, 6, 8, 21, 25 and 26. Maybe there is a regional holiday on the 12th?

That's the only holiday around that time we can find... Hopefully a Spanish friend can chime in. --Lauren

Where in Spain are you talking about? I can't find any holidays at that time, either.

We are organizing a day tour in Seville --> Granada. Any suggestions would be appreciated! --Lauren

Lauren,

I wonder if there's a misunderstanding regarding the date. As you may know, Spain's National Day is celebrated October 12th.

Anyway, regarding a day trip from Sevilla to Granada...

I'd not recommend taking a day trip to Granada from Sevilla, mainly because it will take 3 hours of travel time each way.

You may consider spending a couple of nights in Granada, to at least enjoy one full day there, not just a few hours, just a thought....

If you do decide to travel to Granada on your own, you may want to book your Alhambra tickets now.

Have you considered taking a day trip to Córdoba?

It's an easy train ride from Sevilla. You may check train schedules here:http://www.renfe.com

Enjoy your trip!

Thank you for the reminder, Priscilla! I will double check with the owner that there is no mis-understanding. Her email says " 12th Dec is one of the biggest national and bank holidays in Spain so that services such as hotels, cars, guides and drivers are more expensive for the entire bank holiday due to the fact that everybody is traveling and there is a big demand." I am also curious what holiday is it, and if we need to pay attention to shop / museum closure or special train schedule. So far I have found nothing. --Lauren

Ground control here... albeit you don't say where is this business located -and I've already mentioned many times in the forum that Spain is not a uniform entity... in short, not a country in the traditional sense- I suspect you're being taken for a ride.

This is the official holiday calendar for 2016: http://www.ara.cat/societat/calendari-festius-2016_0_1453654771.html In this case, and since I'm writing from Catalonia, this includes the holidays in Spain as well as the holidays in Catalonia and also specific holidays in Barcelona. As you can see, there's no official holiday on Dec 12th. As mentioned before OCT 12th is a holiday but not Dec 12th. The only thing that comes to mind is that wherever you're staying/hiring this service might have a specific holiday for that day... but again, there's no chance it's "a big national holiday".

Dear Enric -- Thanks for the information. The business group is based in Seville, and I am double checking with the owner that there is no mis-communication about the date. If I learn anything new, I'll report here for others' benefits. --Lauren

Hi Lauren

Again, Seville is in a different autonomous community so it's like being in a different country :)... anyhow, I've checked online at the Spanish Ministry of Employment, in charge of setting the work calendars, and I fail to see any holiday on DEC 12th in Seville or elsewhere: http://www.seg-social.es/Internet_1/Masinformacion/CalendarioLaboral/Fiestas/index.htm?prov=41&loc=410910000 ... and this is the official Sevilla City Hall website informing about the specific holidays for the city of Seville -which add on top the other: http://www.sevilla.org/ayuntamiento/competencias-areas/area-de-seguridad-movilidad-y-fiestas-mayores/fiestas-mayores/festivos-locales and no Dec 12th either.

It's indeed a mystery and I'd love if you could post back when you find something more, if anything out of curiosity.

I asked some friends who lived in Sevilla for two years and they could recall no December 12th holiday. I too hope you can update this thread after your discussions.

Hello everyone -- Here is the update: we emailed the business owner, double-checking that she had not confused Dec 12 for Oct 12, since we could not figure out what was the holiday on Dec 12. We just received a response that she indeed mixed up Dec 12 and Oct 12. So we are getting the regular (web-posted) price. Thank you for everyone, especially Priscilla, Enric and JHK! Your information gave us the confidence to make the inquiry :-) Happy and safe travels everyone! -- Lauren

Lauren,

It's great that everything worked out!

Enjoy Spain!