I am planning a trip to Madrid and Toledo Oct 7-15th and realized the National Day of Spain is on the 12th (Saturday) and will also impact the following Monday. I like to see a country's specific holiday event but wonder how the holiday will impact museums, transportation, and restaurants. Will they be open or closed during that Saturday and Monday?
Posted by
Rural Pa
30 posts
We were there last year for the same celebration and yes, you will be impacted. The crowds are unimaginable.
Posted by
Mid-Atlantic area
7157 posts
You’ll notice it more in Madrid than other places. For our upcoming trip we rearranged lodging locations for a couple nights because hotel prices in Cáceres for the 12th were double the normal rate. No idea if hotel prices in Madrid will be higher.
Posted by
Denver, CO
796 posts
I took a quick look at the Prado and Thyssen-Bornemisza, musuem's website, and they are open Oct. 12. The Royal Palace in Madrid, however, is closed Oct 12. I would look up the places you want to visit and see which ones are open - it looks like a mixed bag.
Posted by
OP
3 posts
Thank you for good feedback. I will do more research. Maybe stay in Toledo over that holiday weekend instead of Madrid. I appreciate everyone's input.
Posted by
Barcelona (Catalonia)
3071 posts
Madrid and Toledo (and Seville and Cordoba) might be this festivity's epicentre, so you'll be somehow impacted. This means businesses and shops are closed (maybe some shopping centres are open though), and many restaurants too. Public transportation operates like on any Sunday, that is the frequency between services is decreased, still, this translates into that in Madrid say instead of 10' for the next metro, you have to wait for 20' -not a deal breaker.
As per entertainment venues (museums and other attractions), you shouldn't worry much as many are still open, at least until 2 pm or so, and quite a few operate as on any normal day. But some are closed -especially many that are publicly-operated. It's indeed a mixed bag like said before. Check their respective websites for further details.
Also, check the agenda of events for special venues on that date: https://www.esmadrid.com/puente-octubre-madrid
For those in other areas (namely Barcelona or Basque country), the story is somehow different as they have their own "national holidays" (Sept 11th and March 27th respectively) and Oct 12th, despite being a festive date, is rather like a regular Sunday with no special events planned.
Posted by
OP
3 posts
Thank you for the Madrid events link. Very helpful!
Posted by
la rioja
590 posts
In Zaragoza the 12th is the Pilar, and it gets quite festive those day.
Posted by
Bilbao
743 posts
It´ll be a holiday on Monday in Madrid, but not in all of Spain. In the Basque Country, Spain´s National Day is hardly celebrated, it´s just a vacation day and no day off on Monday, as in many other places.