I am planning to be in Spain and Portugal during Christmas break ( dec 20 - Jan 2). Is it a good time for travel? Do the sights close before (24th) and after christmas (26) and similiarly for New year (31st) From the websites all the sights seems to be open except for shorter open times
Posted by
Anaheim, CA, USA
1455 posts
I'm sure there's Rick readers who can answer this but check www.maribelsguides.com. She may have something of the Christmas season.
I know when we were in Guadalajara, stores were opened on the Eve but closed early. Nothing was opened on Christmas (except the Zoo) but New Year stores were opened. I don't know if its the same in Spain, so I hope someone will post.
Posted by
Denver, CO, USA
1556 posts
We did Portugal during Christmas break in 2001-2002. We had a good time and the weather was nice. I think we had rain on 1 day but other than that no issues. You should expect all major sites, etc. to be closed on national holidays (i.e. Dec 25th, Jan 1). Hence, most museums, etc probably won't be open. Transportation and eating places may also be limited. However, there will still be things to do and places you can walk to, etc. Besides the two days, most places will stick to their normal schedules which probably means that Mondays (Dec 29th) will have some closures.
Posted by
OP
Cupertino, CA, USA
38 posts
Thanks for the comments. We are all set to go on the trip
Posted by
Boscombe, Dorset, UK
964 posts
We spent the last 2 Christmases in southern Spain and really enjoyed it. It's more laid back than in the UK and N. America, so many places are open, albeit with shorter hours, as you have noticed. Hope you enjoy it as much as we have done!