December It’s just around the corner and before the Christmas Spaniards will be able to enjoy the bridge known as the Purísima Bridge, which collects Constitution Day which is celebrated on the 6th and 8th of the same month, which is celebrated on Day of the Immaculate Conception. As Friday and Sunday fall, the Official State Gazette confirmed months ago that Monday 9 would be a public holiday in up to six autonomous communities. Thus, Spaniards from different regions of Spain will also be able to enjoy an extra day of vacation.
One of the most classic bridges of the year arrives in which hundreds of thousands of Spaniards take the opportunity to move to all parts of the peninsula to make the relevant purchases of Christmas or simply see the lighting of the most important cities, such as Madrid. On these dates, many other people also travel to other cities in Europe to attend the classic Christmas markets that have become so famous in recent years.
One of the unique characteristics of this Purísima bridge is that on the 8th, when the Purísima festival is celebrated, Immaculate Conception falls on Sunday. This means that many Spaniards will only be able to enjoy a three-day long weekend and this is why some autonomous communities have moved the holiday to Monday December 9. This was published and confirmed in the Official State Gazette a few months ago.
December 9 is a public holiday in six communities
He Official State Gazette published a few months ago the “Resolution of October 23, 2023 of the General Directorate of Labor, which publishes the list of working holidays for the year 2024”. In this document were specified all the holidays of the autonomous communities throughout the year. It must be clear that every year there are 12 compulsory public holidays in all regions of Spain and as stated in article 4 of this regulation.
“In addition to the twelve leaves resulting from the application of the preceding articles, and in development of article 37.2 of the Workers’ Statute cited above, article 46 of Royal Decree 2001/1983 establishes that they will also be unfit for work , paid and non-recoverable, up to two days of each calendar year as local festivals traditionally specific to each municipality, which will be published in the official bulletin of the autonomous community or, where applicable, in the official bulletin of the province corresponding,” we read in the regulations.
Thus, five autonomous communities have decided to move the national holiday to Monday December 9. Immaculate Conception. Thus, citizens of Andalusia, Aragon, Asturias, Castile and León, Extremadura and Murcia will be able to enjoy a vacation next Monday, December 9. For its part, this day will be a work and school day in the Balearic Islands, Canary Islands, Cantabria, Castile-La Mancha, Catalonia, Valencian Community, Galicia, La Rioja, Madrid, Navarra and the Basque Country.
The next vacation
After the Purísima Bridge, the next and last public holiday of the year will be Wednesday December 25the day when Christmas is celebrated. This will be the last opportunity where citizens will be able to enjoy a day of vacation. It must be taken into account that throughout the year there are eight common holidays throughout the territory to which must be added four national holidays made official by each autonomous community. We must then add two more for local festivities, for a total of 14 public holidays throughout the year.
In this way, the important thing is that the Spaniards can enjoy three days of long weekend (or four in the case of Andalusia, Aragon, Asturias, Castile and León, Extremadura and Murcia) to do your Christmas shopping or visit certain cities with a particular charm such as Madrid, which is one of the cities that usually welcomes the largest number of tourists for the Christmas holidays. Christmas. There are also other places in Spain that are unmissable and these are the cities that compete for the Ferrero Rocher award for best Christmas lighting. These are the municipalities of Ágreda (Seville), Biar (Alicante), La Adrada (Ávila) and Ribadavia (Ourense).
