Long weekends (puentes) and holidays that move

Key rules

• Puente: A puente is not a legal right, so your employer or agreement decides if you get it.
• Official bridge days: Spain has no national list of official bridge days; any extra days are set by each region or administration.
• Sunday holidays: A Sunday holiday moves to Monday only where your community decides, and rules vary.

A puente is an informal bridge day

A puente is a day off between a holiday and a weekend. It is not a legal right. It usually appears when a holiday falls on a Tuesday or Thursday, and people bridge the Monday or Friday to get four days in a row.

Whether you get that day depends on your employer or your collective agreement. Ask your employer early, before you book travel.

Holidays people usually bridge

These are the dates people most often stretch into long breaks:

• 1 May
• 12 October
• 1 November
• 6 and 8 December
• Easter
• The Christmas and New Year period

Expect busy roads, full trains and higher prices on these weekends. Book early.

Official bridge days

Spain has no national list of official bridge days. Some regions and administrations give public employees días de libre disposición, which are free-choice days, or substitute days in their staff calendars. A few declare an extra non-working day for public employees.

These are set every year for each region and administration, so there is no single list. If you work in the public sector, check your own staff calendar. If you work for a private employer, the company or your agreement decides.

When a holiday falls on a Sunday

A national holiday that falls on a Sunday may be moved to Monday, but only where the community decides to do it. Each community chooses whether to move the day to Monday, replace it with another date, or leave it alone. The rules vary from one community to the next.

Do not assume you will get the Monday off. Check your community's official calendar for the year. The decision box below can help you work out which case applies to you.

What to do

1. Look up your community's holiday calendar for the year.
2. Ask your employer or check your agreement about bridge days.
3. Book travel only once you know the day is yours.

The FAQ below answers the common questions.

Choosing between options

Will you really get a long weekend when a holiday falls midweek or on a Sunday?

• Plan on a bridge day off: Your employer or collective agreement gives you the Monday or Friday around a Tuesday or Thursday holiday. A puente is informal, so it is never automatic.

• Use an official free-choice day: You work for a public administration that sets días de libre disposición or substitute days in its staff calendar. Spain has no national bridge days, so each region and administration sets its own each year.

• Expect a Sunday holiday to move to Monday: Your community has decided to move it. Each community picks Monday or another date in its own calendar.

• Plan on a normal working day: Your employer gives no bridge and your community did not move the holiday. Then only the holiday itself is off.

Your community's calendar decides whether a Sunday holiday moves, and your employer or administration decides whether you get a bridge day.

Check your community's holiday calendar and your employer's or administration's calendar for the year in question.

Frequently asked questions

Which days do people in Spain usually bridge?

Spaniards most often bridge 1 May, 12 October, 1 November, 6 and 8 December, Easter and the Christmas and New Year period. A bridge is usually taken when a holiday falls on a Tuesday or Thursday, so the Monday or Friday becomes the day off.

Is a holiday that falls on a Sunday moved to Monday?

Sometimes, but only where your community decides to move it. Each community chooses whether to move the day to Monday or to put another date in its place. Look at your community's own calendar for the year to see what it did.