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Ten brilliant travel plans for Semana Santa in Spain

Want to do something over the Easter holidays but keen to avoid all the religious fervour? The Local gives you a rundown of the best alternative Easter travel plans.

Published: 3 April 2019 15:40 CEST
Updated: 5 April 2022 10:59 CEST
Ten brilliant travel plans for Semana Santa in Spain
Patios will be blooming in Cordoba during Easter Week. Photo: AFP

Semana Santa (Holy week), April 10th – 17th 2022

Easter week is one of the year’s biggest celebrations in Spain, where towns and cities stage processions and passion plays to reenact the last days of Jesus and his resurrection on Easter Sunday.

Andalusia is home to some of the biggest and most elaborate processions, but wherever you are in Spain, there will be plenty going on for Semana Santa. 

If you haven’t ever seen it, then make this the year you seek out a procession.
 
 
 
But if the crowds at the Easter processions don’t tempt you but you still want to make the most of an Easter break in Spain here are some of our favourite ideas.
 
For the art lovers
 

Photo: moof/Flickr 
 
Figueres (Catalonia) is the birthplace of the eccentric artist Salvador Dalí. Visit the quirky Teatre-Museu Gala Salvador Dalí, designed by the surrealist himself.
 
For the beach lovers
 

Photo: adriagarcia/Flickr
 
The least overrun and most tranquil of the Balearics, Menorca has 99 pristine beaches and countless coves to discover along its 216 km coastline.
 
 
For the foodies
 

Photo: Pug Girl/Flickr 
 
The Basque seaside city of San Sebastián has a long list of attractions in its favour, a romantic old town and cityside beaches to name a few. But by far the greatest reason to head there is the food. Check out our recommendations for the top ten ultimate pintxos to devour in San Sebastián.
 
For the hikers
 

Photo: Pilar/Flickr 
 
Picos de Europa in northern Spain is one of the most striking mountain ranges in the country – its jagged limestone peaks rising to 2600 metres. Explore the unique countryside with its abundant wildlife, wide glacier valleys and awe-inspiring rock formations.
 
 
For the romantics
 

San Estevo parador in Galicia. Photo: parador.es
 
Book a few nights in a parador, the chain of hotels located in some of Spain’s most beautiful historic buildings, such as the San Estevo parador in Galicia (pictured). Here is our list of the top ten in Spain.
 
For the history buffs
 

Photo: Jose Aleman Asensi/Flickr 
 
Mosques, synagogues, churches and museums – all within the ancient walls of ‘The Imperial City” – Toledo and just a short train ride away from Madrid.
 
For the adrenaline junkies
 

Photo: Sortware/Flickr 
 
Kayaking down the fast-flowing rivers of Navarra is enough to get anyone’s pulse racing. Find out about kayak trips which take you from the Pyrenees to the ancient city of Pamplona.
 
 
For the nature lovers
 

A griffon vulture posing at the Monfragüe National Park. Photo: Vince Smith / Flickr

If you love nature and feel happiest with a pair of binoculars hanging from your neck then Easter week is one of the best times to consider a birdwatching trip. Whether it’s a trip to Extremadura’s Monfragüe, home to the biggest colony of Black Vulture and Spanish Imperial Eagle in the entire world or the wetlands of Donaña with over 300 bird species, you won’t be disappointed.

If theme parks and fast cars are your thing…

Photo: ParkAventura

Ferrari Land, an adventure park in Catalonia based on the high end Italian sports car brand  promises thrill seekers the ride of a lifetime on the highest and fastest rollercoaster in Europe.

A race track, Formula 1 simulators, and replicas of Rome’s Colosseum, La Scala opera house in Milan, Piazza San Marco in Venice and the Palazzo Vecchio in Florence, the theme park also includes Italian themed restaurants and a building based on the real factory owned by Enzo Ferrari.

READ ALSO: Road-tripping in Spain: A whistlestop tour of six cities in six days

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EES PASSPORT CHECKS

EES border checks could undergo ‘soft launch’, UK says as app concerns mount

The UK government is preparing for a "soft launch" of the new EU border system – the Entry/Exit (EES) system - in October but authorities are still waiting for European Commission to confirm the start date, amid concerns over the delay of a new app.

Published: 4 May 2024 09:30 CEST
EES border checks could undergo 'soft launch', UK says as app concerns mount

The government is working on the assumption that the system will go live on October 6th, ministers told a hearing at the House of Commons European scrutiny committee this week.

But the European Commission is expected to confirm the exact launch date of the new biometric checks for non-EU travellers entering the Schengen area at some point this summer, they added.

“We are very much working on a basis whereby this policy will go live on the 6th of October. It is important that we plan for that eventuality. We are expecting to hear definitively from the European Union that ‘go live’ arrangement in the summer,” Tom Pursglove, UK Minister for Legal Migration and the Border told the committee.

The parliamentary committee is conducting an inquiry on the disruptions the system will cause in the UK.

Pursglove also said that “precautionary measures” have been agreed by the EU, that will be put in place in certain circumstances after the start of EES, for example if delays at the borders exceeded a certain length of time.

Guy Opperman, Under-Secretary of State at the Department for Transport, said that in practice this meant a “soft launch” of EES for 6 months before “a full go live”. During that soft launch EU member states and the UK could deploy flexibility measures should problems occur.

“The likelihood is, after multiple delays, that the 6th of October will proceed” and the implementation looks “very different” compared to previous scenarios considering the flexibility allowed in the first 6 months, he argued.

No details were given on what these “flexible” measures would involve however. 

READ ALSO: Your questions answered about Europe’s EES passport checks

He conceded that “a lot of work” still needs to be done but the UK “should be as ready as everybody” and “better be at front of the queue”.

App not ready

During the meeting, it also emerged that a much-anticipated app that would allow remote pre-registration of non-EU citizens subject to the checks will not be available for testing until August “at best”, prompting concerns about the EES launch date.

“You don’t need to be a sceptic about future projects to think that the provision of the app in August for going live in October is optimistic,” Opperman said.

Ministers confirmed that the app will not be ready in time for October and the committee previously stated it might be delayed until summer 2025.

The app will facilitate pre-registration, but photo and fingerprints will still have to be taken at the border in front of a guard, the committee heard.

READ ALSO: How do the EU’s new EES passport checks affect the 90-day rule?

Several MPs asked whether the entry into operation of the EES should be delayed again if technology is not ready. But Under-Secretary Opperman said the app “is not going to be a panacea to fix all problems”.

The main aim of EES is to increase security and to ensure that non-EU nationals visiting the Schengen area for a short-term do not stay more than 90 days in any 180-day period.

The entry into operation of the system has already been delayed several times and there have been calls from certain travel companies and national authorities to delay it again.

Under the new scheme, non-EU/EFTA travellers who do not need a visa will have to register their biometric data (finger prints and facial images) in a database that will also record each time they enter and exit the Schengen area.

Instead of having passports manually stamped, travellers will have to scan them at self-service kiosks before crossing the border. However, fingerprints and a photo will have to be registered in front of a guard at the first crossing and there are concerns the extra time needed will generate long queues, especially in Dover, Folkestone and St. Pancras station in London, where there are juxtaposed French and UK border checks.

Progress in preparations

Minister Pursglove also updated MPs on ongoing preparations. He said some testing of the system will take place within days, 5 kiosks have been installed at St. Pancras station and are available for testing. “You are beginning to see the physical infrastructure appear,” he said.

Kiosks and extra lanes are also being created at the port Dover and it was agreed with the EU passengers travelling by coach will be checked away from the Eastern dock, where controls usually take place, allowing to gain space. The vehicles will then sealed and drive on the ferries.

MPs also discussed the infrastructure cost linked to the introduction of the EES. Opperman said all EU countries will have to make “huge investments” in their ports. In the UK, he argued, this will help “address problems that have existed for some time”. Because of this “massive investment”, in a few years time “Dover will be totally transformed,” he said.

This article is published in cooperation with Europe Street News.

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