Holy Week 2025 in Spain - Dates, Celebrations

Holy Week in Spain, known as Semana Santa in Spanish, is a significant religious celebration. The event takes place during the week leading up to Easter Sunday. In 2025, it begins on April 13 and ends on April 20.

During the Holy Week period, towns and cities come alive with religious processions, parades, and ceremonies. Participants wear traditional attire and carry intricate statues and symbols representing biblical scenes. This traditional event commemorates the triumphal entry, passion, death, and resurrection of Jesus Christ.

Holy Week celebrations in Seville are the most vibrant of those in Spain.

What Are the 8 Days of Spain's Holy Week in 2025?

Semana Santa 2025 will start on Sunday, April 13, and end on Sunday, April 20. The event lasts for a week (8 days) from Palm Sunday to Easter Sunday. See below the 8 days of Holy Week in 2025:

The dates of Holy Week vary each year, but it always takes place for a week during the period from late March to late April. It begins on the Sunday before Easter (Palm Sunday) and lasts for a further 7 days until Easter Sunday.

The end of Lent is the evening of Maundy Thursday in the Catholic tradition. Holy Week signifies the pinnacle of the Lenten season, emphasizing the significant events preceding Christ's crucifixion and resurrection.

The 7 Days of Activities/Events for Holy Week 2025

Holy week

Holy Week in Spain lasts for 7 days, starting on Palm Sunday and ending on Easter Sunday. There are specific activities each day. The highlights are on Maundy Thursday and Good Friday when many colorful processions take place.

Palm Sunday (April 13, 2025)

People carry palm branches to church, and the palm branches are later blessed by the priest. They then carry these blessed palm leaves in processions around the church or through the streets. Some people may use palm leaves to decorate their windowsills. This practice symbolizes the honoring and welcoming of Jesus to Jerusalem as God's promised Messiah and King.

In cities like Seville and Granada, you can witness unique processions like La Borriquita ('The Little Donkey') in Seville.

Holy Monday/Tuesday/Wednesday (April 14–16, 2025)

Churches hold regular Mass services and many towns host a variety of activities.

Maundy Thursday (April 17, 2025)

Maundy Thursday is especially significant as it is the day for some of the most intense religious events of Holy Week. The most famous activities are the procession in Seville and the military celebrations in Malaga.

In Seville, the most famous brotherhood — Hermandad de Los Negritos, organizes a solemn procession on Maundy Thursday. During the process, members dress in white robes and hoods and carry large wooden crosses.

In Malaga, the Spanish Legion, an elite unit of Spain's armed forces, carries an image of Christ of the Good Death and parades it through the streets, with the Legion's own military band and Honor guard.

Good Friday (April 18, 2025)

Good Friday is a public holiday in Spain, and a day for fasting. People refrain from eating meat. Many Spaniards enjoy the Potaje de Vigilia ('Soup of the Fast'), a simple dish made with cod, chickpeas, and spinach.

Good Friday has the biggest processions in cities and towns across Spain, notably in Seville, Valladolid, and Madrid. Hundreds of church children and other church goers parade in the streets with floats carrying images of Jesus on a cross.

Easter Sunday (April 20, 2025)

Spanish people celebrate Easter Sunday by attending church for mass, and then they enjoy Easter dinner with their families.

How Holy Week 2025 Is Celebrated in Seville?

holy week

During Holy Week in Seville, the processions begin on April 13, Palm Sunday, and continue daily until the early hours of Easter Sunday on April 20, 2025. Different brotherhoods organize processions each day, parading through the city streets in grand spectacles.

Each procession starts from a brotherhood's parish church, moves through the city center, and eventually reaches the Gothic cathedral (Catedral de Sevilla) before returning to its starting point. Key locations along the route include Calle Sierpes, Plaza de San Francisco, and the modern Avenida de la Constitución.

The most breathtaking aspect of Holy Week in Seville is La Madrugá, the nighttime processions from Maundy Thursday to Good Friday. These processions take place around 2–2:30 a.m. or early in the morning. They feature elaborate floats, sculptures, and religious imagery meticulously displayed by the brotherhoods. The processions are accompanied by solemn music. The streets along the procession routes are often illuminated by candles and torches.

Is Holy Week a Public Holiday in Spain?

During Holy Week, Good Friday, Easter Sunday, and Easter Monday are public holidays, while Easter Saturday and Maundy/Holy Thursday are not public holidays.

• Good Friday: April 18, 2025
• Easter Sunday: April 20, 2025
• Easter Monday: April 21, 2025.

During these public holidays, most shops and restaurants are closed, especially during Easter Monday when a large majority of shops and restaurants are closed. Attractions and museums stay open over the holidays.

Easter Saturday and Maundy/Holy Thursday are not public holidays.

What Food Is Eaten During Spain's Holy Week?

During Holy Week, local restaurants and dessert shops in town serve traditional Holy Week dishes on their menus.

French toast or torrija is one of the most traditional snacks during Holy Week, with its origins dating back to the Roman Empire. The preparation involves dipping bread in an egg mixture and frying it in oil until golden brown. Before consuming French toast, people often add syrup, butter, whipped cream, saffron-infused wine, or fruit to its surface according to their preferences.

Holy Week Dates in 2025, 2026, 2027 ... 2031

The dates for Holy Week differ each year. See below the Easter Week dates for 2025, 2026… through to 2031: