Trading hours
The tourist shopping zone within which opening on Sundays and bank holidays is permitted, is to be extended.
As of 2022, the city’s most important tourist shopping zone (ZGAT) has been extended, with the corresponding change in permitted opening hours, with the agreement of the Fundació Barcelona Comerç, Barcelona Oberta, PIMEC Comerç, the Foment del Treball employers’ association, the National Association of Large Distribution Companies (ANGED), the Confederation of Workers' Commissions (CCOO) and UGT trade unions, and support from Barcelona City Council, as well as the green light from the Government of Catalonia.
On this page, you will find all the information you need on the expansion of the tourist shopping zone. There are also details of the city’s calendar, and trading hours. In Catalonia, authority over the regulation of trading hours falls both to the State and to the Government of Catalunya, which regulates opening hours through clause 4 of Act 18/2017, of 1 August, on commerce, services and fairs, section IV.
The limits of the new major tourist shopping zone, district by district
The request from Barcelona City Council to modify the boundaries of the tourist zone in terms of trading hours was approved by Resolution the Catalan Government’s Director General of Commerce on 29 April 2022. Therefore, in the newly defined zone, shops will be able to open on Sundays and public holidays, from 12 pm to 8 pm, between 15 May and 15 September, both dates inclusive.
Specifically, the newly defined tourist shopping zone, which includes areas 1 and 2 of the Special Tourist Accommodation Plan (PEUAT), can be viewed on this map. Details of the perimeter, district by district, can be found in the drop-down texts below. Please note that the boundary always includes the inside pavement of the perimeter.
Barcelona trading calendar 2025
Permits for changing shop opening hours for special events
Under exceptional circumstances, for the purposes of holding entertainment, cultural, festive and other special events, trading hours may be extended beyond the established time, subject to a reasoned request from the City Council, and prior authorisation from the Catalan Government’s Directorate-General of Commerce, under the provisions of Act 18/2017, of 1 August, on Commerce, Services and Fairs.
Municipal regulations
For the purposes of public order, local authorities may agree to the mandatory night-time closing of establishments that intend to invoke any of the opening hour exemptions, by sending the corresponding communication to the Directorate-General of Commerce.
This regulation is in force in the following districts of Barcelona:
- Ciutat Vella Open in a new window
- Gràcia Open in a new window
- Sants-Montjuic: Poble-Sec Open in a new window
Trading hour notices
Commercial establishments must display their opening hours in such a way that the information is visible to the public, even when the establishment is closed. Establishments that are essentially dedicated to the provision of services, such as hairdressers, beauty centres, launderettes, internet cafés, etc., are exempt from opening hour restrictions.
Links of interest
- Summary of trading hours in Barcelona 2024-2025 (PDF 1.28 MB) Open in a new window
- Publication of the resolution in the Official Gazette of the Province of Barcelona (BOP) (PDF 244.6 KB) Open in a new window
- ORDEREMT/185/2023 establishing the calendar for the opening of shops in Catalonia on Sundays and bank holidays (PDF 774.28 KB) Open in a new window
- Resolution qualifying the municipality of Barcelona as a major tourist zone (ZGAT), for the purposes of trading hours (PDF 371.19 KB) Open in a new window
- Social agreement (PDF 286.09 KB) Open in a new window
- Act 18/2017, of 1 August, on Commerce, Services and Fairs (PDF 220 KB) Open in a new window