Spain is of course known throughout the world for its late-night culture, which starts with people having dinner at 9pm or 10pm, dragging out their meals and drinks in bars and restaurants until midnight, before heading out to nightclubs, many of which open at around 2am.<\/p>\n
In countries like the UK for example, restaurants begin to close around 10pm and nightclubs shut their doors at 2am.<\/p>\n
I remember explaining to my British in-laws (who have a strict dinner time of 6pm) that nowhere would be open in Barcelona at that time and that they\u2019d have to wait until at least 8pm. Even then, we\u2019d probably be one of the only few groups in the restaurant.<\/p>\n
Is this ingrained Spanish tradition really changing though? Are Spaniards eating earlier?<\/p>\n
READ ALSO: Why do Spaniards eat so late?<\/a><\/p>\n According to the New York Times article, which analysed data from millions of diners on table booking site Cover Manager, tables reserved for 10pm in Spain only accounted for 15 percent of dinner reservations last year.<\/p>\n Back in 2016, the number of 10pm dinner reservations was 30 percent.<\/p>\n Tables booked for 11pm accounted for just 1.9 percent now, compared to 5.7 percent in 2016.<\/p>\n This definitely shows that a shift has likely taken place within the last decade and late-night dining times have significantly decreased.<\/p>\n An article on Spanish property portal Idealista also noted something similar, stating \u201cIncreasingly,\u00a0many families are sitting down to dinner around 9pm. It’s still later than the European average, but this gap is gradually narrowing.\u201d<\/p>\n I have now worked on several editions of the Lonely Planet guidebooks to both Barcelona and Spain in general.<\/p>\n During my most recent research period for the Barcelona guide this past spring, I noticed that many of the city’s bars and restaurants indeed had earlier closing times.<\/p>\n While a few years ago, many of them stayed open until after midnight, this year I saw a significant change in the opening hours with many places not even open until midnight at all.<\/p>\n READ ALSO – Debunking the myth: How true are Spanish stereotypes?<\/a><\/p>\n People are now booking dinner reservations more for 9pm rather than 10pm. Photo: JAIME REINA \/ AFP<\/p>\n \u00a0<\/p>\n And this isn\u2019t in small towns in the countryside, this is in Spain\u2019s second-largest city, famed for its nightlife. The question is, are places closing earlier because people are choosing to eat earlier, or are people forced to eat earlier because the establishments are closing earlier?<\/p>\n One thing I have noticed, however, is that dining times do tend to shift depending on where you are in the country.<\/p>\n A few years ago, I worked on the Lonely Planet Pocket Guide to Bilbao and San Sebasti\u00e1n in the Basque Country, and I remember noticing that everyone ate slightly earlier there than in Barcelona and that restaurants closed earlier too.<\/p>\n Then, when I worked on the editions of the Andalusia guide, I noted that dining times were much later than both in the Basque and in Catalonia.<\/p>\n While researching for the guide, I found myself regularly going out for dinner until 11pm or even midnight most evenings. Having lived in Granada for a while too, I found this the norm.\u00a0<\/p>\n One of the main explanations for this could be to do with the climate. Essentially, the hotter it is as you travel south, the later people tend to eat.<\/p>\n It makes sense that people wait until it gets cool enough to cook eat dinner.<\/p>\n READ ALSO: Spain’s Labour Minister calls time on ‘mad’ late-night dining<\/a><\/p>\n Back in 2024, Spanish Labour Minister Yolanda D\u00edaz claimed that restaurants staying open beyond midnight in Spain is \u201cmadness\u201d.<\/p>\n \u201cIt is not reasonable for a country to have its restaurants open until one in the morning,\u201d she said.<\/p>\n \u201cWe can\u2019t expect to keep extending working hours until we don\u2019t know what time,\u201d she added, citing the differences with other European countries.<\/p>\n At the time, she angered many in the hospitality industry who were proud of their late-night dining culture, but many also agreed with her points or had even noted a change themselves.<\/p>\n Eduardo Basanta, executive director of La Musa, a gastronomic group with eight bars and restaurants in Madrid\u00a0at the time said: \u201cWe are considering closing a little earlier, but not because the minister said so. Customs are changing, and Spaniards\u00a0are going out for dinner earlier\u00a0and not staying out for drinks as long.\u201d<\/p>\n Even two years ago, people in the industry had been noticing a shift, so this is not anything new. It seems that Spaniards have been slowly moving their dining times earlier for a while now. It\u2019s even happening in the Madrid, often nicknamed \u2018the city that never sleeps\u2019.<\/p>\n Back in 2024, Madrid\u2019s regional president Isabel D\u00edaz Ayuso – whose most famous political slogan is ‘communism or freedom’ – said she wanted bars and restaurants in the Spanish capital to open earlier for lunch and dinner to cater to foreign tourists and their eating habits<\/a>.<\/p>\n So it could well be that these apparent earlier eating habits and restaurant closing times are being also influenced by Spain’s ever-growing tourist population, expected to hit 100 million this year.<\/p>\n You may be wondering how it is that eating so late become so entrenched in Spanish habits.<\/p>\n There are a couple of theories and explanations – the main one being that Spain has been in the wrong time zone for more than 80 years.<\/p>\n![\"restaurant](\"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/spain\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/09\/AFP__20210809__9KV8CN__v1__MidRes__SpainTourism.jpg\")
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