November 2026 opens with one piece of bad news and plenty of good. The bad: the 1st falls on a Sunday and there is no long weekend, no Monday off, nothing of the sort. The good: the first week packs three big concerts at the Palau Sant Jordi and four festivals at once, and the month closes with shops open on Sunday, Black Friday and Barcelona gearing up for Christmas.
In between come the first calçotades, the autumn forests at their best colour and World Press Photo, which stays at the CCCB into December.
November basics
The 1st is a Sunday, no long weekend, free museums · Concerts Melendi, Pitbull and La Oreja de Van Gogh at the Sant Jordi
Festivals In-Edit, 42, MIRA and Loop · World Press Photo at the CCCB, 6 November to 13 December
Calçofest in Valls on the 21st · Black Friday on the 27th and shops open on Sunday 29
The five weeks have nothing in common: the first is packed and the third is the quietest.
Which November week I would pick
2 to 8 November, because half the month fits into those seven days.
Monday 2 is a working day, but on Tuesday 3 there is jazz at the Palau de la Música, on Wednesday 4 Pitbull plays, Festival 42 runs from the 4th to the 8th at Fabra i Coats, and on Friday 6 MIRA, La Oreja de Van Gogh and World Press Photo all start. If you like music films, In-Edit runs until Sunday 8. This is the week to come if you want a full agenda.
23 to 30 November is the other option, for very different reasons: Black Friday on the 27th, shops open on Sunday 29 and the city switching into Christmas mode. It is the shopping week.
And 16 to 22 November is the quiet one. With Loop winding down and the Calçofest outside Barcelona, the city runs at its normal pace. A good week for the classics: museums without queues, a walk on Montjuïc and a long lunch.
1 November falls on a Sunday: what opens and what does not
All Saints’ Day (Tots Sants) is spent with family and visiting the cemetery, and the night before is the Castanyada, which falls on Saturday 31 this year. I covered it in the Castanyada guide.
The practical part: in 2026, 1 November is not a public holiday in Catalonia, because it falls on a Sunday and is not moved to Monday. Monday 2 is a normal working day.
- Shops: mostly closed, not an authorised opening Sunday.
- Shopping centres: cinemas and restaurants open; Maremagnum opens every day.
- Bars and restaurants: open as on any Sunday.
- Museums: many free all day, as it is the first Sunday of the month.
- Metro: Sunday hours, until midnight.
On Saturday 31 the metro runs all night, as every Saturday. For free museums, the full list and a first-Sunday route are in free museums in Barcelona.
Big concerts: three acts at the Palau Sant Jordi
| Date | Who | Where |
|---|---|---|
| 1 and 2 Nov | Melendi | Palau Sant Jordi |
| 3 Nov | Branford Marsalis and Reeves | Palau de la Música Catalana |
| 4 Nov | Pitbull | Palau Sant Jordi |
| 6 and 7 Nov | La Oreja de Van Gogh | Palau Sant Jordi |
| 26 and 27 Nov | La Oreja de Van Gogh | Palau Sant Jordi |
La Oreja de Van Gogh plays four nights in Barcelona on the Tantas cosas que contar tour, with dates added as the first ones filled up. If you want to go, check availability soon.
The Barcelona Jazz Festival runs all autumn. In November, the big night at the Palau de la Música is Tuesday 3, with Branford Marsalis on sax and Dianne Reeves on vocals.
Four festivals in the first half of the month
In-Edit, the music documentary festival, runs from 29 October to 8 November, with most screenings at the Aribau cinemas. This year it opens with Broken English, the tribute to Marianne Faithfull, and brings documentaries on David Bowie and Pulp.
Festival 42, devoted to fantasy genres, takes over Fabra i Coats in Sant Andreu from 4 to 8 November, with science fiction, fantasy and horror writers.
MIRA, the digital arts and electronic music festival, reaches its 15th edition on 6 and 7 November at Fira Montjuïc.
Loop, the video art festival, spreads from 10 to 21 November across museums, cinemas, universities and neighbourhood centres. The full programme is announced a few weeks before.
And with a longer run, World Press Photo is at the CCCB from 6 November to 13 December. These are the best press photos of the year, and I would save it for a weekday, when you can see it more calmly.
Calçots, mushrooms and autumn forests
November is when calçot season begins. On Saturday 21, Valls holds the Calçofest, a music festival with a public calçotada, and Barcelona restaurants start serving the first calçotades, with fewer crowds than in February. I list the restaurants and prices in where to eat calçots in Barcelona.
Outside the city, November is also the month of Catalonia’s autumn forests, with the beech woods at their best. If you fancy a walk, there are more ideas in hiking trails near Barcelona.
The end of the month already feels like Christmas
Friday 27 is Black Friday, and on Sunday 29 shops can open across Barcelona. It is one of the city council’s authorised opening days for 2026, the only one in November, and December adds the 6th, 8th, 13th, 20th and 27th. That weekend is the first with a real Christmas shopping feel.
The Christmas lights also go on at the end of the month. The city council has not given the 2026 date yet; in 2025 it was Saturday 22 November. And the Fira de Santa Llúcia, the Christmas market in front of the Cathedral, opened on 28 November last year. As soon as this year’s dates are out, I will add them here.
What comes next is in Christmas in Barcelona and the December long weekend.
The weather: less rain than October, but early darkness
According to AEMET’s climate normals, November in Barcelona has an average high of 17.3 °C and an average low of 8.6 °C. It rains less than in October, 59 mm over about 5 days, with around 145 hours of sunshine in the month.
What you notice most is the light. It gets dark around 5.30 pm, so anything outdoors is best done in the morning. For rainy days, I have indoor plans in Barcelona when it rains, and if you want the sunset, head early to one of the viewpoints, as it starts around five.
The November that works
- Using the first Sunday for free museums
- Buying concert tickets early
- World Press Photo on a weekday
- Outdoor plans in the morning
- A calçotada before the February queues
- Christmas shopping on Sunday 29
The November that goes wrong
- Counting on a long weekend on 1 November
- Going shopping on Sunday 1
- Looking for Pitbull tickets in October
- Leaving for the afternoon what needs daylight
- Going to the Sant Jordi without planning the way back
- Assuming the lights date before it is announced
How to plan your November in Barcelona
Choose between the first and the last week. The first is concerts and festivals; the last, shopping and Christmas atmosphere.
Book a concert night. Melendi, Pitbull or La Oreja at the Sant Jordi, or the jazz on the 3rd at the Palau de la Música.
Make the most of Sunday 1. No holiday, but free museums all day.
Fit in a calçotada. November and December are the easiest months to get a table.
Bring outdoor plans forward. It is dark by 5.30, so walks and viewpoints in the morning or early afternoon.
And if you want more, the previous month is in Barcelona in October.
Coming in November and not sure which week to pick? Message me on Instagram @barcelonainspira with your dates and I will tell you what I would do.
Keep exploring Barcelona with me
Month by month, here: the best time to visit, Barcelona in October, Christmas in Barcelona and free museums.
Frequently asked questions
What to do in Barcelona in November
The first week is the busiest, with Melendi on the 1st and 2nd, Pitbull on the 4th and La Oreja de Van Gogh on the 6th and 7th at the Palau Sant Jordi, plus four festivals at once. Mid-month brings Loop and the Calçofest in Valls, and the last week has Black Friday, shops open on Sunday 29 and the start of Christmas. World Press Photo is on at the CCCB all month.
Is 1 November 2026 a holiday in Barcelona
It does not create a day off. All Saints’ Day falls on a Sunday in 2026 and is not on the Generalitat’s list of public holidays for that year, so there is no long weekend and no Monday off. Monday 2 November is a normal working day.
Are shops open on 1 November in Barcelona
Mostly not. Sunday 1 November is not on the city council’s list of authorised opening days for 2026, and the tourist shopping zone only opens on Sundays from 15 May to 15 September. Bars and restaurants open as on any Sunday. The Sunday when shops can open across the city is 29 November.
When are the Christmas lights switched on in Barcelona in 2026
The city council has not announced the 2026 date yet. In 2025 the lights went on on Saturday 22 November, so late November is the likely window again. I will update this article as soon as the official date is out.
What concerts are on in Barcelona in November 2026
At the Palau Sant Jordi, Melendi on the 1st and 2nd, Pitbull on the 4th and La Oreja de Van Gogh on the 6th, 7th, 26th and 27th on their Tantas cosas que contar tour. At the Palau de la Música, Branford Marsalis Quartet with Dianne Reeves on the 3rd, part of the Jazz Festival. And on the 6th and 7th, MIRA fills Fira Montjuïc with electronic music and digital art.
What is the weather like in Barcelona in November
According to AEMET’s climate normals, the average high is 17.3 °C and the average low 8.6 °C, with 59 mm of rain over about 5 days. It rains less than in October, but it gets dark early, around 5.30 pm, so outdoor plans are best done in the morning.
