When the streets start to smell of roasted chestnuts, Barcelona knows autumn has properly arrived. The Castanyada is our own festival, celebrated in every home, and this year it is easy to plan: 31 October falls on a Saturday.
Here is what people eat, where to buy chestnuts and, above all, which pastry shops to visit for the best panellets in Barcelona, the question you ask me most at this time of year.
Castanyada 2026 basics
When the night of Saturday 31 October · All Saints’ Day Sunday 1 November, no long weekend
What to eat chestnuts, sweet potato and panellets with muscat · Tip order your panellets a few days ahead
What is the Castanyada
The Castanyada is the Catalan celebration held on the eve of All Saints’ Day (Tots Sants). It used to be the night when families remembered their dead, eating chestnuts and sweet potatoes, seasonal food that gave them energy for the long evening. Today it is a dinner with family or friends, with children dressed up as a castanyer or castanyera, the traditional chestnut seller: headscarf, shawl and espadrilles.
The next day, 1 November, is All Saints’ Day, spent with family and visiting the cemetery. This year it falls on a Sunday so, as I explained in Barcelona in October, there is no extra day off and no long weekend.
What people eat at the Castanyada
On the table
- Freshly roasted chestnuts
- Baked sweet potato
- Pine nut panellets, the classic
- Coconut, cocoa or coffee panellets
- A sweet wine, usually muscat
Best avoided
- Leaving panellets until the 31st
- Chestnuts roasted hours ago
- Supermarket tray panellets
- Expecting Monday the 2nd off
Panellets are small marzipan sweets made from ground almonds and sugar. The classic one is coated in pine nuts, but there are coconut, cocoa, coffee and quince versions too, and every year the pastry shops bring out new flavours.
Where to buy roasted chestnuts, from early October
From early October, the castanyeres, the chestnut sellers, set up their stalls on the streets and at neighbourhood markets. They sell freshly roasted chestnuts and sweet potatoes in the classic paper cone.
My tip: look for stalls that roast to order and have locals queuing. A freshly roasted chestnut peels easily and is soft inside; one that has been sitting for hours turns hard and is a struggle to peel.
The best pastry shops for panellets in Barcelona
Every year the Ruta dels Millors Panellets de Pinyons de Catalunya awards the Panellet d’Or to the best pine nut panellet. The last two editions were won by Barcelona pastry shops, so I start with them.
Pastisseria Faixat, Panellet d’Or 2025
Faixat, at Muntaner, 159, has been open since 1929. In 2025 it won the award for the best pine nut panellet in Catalonia, in an edition with 65 pastry chefs taking part, according to Time Out. If you only try one classic panellet this year, make it this one.
Pastisseria Carrió, Panellet d’Or 2024
Carrió, on carrer de Bailèn in the Dreta de l’Eixample, is a family pastry shop that won the Panellet d’Or in 2024, as reported by the newspaper Ara. Besides pine nut, it makes around fifteen flavours, from cinnamon to Sacher, mango or tiramisu.
La Campana, since 1890
La Campana, at Princesa, 36, is a family turrón shop open since 1890. Its panellets are around 70% almond, with no potato or sweet potato in the dough, in traditional flavours: candied cherry, candied orange, coffee, coconut or quince.
Escribà
Escribà is the city’s best-known pastry dynasty. Alongside the classics, every autumn it brings out new flavours such as crema catalana, tiramisu or raspberry.
Pastisseria Hofmann
Hofmann, in Ciutat Vella, makes artisan panellets with a fine-pastry touch: pistachio marzipan, candied orange, raspberry or hazelnut with a caramel centre.
Bubó
Bubó, in the Born, is the choice if you want something different. It is known for its large chocolate skull-shaped panellets, perfect as a gift or for a Castaween table.
Bomboneria Pons
Pons, next to plaça de Sants, specialises in chocolate-coated panellets, in chestnut, coffee, hazelnut or passion fruit, made with Marcona almonds and Castilian pine nuts.
L’Atelier Barcelona
L’Atelier, with shops on carrer de Viladomat and Doctor Fleming, turns famous cakes into panellets: Sacher, Black Forest, lemon pie or cheesecake.
| If you want | Your pastry shop |
|---|---|
| The award-winning pine nut panellet | Faixat or Carrió |
| The traditional one, full of almond | La Campana |
| New flavours | Escribà, Hofmann or L’Atelier |
| Something to give as a gift | Bubó or Pons |
As a price guide, in 2025 pine nut panellets at these shops cost around 60 to 70 euros a kilo. And the yearly warning: on the 30th and 31st there are queues everywhere, so order a few days ahead.
Castanyada plans in Barcelona
Neighbourhood festivals. Many neighbourhoods hold popular Castanyada parties, and in some, such as Guinardó or Congrés i els Indians, they mix with Halloween as Castaween or Castanyoween. Check the date on your district’s website, as it changes every year.
Halloween at Poble Espanyol. The city’s biggest Halloween event, on weekends from 17 October to 1 November.
Make panellets at home. The perfect plan with kids, and the basic recipe only needs ground almonds, sugar, egg and pine nuts. For more ideas, see Barcelona with kids.
A rainy-day plan. October is the wettest month of the year, so keep what to do in Barcelona when it rains handy.
Castanyada getaways near Barcelona
If you fancy leaving the city that weekend, there are two lively witch festivals in the province:
- Ball de Bruixes in Viladrau, in the Montseny, on the night of 31 October.
- Fira de Bruixes in Sant Feliu Sasserra, in the Lluçanès, over 31 October and 1 November.
Check the programme on each town hall’s website before you go. And if you would rather see the autumn colours, now is the time for Catalonia’s autumn forests.
What is your favourite pastry shop for panellets? I am sure I have missed a neighbourhood gem. Message me on Instagram at @barcelonainspira and I will try it.
Keep discovering Barcelona with me
More seasonal plans: Barcelona in October, Christmas in Barcelona, where to eat calçots and the best markets in Barcelona.
When is the Castanyada in Barcelona in 2026
On the night of Saturday 31 October, the eve of All Saints’ Day. In 2026, 1 November is a Sunday, so there is no extra day off and no long weekend. The chestnut sellers are already out on the streets from early October.
What do people eat at the Castanyada
Roasted chestnuts, baked sweet potato and panellets, small almond marzipan sweets coated in pine nuts, coconut or cocoa. They are served with a sweet wine, usually muscat.
Where to buy the best panellets in Barcelona
The last two Panellet d’Or awards for the best pine nut panellet in Catalonia went to Barcelona. The 2025 award went to Pastisseria Faixat, at Muntaner, 159, and the 2024 award to Pastisseria Carrió, on carrer de Bailèn. La Campana, Escribà, Hofmann and Bubó are also great choices.
How much do panellets cost in Barcelona
Artisan pastry shops sell them by weight or by the box. In 2025, pine nut panellets cost around 60 to 70 euros a kilo, which works out at between 1.20 and 3 euros each depending on size and shop.
Is the Castanyada the same as Halloween
No, the Castanyada is the old Catalan tradition and Halloween came later. They share the same night, so many neighbourhoods celebrate both as Castaween.
