Practical information : Take a break Spain
Timetable
The bars for a drink are open all day and often all week. In the evening, they are more like copas bars, frequented after dinner, so rather around 11 pm and more. And they close around 2 or 3 am. It is on Friday and Saturday nights that they are more crowded. As for the snack, the merienda, it is around 6 pm.
Budget & Tips
The price depends on the establishment and the drinks taken. Count 1,5 € for a coffee (especially a cortado, the equivalent of our hazelnut), 2 € maximum for a beer, cerveza and from 7 to 15 € for a cocktail. There are nohappy hours, except in some bars, but prices are cheaper than in France.
Age restrictions
The age of access to alcohol is the same as in France: 18 years. Don't forget to bring your papers.
What's very local
In the summer, almost everyone goes for a Tinto de Verano, a red wine with gaseosa, a Spanish lemonade, and sometimes a dash of cooked wine as well. And after the meal, the chupito, a small glass of liqueur, is very common. On the menu of winter snacks, chocolate con churros, with, depending on the region, preferences for the Madrid ones (small and streaky) or the porras, bigger but more hollow. Each region has its own local sweet, fartons in Valencia, sobaos in Cantabria or Piononos in the province of Granada... And if you stay in Spain, during the month before Easter, you will see a whole range of pastries linked to this period, including the famous torrijas, a kind of French toast. At Christmas, it's the perfect time to try turrón.
Kids
They are always associated with the outings. So you will see them, even very late, accompanying the parents in the patronal parties and standing on the stools to have the head at the height of the barra, or even sitting on it. But not in the bars of copas or discos.
Smokers
Smoking is not allowed inside the establishments. But it is allowed on the terrace.