Mark your calendars for these sacred dates, each one a momentous celebration in the eyes of Catalonia. The year begins with a bang on New Year’s Day, but the real festivities don’t truly begin until Epiphany hits on January 6th.

As spring approaches, Good Friday and Easter Monday bring somber reflection before the lively laborers’ holiday on May 1st. But it’s June 24th that marks the showdown between Philip V of Bourbon and Charles of Austria during the War of the Spanish Succession, and September 11th is known as both National Day and Diada, when Catalonia commemorates their victory with fervent celebrations.

The city of Barcelona comes alive on September 24th for La Mercè, a festival dedicated to Our Lady of Mercy where giant parades, processions, and Castells – towering human structures – dominate the streets.

October brings another national holiday on the 12th followed by All Saint’s Day in November. And as winter descends upon the land, Catalonians gather for Constitution Day on December 6th before honoring the Immaculate Conception on the 8th and celebrating Christmas and St. Stephen’s Day with joy and revelry on the 25th and 26th respectively. These are not just mere days off from work; they are sacred traditions that run deep in the veins of every Catalan citizen.