El Carnaval

El Carnaval

by | Feb 2, 2018 | Culture and traditions

Updated February 2026

 

Carnival in Spain

There are many different festivals and celebrations in Spain, both national and regional, and even local. Back in December I wrote about la Navidad (Christmas). Febrero (February) is the month of el Carnaval (Carnival). Carnival in Spain is celebrated with costumes, parades and, in some cases, traditional food.

Unlike Navidad, el Carnaval has no fixed dates, but it is usually between the middle of febrero and the beginning of marzo (March). It’s celebrated in the days leading up to Lent, the period of 40 days before Easter in the Christian calendar. Traditionally, it was the last chance to eat well, celebrate, and break the rules before Lent began.

The duration can vary depending on the town, but it usually finishes on Miércoles de Ceniza (Ash Wednesday) and starts at least 3-4 days before that. Some Carnivals are much longer than that.

 

What should you expect from Carnival?

There are many different local traditions, but el Carnaval has some common characteristics:

  • It is a period of fun, partying and excess in general.

  • People dress up and wear masks.

  • There are desfiles (parades) and other street celebrations.

  • Satire, humour, and social criticism also play an important part.

So, if you are planning to walk during Carnaval, make sure you stay away from the noisiest areas in town if you want a good night’s sleep. If that’s not possible, get yourself a good pair of tapones para los oídos (earplugs!). Or… you could take a break and join in the celebrations!

 

The desfiles will disrupt traffic and even general walking around town, so it might be a good idea to find out in advance if/when there will be one (mostly between Saturday and Tuesday and quite likely one on Ash Wednesday to finish off the celebrations).

 

Apart from traffic disruptions, you may also want to keep in mind that there might be some public holidays. There are no national public holidays during the el Carnaval, so I can’t give you specific dates. But there is likely to be some local holiday here or there. Try to find out and plan (your shopping in particular) accordingly.

 

Carnival food

If there is a celebration, there is comida (food) associated to it. El Carnaval is not an exception. As I mentioned before, Carnaval is a period of excess, and it’s right before the beginning of Lent. This excess is reflected in the food, too.

Traditions change a lot from one region to another, so I’ll tell you about the typical Carnival foods in Galicia. After all, all Caminos lead to Santiago. And Santiago is in Galicia. There are three main typical foods.

 

  • The main example would be cocido (cocido gallego, if you want to be specific; most regions have their own variations of cocido). This is a very substantial stew with a lot of meat (pork, beef, chicken) and vegetables. This is not just a Carnival dish, but rather a winter one, although it’s very common during the Carnaval.

 

The other two typical foods are sweet:

  • Filloas are quite similar to crepes and they are usually eaten with a sweet filling: a bit of sprinkled sugar, honey, whipped cream, chocolate spread…

 

  • Orejas (literally, ears). They are fried pastries, so called because their shape resembles that of an ear.

 

In the pictures below you can see orejas on the left and filloas on the right.

 

If you’d like to listen to a Spanish version of this post, here’s the Spanish for the Camino podcast episode about el Carnaval. Transcript and other extras here.

In this other article you can learn about one very peculiar Carnival celebration.

Well, 2 actually: one that happens in most towns and another one that happens in 1 place only. They involve either fish or a bird….

The most famous Carnivals in Spain

Although the Carnival is celebrated all over Spain, there are 2 places with possibly the biggest, most famous celebrations: the Canary Islands and Cádiz.

So, I invited on the podcast 2 people from these places, to tell us a bit more about it.

First we have Yaiza (Lánzate con el español), who is from the Canaries. 

And then we have Chema (Español para nómadas),  from Cádiz.

 

Carnival in the Canary Islands

Yaiza describes Carnival as one of the most anticipated times of the year. Streets fill with music and costumes, and people celebrate together. Each island has its own highlights.

In La Palma, “Los Indianos” sees everyone dressed in white and covered in talcum powder in a joyful, chaotic celebration.

In Gran Canaria, the famous Drag Queen Gala blends humor, social commentary, and creativity, while parades transform the city into a giant party.

Meanwhile, in Tenerife, daytime Carnival brings families together with live music, costumes, and a vibrant atmosphere.

Overall, Canary Carnival is a unique experience. Once you visit, you’ll want to return year after year.

And there’s a Camino in Gran Canaria too!

Carnival in Cádiz

According to Chema, the Carnival of Cádiz is more than a celebration; it’s a reflection of local identity and a unique way of seeing life. Historically, it has been a space for freedom, where people used songs to express opinions about politics and everyday issues long before social media existed.

The city’s rich port history and street culture shaped a playful, ironic style of communication full of humor, double meanings, and inside jokes, which is at the heart of carnival songs and performances.

There’s an official competition at Teatro Falla with different groups like chirigotas and comparsas.  But many locals believe the true spirit of Carnival lives in the streets, and the streets and squares of the La Viña neighbourhood become open-air stages where chirigotas perform and interact directly with the crowd.

For visitors, it’s also an ideal time to travel: the final days of Carnival lead almost straight into flamenco celebrations in Jerez de la Frontera.

Today’s Spanish words

Carnaval

Febrero

Marzo

Miércoles de Ceniza

Desfile

Cocido

Oreja

Filloa

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¡Buen Camino!

Vegan or vegetarian on the Camino

Vegan or vegetarian on the Camino

by | Jan 26, 2018 | Camino de Santiago, food

Updated February 2026

Vegan or vegetarian on the Camino de Santiago: how to find food

Future pilgrims ask all the time about the availability of vegetarian or vegan dishes along the Camino de Santiago. They worry that it will be hard for them to find suitable food. And it’s understandable.

Obviously, you need adequate nourishment.

Although the Mediterranean diet includes many vegetables and legumes, Spain is not always the most vegetarian-friendly country. It’s common for a salad to have tuna; and a “vegetable sandwich” with either tuna or a slice of ham is a classic (and nobody thinks it’s odd!).

Things are changing and it’s becoming easier to find vegan or vegetarian restaurants, especially in the bigger cities. But the Camino goes through a lot of smaller towns and rural areas.

So, is it possible to walk the Camino as a vegetariano/a or vegano/a?

The short answer is: YES! It’s possible, with some planning.

 

Food options for vegetarians and vegans on the Camino

 

You have two main choices for your meals:

1. Buy and prepare your own food.

  • You can buy food and snacks from the local fruterías and supermercados (see Shopping on the Camino for the pronunciation of these words).
  • Some albergues have kitchens where you can prepare your own meal. You just need to find out if the place where you are staying has such facilities.

 

2. Eat out and enjoy the local cuisine.

This is possible even in the smaller towns. 

There are many Spanish dishes that are naturally vegan or vegetarian, like the popular tortilla or gazpacho. Some can be easily adapted (In this article you can find a long list of Spanish dishes that are suitable for vegans: https://www.thenomadicvegan.com/the-ultimate-vegan-guide-to-spain/).

 

You just need to know a few Spanish words and phrases to make sure you get the right food:

  •  Soy vegetariano / Soy vegetariana or Soy vegano / Soy vegana (I’m a vegetarian or I’m a vegan)

 If you are a male, you will refer to yourself as vegetariano/vegano. If you are a female, you will use vegetariana/vegana instead. If you’re non-binary, the most common way to express this in Spain right now would be vegetariane/vegane.

 

  • You can also specify the foods you don’t eat by saying No como… (I don’t eat…) + anything you need to mention, such as carne (meat), pescado (fish), huevos (eggs), lácteos (dairy) or queso (cheese). Check this other article on food allergies for more useful Spanish and tips.

 

  • If you’re not sure about the ingredients of any particular dish: you can ask ¿Lleva carne, huevo…? (Does it have… meat, egg…?).

 

  • If a dish is mostly vegan, but it has some egg or cheese, for instance, you can still order it and ask them to serve it sin huevo (without egg) or sin queso (without cheese).

 

  • You could even take advantage of the menú del día. The second course tends to include fish or meat, but you can explain that you are vegan or vegetarian and ask if you could take 2 first courses instead of a first and a second. Most places wouldn’t have a problem with that.

 

  • You can still enjoy café con leche as a vegan. Many cafés have some vegetable alternative to dairy milk. Soya is the most common, but oat milk is becoming increasingly popular too.

 

Practical tips

  • Learn the names of basic foods in Spanish, as well as the phrases above.

  • Carry snacks for those times where options are limited.

  • Be clear with restaurant staff about what you can and cannot eat.

  • Don’t be afraid to ask them to adapt dishes. Spanish restaurants are generally flexible.

 

Today’s Spanish vocabulary

Soy

Vegano

Vegana

Vegetariano

Vegetariana

No como

Sin

¿Lleva...?

Carne

Pescado

Huevos

Lácteos

Queso

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¡Buen Camino!

Menú del día

Menú del día

by | Jan 19, 2018 | Camino de Santiago, food

Updated February 2026

If you’re walking the Camino de Santiago, you probably have many questions about food along the Camino. After all, la comida (food) is a central part of the pilgrimage experience… and life in general! In this blog post, you’ll find the information you need about meals, snacks, and eating like a local while walking the Camino.

 

Is food easily available along the Camino?

YES, food is widely available along the Camino. You will be walking through towns and villages with shops, cafés, bars, restaurants…

So, no need to carry a big load, just some light snacks and water (agua). You can bring a refillable bottle.

Tap water is generally safe, and fountains along the route make it easy to stay hydrated. Look for signs saying “no potable”, which mean the water isn’t safe.

 

Meals on the Camino

Breakfast (desayuno)

Spaniards, in most cases, don’t take breakfast too seriously. Many just drink a cup of coffee before leaving their homes. That’s why it’s common for people to go down to their nearest bar or café during their break, for a mid-morning café con leche and pincho. 

Lunch (la comida)

La comida is the most important meal of the day in Spain, usually served late compared to other countries.

Don’t expect restaurants to start serving lunch before 1:30pm. Restaurant kitchens usually close at around 3.30-4.00 pm, and they won’t reopen until dinner time. Keep this in mind when planning your mealtimes.

Bars may offer tapas and pinchos, but if you’re looking for a full meal you normally have a couple of options:

  1. La carta (menu). This option tends to be more expensive, but it gives you the freedom to choose exactly what you want.
  2. El menú del día. Generally a more economical option. The price is set and you get at least 2 or 3 choices for each course.

     

    Dinner (Cena)

    It is usually a light meal. 10:00pm is a perfectly acceptable (and normal) time to have dinner. It’s not common for restaurants to start serving dinner before 8:30pm.

     

    Some albergues provide dinner, but not all. Some have a kitchen, which means you could cook your own meals. Just be aware that the equipment in some of the kitchens may not be adequate. Check before you buy any groceries.

     

    El menú del día

    It’s an affordable, set-price menu including at least a primero (starter) and a segundo (main course). Each course offers at least 2–3 choices.

    Some menús del día include postre (dessert), as well as drink. Sometimes the drink is not included.

    Many restaurants along the Camino also offer a menú peregrino (pilgrim menu), similar to the menú del día. It tends to be a bit cheaper than the menú del día… but the options are more limited, too.

    The primeros usually include vegetables, soups, eggs and/or pasta. 

    Some places may offer a vegetarian option among their segundos, but you’re more likely to find one among the primeros. So, if you’re a vegetarian and you still want to avail of the menú del día, you can ask to have 2 primeros, instead of a primero and a segundo. That’s an acceptable practice and most places will be happy to oblige.

    For more vegan/vegeterian tips, check Soy vegano.

     

    • If you don’t want dessert, you could ask for coffee instead. Again, most places wouldn’t have a problem with that.
    • What is frowned upon and not allowed in many places is to share a menú del día between 2 people. 
    • In some places, they have a plato del día (just 1 course instead of 2).
    • Restaurants normally offer menú del día for lunch. It’s very unusual to find menú del día for dinner.
    • Some restaurants only offer menú del día Monday to Friday. Some also offer it on Saturdays and Sundays, but it’s usually a bit more expensive than on weekdays.

     

    Menú del día was introduced by law in the 60’s. Back then it was called menú turístico and, as the name suggests, it was created to cater for all the tourists that started visiting Spain in those days. The government set the prices and what the menu should include. It should be served as fast as possible and it should also try to promote typical Spanish dishes among the tourists.

     

    Things have changed since, and restaurantes don’t have to offer a menú del día, although many do. Needless to say, prices are not set by the government either and they can vary a lot from one place to another.

     

     

    menu del dia

    The picture shows a real menú del día from a restaurant along the Camino Portugués.

     

    In this menu, you can see the first and second courses separated by a line. So you have 7 primeros and 5 segundos to choose from. The price was €12.00 (a couple of years ago. €12.20 if you sit outside) and it also includes a bebida (drink), postre (dessert) and café (coffee).

    In case you’re curious, the reason why mealtimes are so late in Spain is that we are living in the wrong time zone (this article explains it in more detail).

     

     

    Today’s Spanish Camino vocabulary

     

    Menú del día

    Desayuno

    Comida

    Cena

    Carta

    Menú peregrino

    Primero

    Segundo

    Postre

    Related articles

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    ¡Buen Camino!

    ¿Dónde vas a comer?

    ¿Dónde vas a comer?

    by | Jan 12, 2018 | food

    ¿Dónde vas a comer? |

    There are several options if you’re eating out in Spain.

    In this post I explain mealtimes and how the menú del día, offered by many restaurants, works.

    But restaurantes are not the only place where you can eat, and menú del día or menú del peregrino are not your only choices. So,

    ¿Dónde vas a comer?

    or

    Where are you going to eat?

     

    • You can get comida in a bar. Apart from drinks, bares also serve bocadillos (sandwiches), raciones, tapas and pinchos (or pintxos).

    I have translated bocadillo as sandwich, but I should warn you! A bocadillo is not made with sliced bread. It’s served on baguette (or a similar type of bread) and it can be filled with almost anything: cold meats, fish, beef, pork, chicken… If you prefer sliced bread, then the word is sandwich, just like in English (but the choice of fillings will be more limited).

    Raciones, tapas and pinchos are not different types of food. The different words refer to portion size:

    Ración is the biggest of the three. It’s a normal size dish, enough for one person.

    Tapa is a smaller portion, like a quarter of a ración.

    Pincho (pintxo) is the smallest portion. Traditionally, it was a small piece of bread with something on top, all held together with a cocktail stick. However, pinchos have evolved a lot in recent years. In the Basque Country in particular, pintxos (you will find this spelling there) can be very elaborate, almost like a form of art.

    So, if you are on the Camino del Norte, make sure you go and experience the pintxo culture. San Sebastián is very famous for its pintxos bars.

    dónde vas a comer pinchos
    dónde vas a comer bocadillo
    • You can also get comida in a cafetería. Cafeterías don’t have “proper” cocinas, so the comida they can offer is limited to cold dishes or hot ones that can be cooked on a grill.

     

    In both bares and cafeterías you might get a complimentary tapa or pincho. But this practice differs a lot from one town to another and even from one bar to another.

    If you have any favourite foods that you tried on the Camino, I’d love to hear about it. You can just leave a comment!

     

     

    Today’s Spanish words

    Restaurante

    Bar

    Cafetería

    Ración

    Tapa

    Pincho / Pintxo

    Bocadillo

     

    Related articles

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    ¡Buen Camino!

    Shopping on the Camino

    Shopping on the Camino

    by | Dec 29, 2017 | Camino de Santiago

    Shopping on the Camino |

    Last month I wrote a series of posts about the things you should and should not pack for your Camino de Santiago. In the last one, “Your packing advice“, I tried to summarise all the suggestions I got from experienced pilgrims. One of my favourites was:

     

    No “just in case” stuff. You can buy what you need in Spain.

    With that in mind, I thought it would be a good idea to have one of our mini lessons on shopping on the Camino: shops you might need, what to buy in them and how to ask some basic questions… 

    Shops and stuff

    • Farmacia (pharmacy) – in a previous post entitled El botiquín I covered the most relevant information about farmacias, as well as the difference between farmacia and parafarmacia and the meaning of farmacia de guardia (you can also listen to the pronunciation of these words there). To sum it up, farmacia is where you can get medicines, with or without prescription, as well as a long list of other items for your personal care.

     

    In a parafarmacia you can find the same stuff as in a farmacia, except for medicines: they sell tiritas and Compeed, creams (sun protection and others), personal hygiene products: from jabón (soap), to shampoo and pasta de dientes (toothpaste)… (check El botiquín for the pronunciation of these words).

     

    Tip: personal care products tend to be cheaper in supermarkets.

     

    • Frutería (greengrocer’s) – you can buy lots of fruta (fruit) and vegetables here. Loose fruit and veg is sold by weight, so the price you see, unless something else is specified, is the price for a kilo. Let’s say you just want an apple or two; no problem! You pick what you want, they will weigh it for you and you pay for what you take.

     

    • Panadería (bakery) – you can buy pan (bread) here, obviously. But you can also get empanada (savoury pie) and empanadilla (small version of empanada). Many panaderías are also pastelerías (cake shop), so you can also get all sorts of sweet pies, cakes and pastries.

     

    • Supermercado (supermarket) – In the bigger supermarkets you can buy all of the above (except for medicines), as well as other things. If you are in a small town with a small supermercado, your options will be more limited but you are still likely to find a bit of everything.

     

    Do you just need a snack? A panadería or frutería  might be all you need. But if you are planning to cook your meals at the albergue or need non-food items, you might want to visit the supermercado.

     

    You should be aware of shops’ opening times. If you are starting your walking day very early in the morning, as most people do, you will find that pretty much everything is closed. So, if you need something for the early morning, your safest bet is to buy it the previous evening.

     

    Also, almost everything is closed on Sundays (not bakeries and cafés) and festivos (public holidays). And during “lunch time”, which is roughly between 13:30-16:30, although it can vary depending on the shop. Again, try to plan your shopping ahead.

     

    And finally, some useful phrases you can use when shopping

     

    • If you can’t find what you need and want to ask if they have it, you can simply say ¿Tienen…? (do you have?) and add the name of the item you are looking for. For instance, you go into a supermercado looking for tiritas, but you can’t find them. You can ask a member of staff ¿Tienen tiritas?

     

    • If you need to ask for something, quería (I’d like) followed by the name of the item you want is what you say. Let’s say you go into a farmacia looking for ibuprofeno. What do you say? Quería ibuprofeno. Easy, right?

     

    • If you want to know the price of an item, you can ask ¿Cuánto cuesta esto? (how much is this?) while pointing at it. You can drop esto if you think it’s not necessary because it’s obvious enough what item you are asking about.

     

    • ¿Cuánto es? (how much is it?) is similar to ¿Cuánto cuesta?, but they are used differently. As I just said, we use ¿cuánto cuesta? to ask about the price of a specific item. However, we use ¿cuánto es? when we finish our shopping, to find out how much the total is.

    Are you ready to go shopping on the Camino de Santiago?

     

    Today’s Spanish words

     

    Supermercado

    Frutería

    Panadería

    Pastelería

    Pan

    Empanada

    Empanadilla

    ¿Tienen...?

    Quería

    ¿Cuánto cuesta esto?

    ¿Cuánto es?

    ​ 

    ¡Buen Camino!

     

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