Last updated: 16 October 2026
Semana Santa 2027 runs from Palm Sunday, 21 March, to Easter Sunday, 28 March. The biggest days are Holy Thursday, 25 March, and Good Friday, 26 March. It falls eight days earlier than in 2026, because Easter follows the first full moon after the spring equinox.
Holy Week is the most important week of the year in Spain, Mexico and Guatemala: processions carry statues through the streets day and night, whole towns turn out, and hotels fill months ahead. Here is what is confirmed on 16 October 2026, where to go, what is closed, and how to stay online in the crowds.
Semana Santa 2027 at a glance
| Date | Status on 16 October 2026 | |
|---|---|---|
| Palm Sunday (Domingo de Ramos) | Sunday 21 March 2027 | Fixed by the Easter date |
| Holy Thursday (Jueves Santo) | Thursday 25 March 2027 | Public holiday in most of Spain |
| Seville: La Madrugá | Night of Thursday 25 to Friday 26 March | Fixed by the Easter date |
| Good Friday (Viernes Santo) | Friday 26 March 2027 | Public holiday across Spain |
| Mexico City: Passion of Christ in Iztapalapa | Good Friday 26 March, climax on the Cerro de la Estrella | 184th staging; the program usually comes out in early spring |
| Easter Sunday (Domingo de Resurrección) | Sunday 28 March 2027 | Fixed |
| Easter Monday (Lunes de Pascua) | Monday 29 March 2027 | Holiday in Catalonia, Valencia, the Balearics, Navarre, the Basque Country and La Rioja |
| Mexican school spring break | 22 March to 2 April 2027 | Set in the SEP school calendar |
Spain
Spain's Holy Week is a week of processions organized by brotherhoods (cofradías or hermandades): members in tall pointed hoods walk ahead of floats carrying statues of Christ and the Virgin, some of them centuries old, carried on the shoulders or the necks of dozens of bearers, to the sound of drums and brass bands.
Holidays and what is closed. Spain's 2027 work calendar, published in the BOE on 13 October 2026, makes Good Friday, 26 March, a holiday across the country. Holy Thursday, 25 March, is a holiday everywhere except Catalonia and the Valencian Community, which take Easter Monday, 29 March, instead, as do the Balearics, Navarre, the Basque Country and La Rioja. Expect banks, offices and many shops to close on those days, while bars, restaurants and anything on a procession route stay busy.
Seville has the most famous Holy Week in Spain. Brotherhoods leave their churches every day from Palm Sunday and walk to the cathedral along the Carrera Oficial, the official route through the center, where seats and boxes are rented for the whole week. The high point is La Madrugá, the night of Holy Thursday into Good Friday, when the city's best-loved processions are out until morning. The crowds are dense in the narrow streets of the old town: pick your corner early and keep an exit in mind.
Málaga has the biggest floats, called tronos here, carried by a hundred bearers or more, and the most theatrical week, with the Spanish Legion carrying its Christ on Holy Thursday. Granada has processions climbing to the Albaicín with the Alhambra above them.
Castile is quieter and more austere: in Valladolid and Zamora, the processions are silent, and the floats carry some of the finest wooden sculpture in Spain.
Rain changes everything. A brotherhood does not take its statues out in the rain, so a wet evening can cancel the procession you came for. Check the forecast and the brotherhoods' own announcements on the day.
Entering Spain as a US traveler is different from 2025: your passport is now scanned and photographed at the border by the EU's Entry/Exit System. Our guide to entering Europe in 2026 explains what changes.
Mexico
In Mexico, Holy Week is also the start of the spring break: the SEP school calendar gives schools two weeks off, from 22 March to 2 April 2027. Beaches, bus stations and airports are at their busiest, and hotels in Cancún, Puerto Vallarta and Acapulco book out first. Holy Thursday and Good Friday are not official days off for every worker, but many offices close.
Mexico City: the Passion in Iztapalapa. The borough of Iztapalapa stages the Passion of Christ every year, with local residents in every role, and UNESCO now lists it as intangible cultural heritage. 2027 is its 184th staging. The week runs from Palm Sunday, and its climax is the Via Crucis on Good Friday, 26 March, when the procession climbs the Cerro de la Estrella for the crucifixion. Crowds run to well over a million people. Take the Metro, arrive early, and keep your phone in a front pocket. The borough publishes the program closer to the date.
San Miguel de Allende and Oaxaca have processions through colonial centers all week, with Good Friday's Procession of the Holy Burial the most solemn.
Taxco, the silver town, is known for its penitents' processions. It is in the state of Guerrero, which the US State Department rates at Level 4, "Do not travel": US government employees may not travel anywhere in the state, Taxco included. Read the advisory before you plan it.
Guatemala: Antigua
Antigua Guatemala has one of the most beautiful Holy Weeks in the world. Families and neighborhoods cover the cobbled streets with alfombras, carpets of dyed sawdust, flowers and fruit, often made overnight, and the processions walk straight over them. The carpets are busiest on the night of Holy Thursday into Good Friday, when the biggest processions go out.
Processions start well before Holy Week, on the Sundays of Lent, so a trip in early or mid March still sees some. Antigua is about an hour from Guatemala City's La Aurora airport.
The US State Department rates Guatemala at Level 3, "Reconsider travel", in its advisory of 12 March 2026, but names Antigua among the places US government employees may visit, and the country's tourist police patrol the city. Use a registered shuttle from the airport, and do not drive at night.
Book early, and plan for crowds
Semana Santa is peak season in all three countries. In Seville, Antigua and the Mexican beach towns, rooms for Holy Thursday and Good Friday book out first, and prices rise. If your dates are fixed, book now.
On the big nights:
- Agree on a meeting point and a time, in case you lose each other in the crowd.
- Carry some cash, for a drink, a candle or a taxi when cards and data are slow.
- Expect closed streets. Procession routes close to cars, so walking is faster than any ride.
- Dress respectfully if you go into a church, and do not get in the way of a procession to take a photo.
Safety: what the State Department says
| Country or state | Level | For Semana Santa |
|---|---|---|
| Spain | 2, Exercise increased caution | Ceuta, on the African coast, was raised to Level 3 on 1 August 2026; the mainland is unchanged |
| Mexico, overall | 2, Exercise increased caution | Advisory of 29 May 2026; the level differs by state |
| Mexico City (Iztapalapa) | 2, Exercise increased caution | Petty crime is frequent in crowds |
| Guanajuato (San Miguel de Allende) | 3, Reconsider travel | San Miguel de Allende is not among the restricted areas |
| Oaxaca | 2, Exercise increased caution | No restriction for Oaxaca City |
| Guerrero (Taxco) | 4, Do not travel | US government employees may not travel anywhere in the state |
| Guatemala | 3, Reconsider travel | Antigua is among the places US government employees may visit |
Advisories change, so read them again on travel.state.gov before you go.
Staying connected during Holy Week
Your phone does a lot of work on these nights: the procession timetables, the map through closed streets, the ride home, and the photos you send.
- Crowds slow mobile data. Tens of thousands of people around one procession share the same cell towers, so messages lag and maps crawl. Send your videos when the crowd thins.
- Download offline maps of the old towns before you go: Seville, Málaga, Antigua, the center of Oaxaca or San Miguel. Closed streets and narrow alleys are where you will need them.
- Screenshot the timetables and your bookings. Many brotherhoods publish their routes and times online the week before.
- Carry a power bank. A Madrugá or a night of alfombras means hours of photos, video and maps.
What your US plan costs abroad:
- Spain is international roaming on every US carrier: TravelPass on Verizon and the Day Pass on AT&T at $12 a day per line, or T-Mobile's included allowance. Our Europe eSIM costs $11.99 for 7 days with 1.5 GB a day, or $19.99 for 7 days unlimited. See our guides for Verizon, AT&T and T-Mobile.
- Mexico is included on most US unlimited plans, but not always at full speed: see will my phone work in Mexico?. Buying a Mexican SIM now means registering it with your passport: Mexico SIM card or eSIM in 2026.
- Guatemala is included on AT&T Unlimited Premium 2.0 and Elite 2.0, and roaming on other plans. Our Guatemala eSIM costs $17.99 for 7 days with 1.5 GB a day.
A travel eSIM installed at home works as soon as you land, with your US number still on for calls and texts. Check that your phone is unlocked first (how to check), then install it on Wi-Fi before you fly: iPhone or Android.
FAQ
When is Semana Santa 2027?
From Palm Sunday, 21 March 2027, to Easter Sunday, 28 March 2027. Holy Thursday is 25 March and Good Friday 26 March.
Is Good Friday a holiday in Spain in 2027?
Yes. Good Friday, 26 March 2027, is a public holiday across Spain. Holy Thursday, 25 March, is a holiday everywhere except Catalonia and the Valencian Community, which take Easter Monday, 29 March, instead.
When is the Madrugá in Seville in 2027?
On the night of Holy Thursday into Good Friday, 25 to 26 March 2027, when Seville's best-known processions are out until morning.
When is Mexico's Semana Santa vacation in 2027?
The SEP school calendar gives schools two weeks off from 22 March to 2 April 2027, so beaches and airports are busiest then.
When is the Passion of Christ in Iztapalapa in 2027?
Its climax, the Via Crucis to the Cerro de la Estrella, is on Good Friday, 26 March 2027. It is the 184th staging. The borough publishes the full program closer to Holy Week.
Why is Semana Santa earlier in 2027?
Easter Sunday is the first Sunday after the first full moon after the spring equinox, so it moves every year. In 2027 it falls on 28 March, against 5 April in 2026.
Facts checked on 16 October 2026 against Spain's 2027 work calendar (BOE, 13 October 2026, as reported by Infobae, Deia and Telemadrid), Mexico's SEP school calendar 2026-2027 (as reported by Excélsior and Infobae), the US State Department's travel advisories for Spain, Mexico and Guatemala, and our carrier and Europe entry guides.