SPAIN'S NEW NORMAL BEGINS: Life After the COVID-19 Lockdown

Mijas-Málaga, by Jose A.

On Sunday June 21, Spain will enter what the government is calling the “new normal.” After three months, the State of Alarm will come to an end, but it will not be a situation completely free of restrictions. Hygiene and safe-distancing measures will remain, e.g., the obligatory use of masks when a safe inter-personal distance of 1.5 meters cannot be maintained, with fines of up to €100 for violators.

Regarding many other matters, the Autonomous Regions will take control of much of the management of the crisis from now on, with each regional government establishing its own measures. For the most part, these will involve regulating capacity in establishments and events of all kinds, whether indoors or outdoors. Madrid, for example, has already announced that nightclubs will remain closed until July 5th. Local fiestas may also be suspended. 

Nationwide, the biggest change is an end to mobility restrictions within Spanish territory and the freedom to once again travel to other regions without need for justification. Travel restrictions with most European Union and Schengen area countries also come to an end on Sunday. The exceptions are: Portugal, whose border will not reopen until July 1st, and the United Kingdom, for which no date has been set for normalizing travel. The Spanish government is considering implementing a  quarantine requirement with the UK, given that people traveling there must self-isolate for two weeks. Meanwhile, the British government is considering revising this measure, but not before June 29.  

Borders with the rest of the world will begin to open on July 1st, on a gradual basis, but there will be some requirements before travel is allowed: an epidemiological situation that is similar to or better than that of EU member states; certain health conditions in the country of origin, the journey and the destination; and reciprocal acceptance of travelers from the EU.

Will there be another lockdown in Spain? If there are localized outbreaks of the coronavirus, specific lockdowns will be possible on an individual basis and in very specific areas, such as in a town or city. Of course, a national lockdown under another State of Alarm could occur, if the need arises.  As Health Minister Salvador Illa said recently, “If we have to use it again, of course, we will use it again.”

Source: El País

Spain to allow German tourists to travel to the Balearic Islands without quarantine: 47 flights already scheduled

Bienvenido de nuevo

The Spanish government made it official today: Germans will be the first tourists allowed to try out Spain's famous sun and sand resorts in what is being called the New Normal—or what I call, “Life after the Coronavirus lockdown but not quite after COVID-19.”

The details: When, where, and how

Next week's partial opening of the country's borders is partial in two ways: 1) only for tourists from Germany and 2) only for travel to the Balearic Islands. In addition, these visitors will be exempt from the 14-day quarantine other travelers to Spain must currently undergo.

Specifically, beginning next Monday, June 15, some 10,900 German travelers are expected to begin alighting on the shores of the islands of Mallorca, Ibiza, and Menorca. (Sorry Formentera fans.) There have been 47 flights scheduled thus far—38 to Palma, 8 to Ibiza and 1 to Menorca. The first two flights are planned for Monday, and will arrive in Palma from Frankfurt and Düsseldorf. The third is scheduled on Wednesday, from Düsseldorf to Ibiza. The premiere flight to Menorca is scheduled to run June 27 from Düsseldorf.

Empty beach in Peguera, Mallorca: Marco Verch

Despite all these plans, these flights are actually provisional, since the official government declaration includes this caveat: “Additionally, by resolution of the official responsible for the Ministry of Industry, Commerce and Tourism, and in accordance with the Monitoring Committee referred to in article 4, the annex may be expanded, modified, revised or updated.” (Emphasis mine.)

On arrival at the airports, passengers will have to complete health questionnaires and undergo screening by healthcare workers. Anyone with symptoms, e.g., a fever or cough, will be given a test. If the test is negative, they will have to agree to "telematic monitoring of their symptoms." A Monitoring Committee, made up of at least one representative from Spain's airports operator AENA, the Ministry of Health, the Secretary of State for Tourism, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, the European Union and relevant bodies in the areas of health and tourism in the Balearic Islands, will meet every two days.

Tourists will also have to stay a minimum of five nights and provide details about where they will be staying.

Other Special Routes Being Considered

Ibizas's sidewalk cafe's await

Other autonomous regions in Spain may soon be allowed to do something similar. Yesterday, Minister of Health  Salvador Illa said that in the coming days he expected to announce comparable agreements with other regional governments. Indeed, negotiations with the Canary Islands are reportedly in advanced stages, although at least one sticking point remains regarding mandatory requirements, since the government of the Canary Islands wants PCR tests carried out on each tourist arriving on the islands, not only those with symptoms. With the autonomous region of Galicia set to leave the state of alarm this coming Monday, it could be another candidate to open an early travel corridor with an EU country—or countries.

These early travel bubbles are consistent with the government's official declaration, which stated, "It is recommended that pilot programs be launched through the establishment of safe tourist corridors, prior to the end of the state of alarm, in order to verify the operation of the model for lifting temporary controls on internal borders and the recovery of freedom of movement.”

What does Brussels say?

Brussels actually wants to move a bit faster on all this, having recently called for the European Union's internal borders to be reopened next Monday. Some states, like Italy, have opened their borders for all citizens of countries in the Schengen area. Others, like Austria, have only done so for some of their neighbors. And a third group, of which Spain is a part, has not yet lifted barricades for anyone—at least it will not have until this exception of the new Germany-Balearic Isles route comes to pass. The European Commission wants to end this inconsistency and do way with all internal border controls in order to allow free movement from June 15 on, as detailed in a report it presented Thursday.

Source: Contando Estrelas Flickr

It seems that the EU’s call to open internal borders next week has increased pressure on Spain to open up faster. According to El País, “EU Commissioner for Home Affairs, Ylva Johansson, insisted on the recommendation that internal borders must 'reopen as soon as possible.' But she added that the main thing is for everyone to open internal borders completely before opening the EU’s external ones to third-country travelers.”

Despite this, the Spanish government insists that its decisions will be made based on health criteria alone and that, regional exceptions aside, the plan remains waiting until July 1 before completely opening borders to the rest of Europe. In fact, Spain continues to prevent full mobility between its own regions. This situation is due to end by June 22, when the Spanish COVID-19 state of alarm expires.

Meanwhile, Brussels seems to have accepted the fact that the opening of borders within the EU will probably not be completed according to its dictates.

“We understand that reopening on Monday for countries that have not yet decided to do so could be complicated, and that some might take an extra week or two,” Johansson also said.

In other words, the New Normal will not arrive throughout the European Union until July—maybe.

Carlos

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Sources: “Los turistas alemanes vuelven a Baleares y sin cuarentena: ya hay 47 vuelos programados a partir del lunes,” Hugo Gutierrez, El País, 12 June 2020 and “EU’s call to open internal borders by June 15 increases pressure on Spain,” Álvaro Sánchez, El País English Edition, 11 June 2020.

No COVID-19 realted deaths reported in Spain

Today, the Health Ministry reported no coronavirus deaths in Spain the last 24 hours. That's the second day in a row! Yesterday, June 1st, was the first day no deaths were reported since the health crisis began. Below are links to articles in the English language version of Spain's El País newspaper.

Source: New York Times

June 1, 2020: No new coronavirus deaths in the last 24 hours, Health Ministry reports

June 2, 2020: Health Ministry reports no daily coronavirus deaths for second day running

More Romanians, Fewer Brits

Screenshot

That's the title of an article I just read in the Spanish daily, ABC. Basically, it's a review of a Bank of Spain report called, "Foreign Investment in the Spanish Residential Market Between 2007 and 2019." Apparently, foreign buyers of homes and property in Spain rose from  4.2% in 2007 to 10.% in 2019. 

The report highlights that during this period there have also been changes in the habits of these investors, one of them being the decrease in buyers from the UK. It notes that Brexit and the devaluation of the pound contributed to the fact that between 2017 and 2019 the British sold more houses than they bought in Spain. During this period the percentage of foreign purchases by Britons fell by 6 points, and last year represented 8% of transactions by residents of Spain's fellow EU countries. The opposite happened with countries such as Romania and Italy, which increased their participation in the market to 12% and 8% respectively. At the same time, the total of such purchases made by foreigners from countries outside the European Union are also significant (27% in 2019). Among non-EU countries, Morocco and China stand out, with respective percentages of 14% and 6% of purchases by foreigners in 2019.

According to the report, there were other significant changes in property sales to foreigners. Between 2007 and 2010, they barely represented 3.3% of the market, but then grew strongly until reaching the historical maximum of 10.5% in 2014. That year the recovery of the sector began, which caused non-Spaniards to gradually reduce their involvement in the market. In 2019 they represented an average of 7.8% of operations. 

The analysis also reportedly shows that the housing stock held by resident foreigners increased steadily from 2007 on, and then accelerated after 2014. Thus, in 2019, net purchases by foreigners accounted for almost 0.2% of the housing stock, almost three times more than in 2013. 

The report also highlights the interest that these buyers have in Spain's coastal regions, especially the Balearic and Canary Islands. Nineteen percent of housing purchases in Santa Cruz de Tenerife were made by foreigners last year, followed by the Balearic Islands (16%), Alicante (15%) and Las Palmas de Gran Canaria (14%). 

Regarding prices, the report indicates that between 2014 and 2019 the prices foreigners paid was 4% higher than those of domestic buyers, although this percentage rises to 10% when considering purchases in cities such as Tenerife and Palma de Mallorca. 

ABC quoted the report as saying, “These differences are probably a reflection of the different investment profile in different provinces. In those on the Mediterranean coast and on the islands, foreign investors with high incomes, who demand higher quality homes located in better areas, surely have a higher significance."

Screenshot

In recent years, there has been speculation that the presence of foreigners in certain areas of Spain has caused housing prices in those regions to be more expensive. This theory the Bank of Spain now  corroborates, at least in part.

From the report: "The high correlation between population growth and rising property prices suggests that the increase in the foreign resident population in certain provinces (especially island ones) contributed to increasing house prices through their effect on demand for real estate."

Meanwhile, realty website Idealista reports that Standard & Poors recently carried out an analysis of the consequences of the coronavirus COVID-19 crisis on Europe's housing market. Results indicate that house prices are falling by 3-3.5% in Spain, as well as in the UK, Ireland and Italy. 

That sounds better than the forecast of Bankinter, which predicts that prices will drop by 6% (which Idealista pointed out is in line with the estimates of the Swiss investment bank and financial services company, UBS) and a collapse in sales of up to 35%, after having already fallen 3.3% in 2019. That would bring the volume of operations in 2020 to around 326,000, which would be the lowest level since 2014—the year Spain finally began its recovery from the recession. (You may recall that the main cause of  Spain's 2008-2014 economic crisis was the residential real estate bubble, which saw prices rise 200% from 1996 to 2007.)

It will be interesting to see what changes the pandemic will bring to Spain in so many areas, including in terms of house prices, sales, and the number of foreigners who buy property here.

  Saludos,                                                                                                                                                   

Carlos                                                                                                                                                       

Screenshot

PORTABLE BALCONY / BALCÓN PORTÁTIL:

This guy who has been stuck in his apartment during Spain's coronavirus lockdown, has a great idea: modular balconies that can be assembled, installed in an apartment window and later removed and disassembled. I saw an interview with Aitor Fuente, the building engineer who has come up with the idea. I later found this brief concept video on his YouTube page. 

 

 

Este chico que ha quedado en su piso durante el encierro de coronavirus en España, tiene una idea genial: balcones modulares que se puede montarse, instalarse en la ventana del piso y luego retirarse y desmontarse. Vi una entrevista con Aitor Fuente, el arquitecto técnico quien se le ocurrió la idea y encontró este breve video conceptual en su página de YouTube.

#NOSINMIBALCÓN

 

Exhumed and Expelled from the Valley of the Fallen

By XL3aMS1x, https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/3.0

Today the remains of former dictator Francisco Franco were evicted from a monumental complex known as the Valley of the Fallen and reentered in the family plot in the unincorporated village of Mingorrubio. Well, like Franco, I, too, was once kicked out of there—albeit living and breathing.

First a little background: the Valley of the Fallen is a national park about 50 kilometers outside Madrid, in the Sierra de Guadarrama mountains. The valley itself is a lovely place of woods and greenery. However, rising out of this natural beauty is the cold, gray Basilica of the Holy Cross of the Valley of the Fallen (Basílica de la Santa Cruz del Valle de los Caídos), which was carved out of a giant granite ridge as an ominous looking monument to the Fascists who won the Spanish Civil War. Construction began in 1941 and ended in 1959. Thousands of prisoners, including political prisoners, were forced to work on the site. At least fourteen of these were killed during construction and many others suffered injuries.

I visited the Valley of the Fallen with friends some years ago, on a sunny, spring-like February afternoon. There were hardly any other visitors that day, so we parked in the near-empty lot just beneath the basilica. One of the first sites to greet us as we got out of the car was an abandoned and tattered looking series of shops -- a souvenir shop, a post office and a cafeteria -- shuttered up with rotted wood, rusted metal and water-stained paper.

Undaunted by this dreary sight, we walked up the stairs to the giant esplanade lying in front of the basilica. As we did this, we received a brief respite from the gloom, as the views of the valley and towns in the distance were fantastic. But then we entered the basilica itself, first going through security checkpoints that just about rivaled anything in international airports.

Once inside the hall of the basilica, I felt a little overwhelmed by the literal and atmospheric darkness of the place. We walked down a lengthy corridor, which in reality is a tunnel, past foreboding sculptures and grandiloquent tapestries. At the end of it all, was an altar, and as we approached it, I separated from the others to walk on my own.

Unlike most churches, in this one visitors are allowed to walk up to and around the altar. As I circled it, towards the back I noticed flowers and candles sitting on top of a marker embedded in the ground. I leaned in closer to read the words written on it, and was surprised to see "Francisco Franco," and to realize that this was in fact the dictator's tomb. Indeed, so shocked was I by the location of respect that the grave had that without thinking I grimaced, let out a "Yuk!" and stomped one of my feet on it, as one would do to chase off a rodent.

Next thing I knew, two furiously gesticulating guards were running up to me, exclaiming, "¡Fuera! ¡Fuera! ¡Si no te gusta Franco, fuera!" ("Get out! Get out! If you don't like Franco, get out!") Two of my friends (including a Spaniard whose grandfather had been forced to work on the monument's construction) started arguing with the guards, but I had had enough and just wanted to get out of that dark hole. I agreed to leave, and my friends gladly joined me. It was with more than a little relief that I headed away from the dinginess surrounding the despot's tomb towards the bright sunshine and fresh air outside.

Although I have never had a desire to go there again, perhaps I will return once it is converted from an ostentatious tribute to one of Mussolini's and Hitler's cohorts into a true memorial to the Spanish Civil War.

'Why do Spaniards do their 'business' in the sea?' and 10 more news stories published in the El País English edition this year

Why do Spaniards 'shit' in the sea and can you sleep in the Spanish heat? Top 10 Spain news stories read by English-speakers this year

Spain's most popular newspaper, El País, publishes a small English-language edition. Here are the top ten stories of the English edition in 2015.

Not one of the top ten, but one of the final articles to appear in El País English edition in 2015 is: Spain's 1st Black Member of Parliament, Rita Bosaho: 'Achieving equality should be a question of state.'

As the first black person to be elected to Spain's Congress, Rita Bosaho says she is "overcome" by the media attention she has received over the last week. Born with Spanish nationality in Spain's former African colony of Equatorial Guinea, she came to Spain at the age of four, …

Spain's Anger Management - opinion piece in New York Times

Is this the dawn of a new era in Spanish politics, as some suggest? Judging from the results of last Sunday’s election, we can safely say that the old era has, at least, been dealt a severe blow.

Read the rest of Miguel-Anxo Murado's excellent article here.

Spanish man fined for calling police slackers on Facebook; King and Queen to visit St. Augustine, Florida for its 450 birthday

Excerpts from Newsvine seeds. Click on headline for more:

Spanish man fined for calling police 'slackers' on Facebook

The first known individual to fall foul of Spain’s controversial new “gag law” has spoken out against what he sees as the repression of free speech after he received a fine for describing his local police force as "slackers" on Facebook. Eduardo Diaz, a 27-ye …

King and Queen of Spain to attend 450th celebration of St Augustine, Florida

King Felipe and Queen Letizia of Spain are scheduled to visit in Sept. 18, 19, and 20 which is when St. Augustine is hosting the annual U.S. – Spain Council. This will be the first ever visit for the royals to the United States as heads of state. "We've been celebrating  …

10 Trivias About Spain (Video)

San Fermin bull-run gore count; Hug, Kiss, Steal; Granada mayor tells teen girls 'nearly naked' looks best; One thing Left & Right agree on; More Spanish speakers in USA than Spain

Click here or on the individual links below for my latest Spanish stuff on Newsvine.

Spain's San Fermin closes with no gorings on final day's running of the bulls, but 37 gorings and other injuries during 9-day fiesta

No-one was gored this morning in the final 'encierro,' or bull run, of the San Fermin Festival in Pamplona, Spain, but so far today five people have been taken to hospital for other injuries, including craneofacial, cervical, foot and arm traumas. According to local officials, t …

Busted: Gang of thieves who hug and kiss victims

Spain's national police have broken up an organized band of thieves using hugs and kisses to distract victims.  Authorities have charged nine people in various cities across the country with using a technique called 'abracitos' ('little hugs') to commit robbery. The me …

Mayor tells group of Honor Students, 'The more naked women are, the more stylish; and men, the more they wear, the more stylish.'

The mayor of Granada, Spain, has told a group of recent high school graduates that the less clothes women wear, the better they look. Mayor José Torres Hurtado had just finished awarding certificates to the city's 10 students who received the highest scores on univer …

In Madrid, the Left and Right agree: Spain is not Greece

According to Spain's ruling right-wingers, the Popular Party:

US now has more Spanish speakers than Spain – only Mexico has more

The United States is now the world’s second largest Spanish-speaking country after Mexico, according to a new study published by the prestigious Instituto Cervantes. The report says there are 41 million native Spanish speakers in the US plus a further 11.6 million who ar …

Spain’s King Felipe in Mexico on first state visit to Latin America (Video)

Unvaccinated child dies of diphtheria / Citizenship granted to Sephardic Jews. Descendants of expelled Muslims get nothing

Spain related Newsvine posts:

Unvaccinated child dies of diphtheria in Spain: first case in nearly 30 years

Spanish media is reporting that a six-year-old infected with diphtheria died early this morning. The boy, from the town of Olot in the region of Catlonia, had not been vaccinated against the disease, which had not been seen in Spain in nearly three decades. He had been unde …

500 years after expulsion at pain of death, Spain grants citizenship to Sephardic Jews. Descendants of expelled Muslims get nothing.

A century ago, Marcelo Benveniste’s four Jewish grandparents emigrated from the Greek island of Rhodes to Argentina. Unlike many new arrivals on far-flung shores, they had little difficulty navigating their way through the challenges of a foreign tongue as as they already …

The Flag and National Anthem of Spain = Bandera e Himno Nacional de España

Madrid's new Mayor; Diptheria reappears in Spain after a generation

Here are my latest Spain related posts on Newsvine:

Shouts of 'Yes, We Can' as Manuela Carmena sworn in as Mayor of Madrid, Spain

Manuela Carmena Castrillo, the candidate of the leftist coalition Ahora Madrid (Now Madrid), is the new Mayor of the capital of Spain.

Spain's 1st diphtheria case in 30+ years: child, whose parents oppose vaccines, in serious condition

A six-year-old child diagnosed with diphtheria remained …

The Great Granny Battle: Countess vs Ex-Communist for Mayor of Madrid

In one corner, a countess and veteran politician who is a devout admirer of the late Margaret Thatcher. In the other, a retired judge and former communist party member who describes herself as a “hugging grandma”. Charismatic and tough as nails, the two ideological …

No Communion, No Money, No Catholic; Innit in Spanish; Anti-Drunk-Walking

My latest Spain related things on Newsvine:

I'm simply Christian now: Divorced Catholic leaves Church after being refused communion, but asked for money

Last Sunday was an important day for Angela Conesa: her son had his First Communion. However, Angela was not able to take communion herself that day. Why? Because, as local Church officials reminded her in a letter a few days before the event, divorced Catholics who remarry civi …

Handy Spanish phrases for British tourists (Video)

To help prepare British holidaymakers travelling to Spain this summer, former professional soccer player and now Hollywood actor, Vinnie Jones, delivers a performance like never before as he launches his own Spanish lessons. Check it out for all those essential Spanish phrases li …

Spain wants to ban drunk walking and set speed-limit for joggers

Catalonia's Leader, Artur Mas, Says Spain's New Podemos Party an Obstacle to Independence Movement

From an interview appearing in the Wall Street Journal today:

"As he prepared to embark on a trip to the U.S. where he will promote his independence campaign, Catalan regional President Artur Mas talked in an interview with The Wall Street Journal about the challenge of drumming up international support for his region’s uphill bid...
"The independence debate comes at a time when Spain’s long-stable two-party political system is under siege due to unemployment of 24% and a series of corruption scandals.
"Mr. Mas expressed concern about the rise of Podemos, the youth-led, leftist party that has surged in national polls with its slashing attacks on Spain’s conservative government. The party, with its more radical antiausterity discourse, aims to reframe the political debate in a way that could be unfavorable for the independence movement, he said.
" 'For Catalonia, the underlying problem isn’t the left-right axis, but rather the relationship between Catalonia and the Spanish state,' he said. 'Put another way, whether either the left or right governs, we need more power for Catalonia, more resources for Catalonia, more decision-making capacity, and more protection for our language and culture.'
"The emergence of Podemos 'blurs things a little, or even undermines the basic challenge. In that sense, the appearance of Podemos is a great favor to the interests of the Spanish state.'
"Mr. Mas said Podemos was a distraction from the main issues facing Catalonia and that was 'highly negative' for the independence movement. Some analysts suggest that Podemos could capture protest votes from crisis-weary Catalans which might have previously gone to pro-independence parties.
"In recent years, the pro-secession movement has gained followers in the northern region with its complaint that Madrid drains Catalonia of taxes without respecting its culture. But since 2.3 million people participated in a symbolic vote on independence last November, the separatist movement has run into a rough patch.
"There were open disputes between Mr. Mas and another separatist leader before they agreed to schedule a parliamentary election this September that is designed to serve as a referendum on independence.
"Meanwhile, polls taken in Catalonia since December have shown opponents to independence outnumbering supporters—albeit narrowly—for the first time since 2012."

The photos above are of Mas' last election campaign poster and of Artur Mas wannabe Charlton Heston. Or something like that.

How many public holidays does Spain have?

Today is a public holiday in Madrid. (Or as my British friends say, a 'bank' holiday.)

It's Father's Day and Saint Joseph's Day. (Or as my Spanish neighbors say, Día del Padre / Día de San Jose.)

This is a regional holiday, not a national one.

A family member back in Louisiana commented recently that Spain sure had a lot more holidays than the USA. It seemed that way to me, too, so I thought I'd tally them up and compare. Well, it turns out that this year there are 10 federal holidays in the USA, but only 8 national holidays in Spain.

Still, that doesn't quite tell the whole story.

First of all, here are the US federal holidays for 2015:

Thursday, January 1	New Year’s Day
Monday, January 19	Birthday of Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr.
Monday, February 16	George Washington’s Birthday / Presidents' Day
Monday, May 25	Memorial Day
Saturday, July 4	Independence Day (Observed on Friday, July 3 this year)
Monday, September 7	Labor Day (Always on the first Monday in September)
Monday, October 12	Columbus Day
Wednesday, November 11	Veterans Day
Thursday, November 26	Thanksgiving Day (Always on the 4th Thursday of November)
Friday, December 25	Christmas Day

Now here is the list of national holidays in Spain for 2015:

Thursday, January 1	New Year’s Day
Tuesday, January 6	Kings Day / Epiphany
Friday, April 3	Good Friday
Friday, May1	Labor Day
Saturday, August 15	Assumption of Mother Mary
Monday, October 12	Spanish National Day
Tuesday, December 8	The Day of the Immaculate Conception
Friday, December 25	Christmas Day

Notice that because the USA's July 4th holiday falls on a Saturday this year, it will be observed on Friday July 3rd, but that in Spain there is no such compensation for the holiday that falls on Saturday August 15th. This is because Spain actually considers Saturday a work day. Thus, people like me who work Monday through Friday won't get that holiday off this year.

This year we in Spain are also missing a holiday that falls on a Sunday: Constitution Day, December 6th. When a holiday falls on a Sunday, the Spanish sometimes do what the Yanks do, and observe the holiday on the subsequent Monday. Although Spain is not doing that with this year's Constitution Day, some of the country's Regions have come to the rescue and christened the Monday a holiday. 

Therefore, it looks like the USA actually has more public holidays than Spain – especially when you consider that in the USA both Saturday and Sunday holidays are always compensated for.

Wait, though—there is another factor to consider. Each of Spain's 17 Regions have their own holidays. For example, there are four Regional holidays for the Community of Madrid this year:

Thursday March 19 - Saint Joseph's Day
Thursday April 2 - Holy Thursday
Saturday May 2 - Community of Madrid Day
Thursday June 4 - Corpus Christi Day

And the other Regions are just as  generous, with almost all having four other public holidays falling Monday through Friday. (Only the Canary Islands Region has fewer: three.) In fact, this year several of the Regions have elected to give their citizens back the Constitution Day some in Spain are missing by observing it on the Monday. (Scroll down below for a list of all the Regional holidays in Spain.)

Now back in the USSA, many states also observe their own holidays, but most have only one or two of these. Nevertheless, only two of the 50 states seem to have matched the Spanish regional norm of four: Indiana, which observes Good Friday, Primary Election Day, General Election Day and Lincoln's Birthday and North Carolina, with Good Friday, the day after Thanksgiving, Christmas Eve and the day after Christmas.

So, if we consider the fact that added to the 8 (usually 9) national holidays there are four regional holidays almost everywhere in the country, it looks like overall Spain pulls ahead on the total number per year.

Then we can throw city and town holidays into the mix. In Spain most of these have multiple local holidays and even small towns and villages often have one or two. For example, in the City of Madrid there are 3 in 2015:

Friday, May 15 - Saint Isidro Day (Patron Saint of the City)
Wednesday, September 9 - Santa Maria de la Cabeza Day (Saint Isidro's wife)
Monday, November 9 - The Virgin of Almudena Day - (Patroness of the City)

Barcelona has two:

June 1 - Saint John's Night
September 24 - Día de la Merced

Valencia also has two:

January 22 - Saint Vincent The Martyr's Day
April 13 - Saint Vincent Ferrer's Day

And Seville has two, too:

Wednesday April 22- Wednesday of the Spring Fair (Replaces the usual May 30th Saint Fernando holiday, which falls on a Saturday this year)
Thursday June 4 - Corpus Christi Day

Now, I don't know of too many American cities that have two or three local public holidays.

Conclusion: I think we can safely say that, yes, Spain does have more public / bank holidays than the United States.

Or to put it in sports terms: Spain 14, USA 10.

Happy holidays!

Carlos

Here are the 2015 public holidays in Spain's Autonomous Regions.
Andalusia
February 28th: Andalusia Day
April 2nd: Holy Thursday
November 2nd: Monday after All Saints Day
December 7th: Monday after Constitution Day
Aragon
April 2nd: Holy Thursday
April 23rd: Saint George’s Day
November 2nd: Monday after All Saints Day
December 7th: Monday after Constitution Day
Asturias
April 2nd: Holy Thursday
September 8th: Asturian Regional Day
November 2nd: Monday after All Saints Day
December 7th: Monday after Constitution Day
Balearic Islands
April 2nd: Holy Thursday
April 6th: Easter Monday
November 2nd: Monday after All Saints Day
December 7th: Monday after Constitution Day
Basque Country
March 19th: Saint Joseph
April 2nd: Holy Thursday
April 6th: Easter Monday
July 25th: Saint James
Canary Islands (Only 3 holidays regional holidays in the Canaries!) 
April 2nd: Holy Thursday
May 30th: Canary Islands Day
November 2nd: Monday after All Saints Day
Cantabria
April 2nd: Holy Thursday
April 6th: Easter Monday
September 15th: Patron Saint of Cantabria (Virgen de la Bien Aparecida)
November 2nd: Monday after All Saints Day
Castilla-La Mancha
April 2nd: Holy Thursday
April 6th: Easter Monday
June 4th: Corpus Christi
December 7th: Monday after Constitution Day
Castilla y León
April 2nd: Holy Thursday
April 23rd: Castile and León Day
November 2nd: Monday after All Saints Day
December 7th: Monday after Constitution Day
Cataluña
April 6th: Easter Monday
June 24th: Saint John's Day
September 11th: The Diada, Catalonia Regional Day
December 26th: Saint Stephen's Day
Ceuta
April 2nd: Holy Thursday
September 25th: Festival of Abraham’s Sacrifice
November 2nd: Monday after All Saints Day
December 7th: Monday after Constitution Day
Extremadura
April 2nd: Holy Thursday
September 8th: Extremadura Regional Day
November 2nd: Monday after All Saints Day
December 7th: Monday after Constitution Day
Galicia
March 20th: Day after Saint Joseph's Day
April 2nd: Holy Thursday
July 25th: Saint James, Galician Regional Day
November 2nd: Monday after All Saints Day
La Rioja
April 2nd: Holy Thursday
April 6th: Easter Monday
June 9th: La Rioja Regional Day
December 7th: Monday after Constitution Day
Comunidad de Madrid
March 19th: Saint Joseph's Day
April 2nd: Holy Thursday
May 2nd: Community of Madrid Day
June 4th: Corpus Christi Day
Melilla
March 19th: Saint Joseph's Day
April 2nd: Holy Thursday
September 25th: Festival of Abraham’s Sacrifice
December 7th: Monday after Constitution Day
Murcia
March 19th: Saint Joseph's Day
April 2nd: Holy Thursday
June 9th: Murcia Regional Day
December 7th: Monday after Constitution Day
Navarre
March 19th: Saint Joseph's Day
April 2nd: Holy Thursday
April 6th: Easter Monday
July 25th: Saint James
Valencia
March 19th: Saint Joseph's Day
April 6th: Easter Monday
October 9th: Valencian Regional Day
December 7th: Monday after Constitution Day

Winners of El Gordo, Spain's Billion Dollar Christmas Lottery, Announced

Hundreds of lucky ticket holders are celebrating in Spain after winning a share of the annual Christmas lottery known as El Gordo, or the Fat One. The world's biggest Christmas lottery, this year's total prize money came to over 2.2 billion euros. Winning tickets came from across the country, including Valencia, Cadiz and Madrid.

Country Roads Catalonia / Carreteras campestres Cataluña / Carreteres campestres Catalunya