 Banks
Open Monday through Saturday from 9:00 am to 2:00 pm from October through June. Closed on Saturday during the summer.
National Holidays
Jan 1; Epiphany; Mar 19; Maunday Thursday; Good Friday; Labour Day; Ascension; Corpus Christi; July 25; Aug 15; Oct 12; Nov 1; Dec 6, 8, 25.
There are many local variations of these dates.
Area: 504,780 sq km
Population: 40,341,462 (approx)
Capital: Madrid.
Currency: The Euro. Previously the Spanish peseta
Language: Castilian Spanish (Castellano) is the national language though visitors who have learned their Spanish abroad find regional
accents difficult to cope with, especially in rural Andalucia. Other important language groups include Gallego in Galicia, Basque in the Basque Country and
different forms of Catalan in Catalunya, Valencia and the Balearic Islands.
Visa: No visas are necessary for EU nationals staying a maximum of three months.
Geography: Spain is Europe's fourth largest country after Russia, Ukraine and France. It consists of the Spanish mainland, which
occupies most of the Iberian Peninsula apart from Portugal, the Balearic islands of Mallorca, Menorca, Ibiza and Formentera in the Mediterranean and
the Canary Islands of Tenerife, Gran Canaria, Lanzarote, La Palma, Gomera, Fuerteventura and Hierro in the Atlantic Ocean off the coast of Morocco.
 Geographically, Spain is bounded to the north by the Bay of Biscay, France, and Andorra; to the east by the Mediterranean Sea; on the south by the
Mediterranean Sea and the Atlantic Ocean; and on the west by Portugal and the Atlantic Ocean. In the southwest the 13km wide Strait of Gibraltar separates
Spain from Africa.
Spain occupies about 85 percent of the Iberian Peninsula and is surrounded by water for about 88 percent of its periphery. Its Mediterranean coast is
1,660 km long, and its Atlantic coast is 710 km long.
The British dependency of Gibraltar is situated at the southern extremity of Spain. The Balearic Islands in the Mediterranean and the Canary Islands
in the Atlantic Ocean off the coast of Africa are governed as provinces of Spain. Also, Spain administers Ceuta and Melilla on the Moroccan mainland.
Mountains of Spain
The Pyrenees separate Spain from France and are the country's principal mountain range. They extend 435 km (270 mi) from the Bay of Biscay to the
Mediterranean Sea. The highest peak is Pico de Aneto (3,404 m/11,168 ft)
Away from the Pyrenees, Mulhacén in the Sierra Nevada above Granada is the highest peak at 3,477 m (11,407 ft). The highest point in Spain is Pico de
Teide (3,715 m/12,188 ft) on the volcanic island of Tenerife in the Canary Islands.
Spain’s Rivers
The main rivers of Spain flow west and south to the Atlantic Ocean. The Duero (Douro), Miño, Tajo (Tagus), and Guadiana rivers rise in Spain and flow
through Portugal to the Atlantic. The Guadalquivir River is the deepest and most navigable. The Ebro River, which flows through Zaragoza, flows into the
Mediterranean Sea and is navigable for part of its course. The rivers are a good source of electric power.
Spain’s Climate
Spain experiences extremes of temperature and generally low rainfall (less than 610 mm) except for in the north. Along the northern Atlantic coast
the climate is usually quite damp and cool. The central plateau has very hot, dry summers and drought is common. In Madrid the local saying is that the
climate is "9 months of winter and 3 months of hell" which describes the freezing winters and scorching summers.
In Seville, Cordoba and Granada temperatures reached 50ºC (over 120ºF) in the summer of 2003 and the subsequent forest fires caused major damage. On
the southern Mediterranean coast a subtropical climate prevails with Málaga enjoying an average winter temperature of 14°C (57°F).
Natural Resources of Spain
The country has many mineral resources, including hard and brown coal, small petroleum and natural gas deposits, iron ore, uranium, mercury, pyrites,
fluorspar, gypsum, zinc, lead, tungsten, copper, and potash.
Spain’s Flora
Only a small part of Spain is forested, and forests are located mainly on mountain slopes, particularly in the northwest. A common Spanish tree is the
evergreen oak. Cork oak, from which the bark may be stripped every ten years, is abundant, growing chiefly as second growth on timbered land. Poplar trees
are grown throughout the country and the cultivation of olive trees is a major agricultural activity.
Other Spanish trees include the elm, beech, and chestnut. Shrubs and herbs are the common natural vegetation on the central plateau. Grapevines flourish in the arid soil. Esparto grass, used for making paper and various fibre products, grows abundantly in both the wild and cultivated state. On the Mediterranean coast sugarcane, oranges, lemons, figs, almonds, and chestnuts are grown.
Spain’s Fauna
The Spanish fauna includes the wolf, lynx, wildcat, fox, wild boar, wild goat, deer, and hare. Among the more famous domesticated animals are the bulls
bred near Seville and Salamanca for bullfighting, the Spanish national sport. Birdlife is abundant, with numerous varieties of birds of prey. Insect life
abounds. Mountain streams and lakes teem with fish such as barbel, tench, and trout.
Religion: Over 98% of people are Roman Catholic, the rest being made up of a few Protestants, Muslims and Jews. There are also around 500,000 gypsies living mainly in the larger cities.
Time: Central European Time = GMT + 1 hour.
Telephone: To make an international call from Spain, dial 00 and then add the country code (UK 44; USA 1; Australia 61; Canada 1;
Irish Republic 353; New Zealand 64) and the rest of the telephone number minus the first zero if there is one. To call Spain from abroad, the country
code is 00 34.
Emergency numbers (dial toll-free from any phone):
Emergency services Tel: 112
Ambulance/Ambulancia Tel: 061
Fire service/Bombers/Bomberos Tel: 080
National Police/Policia Nacional Tel: 091 (for serious trouble)
Municipal Police/Policia Municipal Tel: 092 (for larger towns and cities)
Civil Guard/Guardia Civil Tel: 062 (for smaller towns and villages)
Business hours: The normal opening hours for shops are Monday to Saturday from around 9am or 10am until about 1.30pm. After siesta
they reopen from around 4pm until 8pm or 9pm. Large stores usually stay open all day. Most places are closed on Sundays. Many businesses including #
restaurants and bars (especially in Madrid) close for holidays in August.
Many museums are closed on Monday and on public holidays and are open on Sunday mornings only. Hours change with the seasons. Check a recent guidebook to
make sure you don't miss anything.
Taxis are easily identified in the cities by the green light on the roof, which is lit when they are available. Prices are reasonable but make sure
the meter is reset when you start your journey. Supplements exist for airport pick-ups, items of luggage, journeys outside of city boundaries and after
10pm and at weekends.
Internet and e-mail: Just about every town has an internet café with very reasonable prices.
Tipping: North Americans tend to over tip in Spain. Typically Spanish people leave a few coins after a meal but wouldn't have any
"15%" rule in their mind. If you're happy with the service leave a tip, it will be appreciated.
Spain and the Environment
Spain faces numerous environmental threats. Deforestation and the erosion and river pollution that accompany it are major concerns. Other problems
include the encroachment of agriculture onto land designated as protected, desertification in badly managed agricultural zones, and soil salinization in
irrigated regions. Increased use of nitrogen fertilizers has added to the problem of nitrates in rivers.
In April 1998, a serious toxic waste spill occurred as the result of a burst reservoir at an iron ore mine in southern Spain. Attempts were made to divert
the spillage from an important wetland area toward the Guadalquivir River, which flows into the Atlantic Ocean. It was estimated that the toxic mud
from the spill threatened millions of birds and other wildlife. The black toxic mud covered farms, fields, and orchards, causing farmers to suffer
enormous economic losses.
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