What can you do this weekend? The Merced Festival and European Research Night

Barcelona The ARA offers several plans throughout the country for this weekend.

Although the day of La Mercè 2025 is on Wednesday, September 24th, the Catalan capital's biggest festival extends into the weekend with activities for all tastes. The La Mercè program includes hundreds of free activities and shows in 26 venues, from popular culture displays to more than 100 concerts. There will also be fireworks and open days at museums and venues around the city. Music and performing arts are grouped into three festivals: MAC (Mercè Arts al Carrer), BAM (Barcelona Acció Musical), and Música Mercè. The program can be found at Barcelona City Council website.

The European Research Night is held every year on the last Friday of September in more than 300 cities in 30 countries across Europe. Its objective is to bring research, innovation, and its protagonists, scientists, closer to the public in a straightforward and fun way. It is aimed at all audiences through various activities such as workshops, talks, shows, experiments, astronomical observations, and games. In Catalonia, we have been organizing this major event for more than five years, offering more than 200 educational activities for all audiences in various venues such as universities, museums, bars, libraries, and community centers in the five main hubs of Catalonia: Barcelona-Vallès, Girona, Lleida, Tarragona, and Vic-Catalunya Central. The program can be consulted at the following link.

This Sunday marks the end of La Semana, the leading Catalan-language book event. This year, it's being held on Passeig Lluís Companys and features 312 exhibitors and additional spaces in addition to the book houses, such as the new conversation space, the Language Tent, and the Espai Petita Lectura. The event includes an extensive program—conversations, recitals, concerts, debates, roundtables, and workshops for all ages—showcasing the wealth of Catalan-language publishing.

The Figueres International Magic Festival has established itself as one of the major cultural events in the Alt Empordà region. The various performances are structured in diverse formats, including an International Gala, a Family Gala, street magic (with free admission), a magic workshop, a film screening, and a magic dinner, among other offerings. The program features artists who have won international awards, including world champions. Socially-oriented activities are also held to bring magic to children in highly complex schools, nursing homes, and the Figueres hospital.

Since the 16th century, the Medes have been a refuge for pirates and corsairs, as they used to prepare their attacks on the mainland. To commemorate those times, Estartit is organizing a festival full of shows and activities for children and adults alike. The fair is held this weekend, and the town's streets are filled with stalls selling artisan and traditional products. There will be entertainment for children, parades through the town's streets, pirate performances, corsair landings, children's workshops, guided tours of exhibitions, and more.

Until September 28, Barcelona celebrates the first Cocktail Week The world's largest event dedicated exclusively to hotel bars: Barcelona Hotel Bar Week (BHBW). For seven days, around twenty hotel bars are transformed into venues for creativity and hospitality with exclusive cocktails and an offering that includes both alcoholic and non-alcoholic options. low ABV and alcohol-free. The program combines masterclasses, workshops, seminars, book presentations, exhibitions and cultural gatherings.

La Pobla de Lillet dresses up for autumn to host a new edition of its traditional Mushroom and Boletaire Fair, which this year celebrates its 35th edition. Three days full of activities that combine gastronomy, popular culture, and music, with the mushroom as the main attraction. On Friday the 26th, the program will begin with a mycological talk. On Saturday the 27th, the mushroom fair and market will fill the streets, accompanied by giant games and a lively parade with giants and big-headed figures. Music will also have its place with the 11th edition of Tasta'n Músico. On Sunday the 28th, the fair will continue with the mycological exhibition and the 7th Boletaire Competition.

The Now Fest festival will be held on September 26 and 27 at Refugio 1 in the Muelle de Costa. The event, which seeks to bridge the gap between culture and technology, offers a cutting-edge program featuring some of the most prominent names in the international digital art scene, while also highlighting local talent. The festival will feature more than thirty activities, fifteen of which are firsts in Tarragona, and in some cases also in Catalonia or the entire country. The program includes performances digital art, talks with philosophers and technology experts, concerts and DJ sessions, immersive experiences, and a young talent competition in the field of 3D, which will serve to pay tribute to Tarragona's Roman heritage, coinciding with the 25th anniversary of Tarraco, a UNESCO World Heritage Site.

More proposals for plans and activities

• Cultural and leisure plans for the entire week
• Plans to do with children
• Series premiering this month
• Video games being released this month
• What you can do in the Girona regions
• New restaurants to discover
• The human tower agenda