Spain has a lot of things figured out.
First, the siesta. Not everyone has the daily opportunity to take advantage of siesta, but the fact that it is completely socially acceptable (and often expected) has me sold. Besides actually participating in siesta myself, my favorite thing is taking a walk around the city around 2:00 in the afternoon and seeing businesses shuttered. I love that an entire store or restaurant closes its doors for a couple hours for the workers to have a leisurely lunch with their family, followed by a much-deserved siesta. Now that’s a country that has its priorities straight.
But, I digress… this post is about another one of my favorite Spanish experiences. Rebajas.
What’s better than a siesta, you ask? How about going shopping after your siesta during Spain’s seasons of sales??? Spain has two seasons for sales, known as “rebajas”. The first comes the day after The Magic Kings, which is similar to our Christmas morning with Santa, but occurs the morning of January 6th. January 7th is the start of the first season of sales. The second season begins on July 1st.
I love sales in Spain. Each participating store, which is pretty much every single store, will have multiple rounds of sales. During the first round, one can usually find discounts at around 25%. Online stores, such as Zara, H&M, and Pull and Bear are now participating as well. This means, if there is an item you are dying to have, you can order it directly online as soon as the sales begin at midnight. Doesn’t fit? No worries, you can bring it back in-store or ship it back for another size.
The best parts of sales, however, are rounds 2 and 3. Stores really begin to hack away at the prices.
I found this cozy poncho from Zara this past winter and paid around 20€, originally priced at 70 €.
We gathered up a few baby “necessities” during rounds 1 and 2 at H&M, paying an average of 3 euros for each item.
It’s the best time to buy accessories like hats and scarves to stock up for clothes later on in the year. Sweaters for the whole family courtesy of H&M and Cortefiel!
Hers: 9,99 B&W Cortefiel poncho, originally 49,99; Baby: 4,99 H&M lion sweater, originally 12,99; His: 19,99 pink Cortefiel sweater, originally 79,99
So, head on over to Spain for a visit in January or July and we will show you around our favorite shopping spots in Valencia!
(Stay tuned for a post on my favorite shopping in Valencia, Spain…)
