A complete guide to La Mercè 2026: what to see, when and where

Barcelona is gearing up for celebration, as the city prepares for its largest public street festival of the year. Festivities will take place from September 23-27, filling the Catalan capital with culture, art, music and tradition. 

In just four days, the city will host 109 concerts, 55 popular culture performances and 180 street art shows. Activities will spread across 10 districts in 32 different venues and all events are free of charge. 

It'll be hard to miss the festivities as practically every corner of Barcelona will be filled with concerts, parades, theater and much more.

Each year, a different city from around the world is chosen to share their festivities with Barcelona, and this year's partner is Shanghai, making it the first Asian city invited to La Mercè.

Here's how to get the most out of Catalonia's biggest 'festa major.'

Must see Events

Opening Ceremony (Wednesday, 7pm, Plaça de Sant Jaume)

The official kick-off of the celebration begins at 7pm with the traditional opening ceremony and speech. This years speech will be delivered by master winemaker, Antoni Falgueras, who runs the Celler de Gelida, a wine cellar located on Carrer del Vallespir which was founded in 1895 by his great-grandfather, Ton Falgueras.

Shortly after, the Toc d’Inici (opening parade) begins. L’Àliga, giants and other mythical beasts will join dance groups as they fill the street and make their way from Palau de la Virreina to Plaça Sant Jaume. Along the way, they’ll perform unique and ceremonial dances for the gathered crowd.

Diada Castellera (Thursday, 1pm, Plaça de Sant Jaume)

'Castells' - traditional human towers - are one of the main highlights of celebrating La Mercè. The castells performance, will run from 1pm to 3pm as different groups from various neighborhoods hold each other up through a spectacular display of coordination, tradition and teamwork.

Cavalcada (Thursday, 6pm, Plaça de Catalunya)

The Cavalcada parade is one of the festival’s showstoppers, a lively display of Barcelona’s rich popular culture, where the giants take center stage. In this year's Cavalcada you will discover that among the local popular culture groups that animate the moving festival, there will be some Chinese elements that have arrived from Shanghai. 

Expect music, dancing, and a colorful celebration. The parade sets off from Plaça Catalunya  to Plaça Sant Jaume and ends inside the city hall.

Drone Show (Thursday, 9-9:20 pm and 10-10:20 pm, Platja de l'Espigó del Gas)

To celebrate the connection of Barcelona and Shanghai, Flock Drone Art Studio presents a show of 750 drones that will turn the sky of La Mercè into a meeting point between East and West.

Inspired by the legend of the red thread of destiny, "The red thread: From Barcelona to Shanghai" is a choreography of light where the symbols of Barcelona and Shanghai appear, transform and intertwine to reveal everything that unites them.

Emergency Exit (Thursday, 10 pm, Moll de la Fusta)

Something new this year is the unique large-format show 'Emergency Exit' by La Fura dels Baus, Eyesberg and Satori which can be seen on September 24 at the Moll de la Fusta.

Through the fusion of sound, movement, image and collective participation, the show is an emotional journey through a 'collapsing world,' one filled with tension, transformation and a clear environmental call: 'Peace on Earth, Peace with Earth.'

The project unites the music of Satori, one of the leading figures in contemporary electronic music, with the creative universe of La Fura dels Baus. Alongside visuals provided by Eyesberg, a Barcelona studio specializing in video mapping, lasers and interactive installation, the show presents as a collective, physical and sensorial experience blurring the line between spectator and audience.

Correfoc (Saturday, 8:30pm, Passeig de Gracia)

No 'festa major' is complete in Catalonia without the traditional 'correfoc' - a fiery spectacle of sparks, fireworks and dancing devils. 

New to the correfoc this year is the Porta de l'Infern, a large scenic structure that translates to 'Door to Hell.' Featuring 1,000 fragmented bodies, the work, by the artist Daniel Esteban, is a reinterpretation of the traditional access door that symbolizes the meeting between pop culture and everyday hell.

Musical fireworks show (Sunday, 10pm, Platja de la Nova Icària)

Barcelona bids farewell to its annual celebration with the ‘piromusical’, a breathtaking mix of fireworks and music. New to this year, the show will be presented on Platja de la Nova Icària instead of Avinguda Maria Cristina.

For the third year in a row, the show is artist-curated. This year, Josep Montero, leader of Oques Grasses, has selected the songs that will be part of the show's playlist. 

Music

This year will feature more than one hundred concerts in sixteen venues around the city under the direction of Música Mercè and BAM – Barcelona Acció Musical. 

The lineup is committed to a diversity of genres and origins, with international names, local artists and dialogues between roots music and contemporary sounds. Among this years highlights are Sabor de Gràcia, María Terremoto, Luísa Sobral, Nacho Vegas, Aterciopelados, Arp Frique, Maika Makovski, Def Mamá Def, La Pegatina, La Paloma, Marc Vilajuana, Sorvina, Pol Batlle, Fuensanta and many international artists from Shanghai.

You can find more information about all the concerts and activities here