For one last Sunday, Barcelona’s big shops flicked on the lights. From today, the city reverts to its usual weekend rhythm, with most large stores shut – ending the summer dispensation that let businesses in tourist-heavy zones trade on Sundays from 12:00 to 20:00 between 15 May and 15 September. 
The four-month window, agreed in 2022 and limited to the designated ‘Zones of Great Tourist Affluence’ (ZGAT), covered Ciutat Vella, Eixample and adjoining neighbourhoods in Sants-Montjuïc, Les Corts, Sarrià-Sant Gervasi, Gràcia and Horta-Guinardó, plus the seafront of Sant Martí. Small shops under 300 m² have always been free to open year-round, but major malls outside the ZGAT – such as La Maquinista in Sant Andreu – were excluded. Notably, the Maremàgnum retains its separate year-round opening regime. 
With the summer scheme now over, the lobbying has already begun. Barcelona Oberta, which represents 21 tourist retail hubs, wants to extend Sunday and holiday trading from Easter through to All Saints’ Day – effectively doubling the calendar to seven or eight months, arguing it would better match family tourism patterns and spending. City Hall says it will study any changes and seek broad social and political consensus before moving. 
Sunday trading in a destination the size of Barcelona balances tourism receipts, worker protection and the fortunes of small retailers. Any remodel of the ZGAT calendar or map will ripple through footfall, staffing and neighbourhood life – which is why the review promised by the council will be closely watched in the run-up to 2026.
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