The Tres Tombs parade season has kicked off in Catalonia amid new animal welfare guidelines designed to protect the horses and donkeys that traditionally take part in the festivities towns across Catalonia celebrate their agricultural heritage with animal parades.  The new text has been agreed by the Department of Climate Action, together with the Catalan Tres Tombs Federation, animal rights organization FAADA, and the Association of Specialist Equine Veterinarians.    The guide states that at each festival there should be one veterinarian for every 50 animals, that the routes must be less than 6km and that slippery surfaces must be avoided.  At the Tres Tombs in the Barcelona neighborhood of Sant Andreu on Sunday, Andreu Bernadàs, president of the Catalan Tres Tombs Federation, said the guide would not mean significant changes, as they are already "doing things well."  "Horses that take part in around 20 Tres Tombs parades during the first three months of the year will do no more than 60 hours work, so it is absurd to say that we mistreat the horses," he told the Catalan News Agency (ACN).  Following the guide is voluntary, and the most significant change it introduces, according to Bernadàs, is the recommendation that festival organizers have one vet for every 50 animals, although there have "always been" vets present, he says.  "What the Catalan government has now determined is a certain number of professionals per horse," he adds.  Tres Tombs parades also took place in Polinyà, Martorell, Argentona, and Cerdanyola, and in the Central Catalan town of Taradell, where it is commonly known as La festa dels Tonis.  Around 40 animals took part in the Tonis parade on Sunday, a similar number to last year, but well down on pre-pandemic figures of around 100.  To compensate for the lack of animals, in addition to the carts used in the parade, other carts were exhibited around the town.  "We want it to be an open-air museum," says organizing committee president Josep Presseguer.  "We want to explain how people used to work in the past and we want the festival to survive in the future."  Get the day's biggest stories right to your phone v1.1.0. Copyright © 2025. Powered by EBANTIC. All rights reserved. there are countless things to do in Barcelona and around Catalonia this weekend.  Here's a selection of some of the best plans and what's on this weekend Tres Tombs national gathering | May 3 | Horse and carriage parade | Barcelona and 600 'traginers' or muleteers will parade along the streets of Barcelona on Saturday Barcelona will be hosting the 28th National Gathering of the Tres Tombs in Catalonia part of the bicentenary celebrations of the Tres Tombs festival in the Catalan capital The city will welcome representatives from the 95 towns that form part of the Catalan Federation of the Tres Tombs in a parade of gigantic proportions La Vuelta Femenina | May 4-10 | Cycling | Barcelona and beyond Barcelona hosts the opening stage of the 2025 La Vuelta Femenina cycling tour on Sunday with an 8km team time trial along Avinguda Diagonal and through parts of Eixample The 99km stage 2 of Spain's leading women's cycling tour also takes place in Catalonia starting in Molins de Rei and finishing in Sant Boi de Llobregat on Monday the 15th event in the 2025 UCI Women's World Tour Barcelona International Jazz Day | May 4 | Concert | Passeig de Gràcia Ten hours of free concerts on an open air stage Barcelona International Jazz Day is back in Barcelona on Sunday May 4 to transform Passeig de Gràcia (between Gran Via aand Plaça de Catalunya) into one big jazz club six groups will be celebrating jazz right in the heart of the city in a free concert Empordà Museum reopens | May 2-4 | Exhibition | Figueres After four years of renovations, the Empordà Museum (Museu de l'Empordà) reopens its doors on Friday Visitors can enjoy free entry on the opening weekend The reopening forms part of the 'Fires i festes de la santa creu' celebrations in the northern Catalan city.   Free entry to museums | May 4 | Exhibitions | Catalonia many Catalan museums open their doors free of charge open free every weekend in the afternoon as well but do away with the time limits when it's the first Sunday of the month. From art and history to science and design – and even some iconic Gaudí monuments and buildings – there’s sure to be something for everyone Biergarten | April 25-May 4 | Beer festival | Poble Espanyol German-style food and beers are laid out in terraces all in a highly spirited festive atmosphere.  Feria de Abril | Various days until May 4 | Cultural fair | Parc del Forum Celebrating Andalusian heritage until May 4 a new edition of the 'Feria de Abril' returns to Catalonia organized by Andalusians living in the territory paying homage to the traditions of the southern Spanish region Visitors will be able to taste Andalusian dishes Picasso Museum free entry | Thursdays to Saturdays With the arrival of the good weather again the Picasso Museum is changing back to its summer opening hours The summer hours and free admission will be accompanied by guided tours in Catalan with the aim of bringing the museum closer to the locals Titanic: The Voyage Continues | April 17 - September 28 | Immersive experience | Espai Inmersa The exhibition will anchor at Poblenou’s Espai Inmersa and promises visitors a "cutting-edge" immersive experience with “breathtaking” virtual reality that allows visitors to travel more than 3,000 km to the bottom of the ocean the exhibition will showcase 200 real artifacts recovered from the Titanic wreck as well as recreations of the most emblematic spaces of the ship as it takes visitors back to April of 1912 to the moment when the Titanic embarked on its ill-fated maiden voyage HOT WHEELS CITY EXPERIENCE | Until July 10 | Exhibition | La Maquinista Shopping Mall Hot Wheels City Experience is the place to go for families and fans of the Hot Wheels toy The experience includes creativity in the game Visitors will enjoy an immersive experience through Hot Wheels' world which starts with a video to learn about the history and the culture of the brand The experience also includes fast-speed races and lab facilities with very interactive designs Tickets start at €18 and it is open from Wednesday to Sunday.  'Chris Ware. Drawing is Thinking' | April 3-November 9 | Exhibition | CCCB Chris Ware will be present at the Comic Barcelona as he was in the city this week for the launch of the new exhibition on his work at the CCCB The retrospective reviews the work and reflections of an author whose work has the power to move so many people as they touch on themes of human existence in great depth 'Uncertain Times. Interwar Germany' | April 2 - July 20 | Exhibition | CaixaForum Barcelona To understand how the Second World War happened one has to consider the Weimar Republic the German state that existed in the interwar years A new exhibition in the CaixaForum in Barcelona transports visitors to that fervent period of history explaining the cultural and intellectual boom of the time and how it foreshadowed one of the darkest periods of human history.  Sean Scully exhibition | March 14 - July 6 | Art exhibition | La Pedrera Antoni Gaudí's 'La Pedrera' building on Passeig de Gràcia is hosting “Sean Scully” the most complete retrospective exhibition of works by one of the most important contemporary exponents of abstract art this exhibition gives visitors a unique view of the Dublin-born US-based artist’s career from his more figurative beginnings to his more recent creations. It explores his paintings lines and textures convey deep emotions and forge unique bonds with the viewer Fernando Botero. A Universal Master | February 14 – July 20 | Art exhibition | Palau Martorell the Palau Martorell is hosting the most comprehensive exhibition of paintings ever held in Spain paying tribute to Fernando Botero (Medellín one of the most important artists of the 20th century who is already part of the History of Art His original and innovative creative approach through a language of monumental volumes and vibrant colour which has made his work immediately recognizable KBr exhibitions on the US-Mexico border | February 13 – May 18 | Photography | KBr Foundation The first major exhibition of the work of José Guerrero covers plenty of years of the artist's career throughout which he has explored the significance of the landscape The images of Felipe Romero Beltrán immerse the viewer in the complex landscape of northern Mexico that building up to an unsustainable situation in recent years Essència Palau | March 22 - June 22 | Guided Tour | Palau de la Música Catalana The Palau de la Música Catalana music hall invites visitors to rediscover its architectural splendor through a unique guided tour: Essència Palau Developed in collaboration with Eurofragance the tour features a collection of fragrances that resemble the ambiance of the early 20th century allowing visitors to connect with the building's history and symbolism on another level.  ‘Extraterrestrials. Is there life beyond Earth?’ | February 26 - August 30 2026 | Science exhibition | CosmoCaixa science museum 'Extraterrestrials - Is There Life Outside Earth?' delves into topics such as our place in the cosmos and how literature and cinema have shaped the collective imagination about what form alien life could take. Visitors begin by discovering Earth's place in the cosmos the great philosophical debate between those who argue that life is unique to our planet and those who believe in the existence of other inhabited worlds Antoni Tàpies: The Imagination of the World | February 13 – January 25 The solo exhibition The Imagination of the World proposes a revision of the work of Antoni Tàpies based on ideas found in his earliest period of production the exhibition seeks to map out a network of relationships between active agents as related to two key areas: on the one hand the complex assimilation of artistic tendencies—such as dada and surrealism—and currents of thought—psychoanalysis Marxism—in Barcelona in that period; on the other hand the dialogue of these movements with various forms of the vernacular tradition of popular culture Ramón Masats. The silent photographer | Photography exhibition | January 16 – May 25 | Foto Colectania Ramón Masats stands as one of the most influential photographers of Spain’s 1960s generation His reputation was built upon a unique combination of instinctive compositional talent a sharp and ironic lens on post-war cultural clichés and an unwavering commitment to photographing with absolute freedom. The exhibition focuses on the early creative period of Masats’ career spanning from his beginnings in 1953 to 1965 The exhibition begins with his early experimental works where he alternated between abstract photography and documentary reportage.  Amazons. The Ancestral Future | November 2024 – May 25, 2025 | Barcelona  This CCCB exhibition explores the challenges that the Amazon rainforest and its biodiversity are facing as the planet's temperature continues to rise. The exhibition seeks to break from the Western colonial understanding of the world and defends the profound knowledge that the indigenous people of the Amazon have of the nature that surrounds us all.