Climate and location
Valladolid is in north-western Spain, just 200 kilometers (125 miles) from Madrid. The city’s metropolitan area is home to some 350,000 inhabitants.
Valladolid sits on a plain, broken only by small series of hills which make the landscape very attractive.
It has a Mediterranean-continental climate which alternates between cold winters, when temperatures drop to below freezing, to hot summers with temperatures averaging around 30 degrees centigrade.
Daily live and customs
Opening hours
Shops and business hours
Shops tend to open from 10:00 to 14:00, and in the afternoons/evenings from 17:00 to 20:00. Most banks are only open to the public in the mornings from 9:00 to 14:00.
Shopping centers are open from 10:00 to 22:00 from Monday to Saturday. Some open on Sundays.
You won’t see too many people about in the streets between 14:00 and 17:00, which is when people have lunch at home and take a short rest.
Some people also have a siesta, which can be anything from half an hour to an hour, although the custom is not as widespread as is commonly believed.
Meal times
Lunch time is later than in other countries. People usually have a continental breakfast between 9:00 and 11:00, and lunch between 14:00 and 15:00. Lunch tends to be the main meal of the day.
Dinner or going out for tapas is between 21:00 and 23:00.
Social customs
Having tapas is popular in Valladolid. Bars in the various tapa areas around the city tend to fill up just before lunch or dinner time.
Fridays and Saturdays are when the pubs and discos are busiest. Many locals go out to have tapas for dinner and then spend the rest of the night at music bars around the city.
Safety
Valladolid is generally quite a safe city. You need to take the usual precautions if you are out late at night, but the city tends to be fairly calm.
