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This weekendFestival
La Mercè Weekend: Seaside Games, Acrobats and a Fire Run for Kids
- When
- Wed-Sun Sep 23-27
- Ages
- All ages (best for 2+)
- Price
- Free
This week, 1 of 16: La Mercè Weekend: Seaside Games, Acrobats and a Fire Run for Kids
La Mercè Weekend: Seaside Games, Acrobats and a Fire Run for Kids
FestivalCiutat Vella
Where
Various venues
Ages
All ages (best for 2+)
Setting
Outdoors
Plan for
Drop-in, stay as long as kids last
Kids program
Family parks at Glòries (Thu), Montjuïc gardens, Port Olímpic and the Fòrum (Sat and Sun), plus a kids' fire run (Sat 6pm)
Closing event
Piromusical from Nova Icària beach, Sun Sep 27 at 10pm (new spot for 2026)
What you need to know
- Saturday 6pm: the kids' fire run on Passeig de Gràcia, before dark, with smaller flames and a slower pace than the adult correfoc at 8:30pm.
- Sunday noon: the tallest human towers of the festival, three of the strongest teams in Plaça Sant Jaume, after a parade in from La Rambla at 11:30am.
- Weekend family parks, one per outing: Montjuïc gardens for under-6s, Port Olímpic for sea crafts, clowns and circus by the water, the Fòrum for acrobats and 20 wooden games. Plenty needs no Catalan or Spanish.
About
La Mercè is Barcelona's patron-saint festival and the city's biggest free party, five days when the streets themselves become stages across all ten districts. The 2026 guest city is Shanghai, the first from Asia, bringing around 110 artists including the Shanghai Acrobatic Troupe, and Chinese dragons dancing alongside Barcelona's own gegants. For families there are dedicated children's workshops, theater and circus, the giants and castellers perform in daylight in and around Plaça Sant Jaume, a separate Correfoc dels Petits gives a gentler fire run, and this year's closing piromusical moves to Nova Icària beach, visible from along the whole seafront.
Schedule
Wed, Sep 23
- 7pmOpening procession and Toc d'inici, from La Rambla to Plaça Sant Jaume with Shanghai's rolling lantern show, while the pregó happens inside City Hall (7pm to 9pm).
Thu, Sep 24
- 10:30am to 8pmAqüeducte per la Pau, an all-day clown and circus party by Pallassos Sense Fronteres (Clowns Without Borders) at Parc de l'Aqüeducte in Ciutat Meridiana, with extra morning workshops and a play space just for under-6s.
- 10:30amMatí de la Mercè, the giants line up and dance in Plaça Sant Jaume (10:30 to 11:45am), then the Passada de Nans i Gegants winds through the old town from 11:45am.
- 11am to 7:30pmFamily day at Parc de les Glòries (new this year), back-to-back circus and street theater plus Repte Gaudí, a drop-in play space of building games and visual puzzles inspired by Gaudí (11am to 3pm and 4pm to 7pm, ages 4+).
- 11am, 1:20pm, 5pmSTELI at Parc de l'Estació del Nord, families build a giant structure out of wooden poles with Italy's Stalker Teatro and live music, then walk through it (40 minutes, ages 4+, no words needed).
We recommend
Thu Sep 24
No School Thursday: Your La Mercè Day with Kids
Today packs the most in: giants in the morning, drones after dark. In the afternoon, there are lots of options depending on which side of the city you're traveling from.
Wed-Sun Sep 23-27
46 Museums and Monuments Open Free for La Mercè
Today is the day nearly all of them open at once, no booking. One has a full-size royal galley, and a few close by mid-afternoon, which catches families out.
Where it is
Various venues
Resources
- Event websiteOfficial page from the organizer.
- No School Thursday planOur plan for Thursday Sep 24, the day off school: giants, free museums, drones.
- Free museums during La MercèOur list of the 46 museums and monuments open free, with the ones kids love most.
- Traditional festivities programOfficial day-by-day list of giants, castellers, correfocs and the piromusical, with a family-audience filter.
- Street arts program (MAC)Circus, theater and play spaces by park and day; filter by family audience and age.
- Complete concert scheduleThe full 2026 concert cartell by day, time, and stage, all 109 free concerts (in Catalan).
- La Mercè AppReal-time updates, nearby activity finder, and personalized favorites list for the festival.
Common questions
What else is on this weekend
See all events →More family picks, Friday to Sunday.
Performance
Pinocchio Tells His Own Story with Puppets and Shadows
Multiple Dates Sep-Oct · €14 (advance €12.44)
Performance
Cirque du Soleil's Steampunk Circus Under the Big Top
Through Oct 18 · €45+
Festival
Catalan Book Week: Our English-Speaker Picks
Through Sep 27 · Free
Movie
Forgotten Island in English at 4pm
Multiple Dates Sep-Oct · €8-10
Festival
Festa Major de la Barceloneta 2026
Daily Sep 25 - Oct 5 · Free