Shopping malls to reopen at 30% capacity from Monday

Shopping malls will be allowed to open at 30% capacity starting on Monday, December 14.

This comes after hordes of Christmas shoppers were seen in the center of Barcelona over the long bank holiday weekend last week, sparking debate on whether reopening shopping centers in other neighborhoods would ease some of the pressure on Ciutat Vella.   

Malls will have to be sufficiently ventilated and the limit on the number of people permitted on the premises, as was approved by Catalonia's Civil Protection authority on Saturday morning, will apply to both common areas and inside stores.

Partial weekend lockdown extended to counties

Starting on December 18, movement will be restricted to one's county of residence during partial weekend lockdowns, which are in place from Friday at 6 am to Monday at 6 am, although authorities continue to advise people to stay home as much as possible.

Up until now, people were only allowed to travel within their towns or cities of residence over the weekend.

Catalonia's land borders with other parts of Spain, on the other hand, will remain closed.

More spectators at cultural venues

Cultural venues will be able to host up to 1,000 people as long as they are not over 50% capacity and if they can implement crowd control measures and can provide proof of having an appropriate ventilation system in place.

Otherwise, events will remain capped at 500 people and 50% capacity, while in both cases spectators will have to remain seated during shows. 

Religious and civil ceremonies

Events such as weddings, funerals, or religious services, are capped at 30% and can have at most 500 people.

Like cultural events, they will be allowed to have up to 1,000 people at 30% capacity in larger venues if adequate ventilation and crowd control measures are in place, though both cases will require authorization from the Catalan justice department and the local council.