# Diada long weekend from Manresa: getaways for 11 September Three getaways with a night away and five day trips from Manresa for Catalonia's National Day: the Penedès and Empordà vineyards at the end of the grape harvest, the Siurana reservoir and the Berguedà before autumn. Fuente: https://www.geocalia.com/en/spain/catalonia/manresa/getaways/diada-long-weekend · Revisado: 2026-11-13 Origen: Manresa - [Two nights at the Cava & Hotel Mastinell, in Vilafranca, with the cava cellars of Sant Sadurní by train](https://www.geocalia.com/en/spain/catalonia/penedes/itineraries/two-nights-in-a-cava-winery-by-train-penedes.md) (2 nights, Penedès): In early September the Penedès harvest is usually on its last varieties, such as parellada, and the wineries smell of must. Each year it starts earlier because of the heat: ask the hotel what is left on the vine when you book. - [A weekend in the medieval Empordà, based in Peratallada](https://www.geocalia.com/en/spain/catalonia/peratallada/itineraries/medieval-weekend-peratallada-emporda.md) (2 nights, Peratallada): With September Peratallada empties of holidaymakers and the Empordà returns to its calm. From September the balloon flies only at weekends, at 7:45: if the Diada falls midweek, the flight goes on Saturday and the holiday is for Ullastret. - [A weekend in Siurana and the Priorat: cliff, reservoir and vineyards](https://www.geocalia.com/en/spain/catalonia/siurana/itineraries/siurana-priorat-weekend-vineyards-reservoir.md) (2 nights, Siurana): The kayak on the Siurana reservoir opens daily until mid-September, so the Diada is among the last dates for paddling on any day. The water is still warm and the Priorat begins its harvest among the terraces. - [Penedès: a walk through the vines and an aperitif at the winery](https://www.geocalia.com/en/spain/catalonia/penedes/itineraries/penedes-wine-walk-and-aperitif-from-barcelona.md) (Day itinerary, Penedès): The Camí del Vi crosses vineyards with the bunches hanging or just harvested, and the aperitif at La Carmeta is taken without August's heat. There is no shade: start at nine, and book the terrace before leaving home. - [Peralada: Dalí, winery and mill](https://www.geocalia.com/en/spain/catalonia/peralada/itineraries/peralada-dali-museum-and-winery-from-girona.md) (Day itinerary, Peralada): In September there is usually a harvest in the Empordà DO, and the visit to the Perelada winery may coincide with the grapes coming in. The Dalí Theatre-Museum leaves August's queues behind; buy a timed ticket and start there first thing. - [Montserrat: horse, table and rack railway](https://www.geocalia.com/en/spain/catalonia/montserrat/itineraries/horse-riding-lunch-and-rack-railway.md) (Day itinerary, Montserrat): September brings back the morning cool to the north face of Montserrat, and the horse is comfortable again after summer. Twenty minutes from Manresa, it is the holiday plan for those who want neither the road nor the demonstration. - [Besalú: bridge, Jewish quarter and basalt](https://www.geocalia.com/en/spain/catalonia/besalu/itineraries/besalu-bridge-jewish-quarter-and-castellfollit.md) (Day itinerary, Besalú): Besalú celebrates its medieval festival on the first weekend of September, sometimes next to the Diada; other years the village is quiet. The Pont Vell is closed Monday and Tuesday: if the 11th falls on those days, eat elsewhere. - [Mining train and Cement Train](https://www.geocalia.com/en/spain/catalonia/berga/itineraries/cement-gaudi-gardens-and-mine.md) (Day itinerary, Berga): The Cement Train usually runs on 11 September even if it falls midweek, already outside August's daily schedule. It is one of the last summer holidays to do it with the Cercs mine on the same day: reach the mine when it opens. ## Everyone's holiday, away from Barcelona 11 September, the National Day of Catalonia, is a holiday across the country every year. There are events in almost every city, and many people from Manresa go down to Barcelona for the afternoon demonstration. If your thing is escaping, the trick is the opposite: look inland and towards Girona, away from Barcelona's ring roads and the closures in the centre. The Diada is only a long weekend when it falls next to a weekend. With three days, a two-night getaway; with the holiday on its own, a day that starts early. ## The harvest that comes earlier September is the wine month, but each year a little earlier. In the Penedès the harvest begins in summer with the early varieties and reaches the Diada with the last; in the Empordà and the Priorat, grapes come into the wineries all month. If you want to see the vineyard with bunches on the vine, go on the first long weekend of September; if the must and the smell of the winery are enough for you, any day of the month will do. The Penedès is fifty minutes away by the C-55 and A-2, or on the Rodalies R4, which runs from Manresa to Sant Sadurní without a change. That way nobody has to drive after the tasting. ## Two nights or one morning With three days, the Empordà, two hours away by the Eix Transversal and Girona, and Siurana, a little over two by Igualada and Montblanc, are the two getaways that call for sleeping away. With the holiday alone, Montserrat on horseback is twenty minutes away, the Cement Train an hour and Besalú or Peralada, an hour and a half and two hours: the Garrotxa and the Alt Empordà in one long day. ## What to book The winery hotel in the Penedès and the beds in Peratallada and Siurana, which are few. Timed visits: the cellars, the Perelada winery and the Dalí Theatre-Museum. The Empordà balloon, which from September flies only at weekends. The terrace at La Carmeta. And the Cement Train combined ticket, which is bought online. ## Trains, ponies and must The Berguedà day, with the mining train at the Cercs mine and the Cement Train to Gaudí's Artigas Gardens, is the best all-round. At Montserrat, the Marganell ranch has ponies for the little ones. At Siurana, kayaking on the reservoir. And in the Penedès, the cellars give children must while the adults taste. ## Heat, water and traffic The first half of September is still summer: thirty degrees at midday in the Penedès and the Empordà, and afternoon storms in the Pre-Pyrenees. Walk in the morning and leave the afternoon for the winery or the museum. On the 11th, avoid entering Barcelona and its ring roads from midday; the return from the long weekend loads the AP-7 from Girona and the C-55 from Martorell. ## Mushrooms and lakes, later on The mushrooms of the Berguedà and the Montseny are for October. The coloured beech woods, for November. And the high Pyrenees, with their lakes, are already starting to cool: the Diada is more for vineyards and villages than for high mountains. ## Preguntas frecuentes ### Is 11 September a holiday in Catalonia? Yes, Catalonia's National Day is a holiday every year across the country. It makes a long weekend when it falls next to a weekend. ### Is there a grape harvest on the Diada? It is usually still going in the Penedès, Empordà and Priorat, but each year it starts earlier. Ask the winery when you book. ### Does the Empordà balloon fly on 11 September? From September it flies only at weekends, at 7:45. If the Diada falls midweek, the flight moves to Saturday. ### What can you do without a car from Manresa? The Penedès: the Rodalies R4 reaches Sant Sadurní without a change, and the cellars and the Camí del Vi are done on foot.