1. THE WORLD’S LARGEST PRODUCER OF OLIVE OIL

When you think of Olive Oil, Italy probably comes to your mind at first, but in reality, Spain is producing about 44% of the total amount of Olive Oil in the world! Andalusia is the region that produces the most Olive Oil.

This is definitely one of those facts about Spain that not many tourists know about!

2. THE HIGHEST AMOUNT OF BARS IN ALL OF EUROPE

Are you longing for that refreshing “cerveza”? You will not have any problem at all to find a nice bar. The fact is, Spain has the highest amount of bars in all of Europe, and there are cafées and bars open both during the day and evening/night.

Prices are reasonable as well!

3. MORE THAN 8000 KILOMETERS OF BEACHES

If you combine all Spanish beaches into on stretch, it would be 8000 kilometers long (approx. 4 970 miles). So, it shouldn’t come as a surprise that this is one of the most popular destinations for a sunny vacation!

Several of the best beaches in Europe can be found at the coasts of the Spanish mainland, Balearic Island, and the Canary Islands.

4. HOME TO THE WORLD’S OLDEST RESTAURANT

The restaurant called Botin has been opened since 1725, which is a world record in terms of a restaurant that’s still operating. If you come to Madrid, you gotta try the cuisine at this ancient restaurant.

5. ENJOYING LIFE IS A BIG PART OF THE SPANISH CULTURE

The expression Mañana Mañana literally means “tomorrow tomorrow” but is commonly used as “no stress” or to express that there’s no need to worry because things will work out fine. It’s an expression that you can feel throughout the Spanish culture, where you enjoy life and relax whenever possible.

It’s perhaps also why both food and wine is very important as well as the family.

Spaniards value their free time and breaks, and will not work to death as in many other countries, both for the good and worse. However, it’s slowly changing and people work more overtime here nowadays as well. And of course, this doesn’t mean that Spanish people aren’t hardworking, it just means that they try to live the life to the fullest.

You can still experience the Mañana Mañana mentality from time to time.

6. THE SECOND BIGGEST COUNTRY IN THE EU

Only France is bigger when it comes to countries that are members of the European Union. If you count Russia and Ukraine, Spain comes at fourth place in terms of Europe’s countries overall.

The biggest part of Russia is in Asia, though.

7.MORE THAN 1 MILLION HECTARES IS DEDICATED FOR WINE

There’s no shortage of wine when it comes to Spanish wines, and there are lots of variations. Besides regular white and red wine, vineyards are also producing Cava, which is the Spanish equivalent to Champagne.

Worldwide, it’s the red wines that have become most famous!

8. SPANISH IS THE WORLD’S SECOND MOST SPOKEN MOTHER TONGUE

The Spaniard’s travels and conquerings around the world have spread the Spanish language worldwide! And that’s certainly one of the most interesting facts about Spain and the country’s history.

9. DESPITE THE FACT OF BEING ONE OF THE WORLD’S MOST POWERFUL COUNTRIES, SPAIN DIDN’T OFFICIALLY PARTICIPATE IN THE WORLD WARS.

Just as Sweden and other countries, the official position was neutral, even if some situations, of course, can be discussed in retrospect. With that said, a few Spanish inhabitants were sent in exile to battle the Axis powers.

10. ONE OF THE WORLD’S MOST DIVERSE CULTURES

Another interesting fact about Spain is the fact that the culture is so diverse and divided between the different region. Every region has their own specialties and traditions. Going back in time, the Spaniards come from several different folk groups that have been united into one nation.

Some of them even have their own language and is now wanting their own independence, such as Catalonia and Basque

11. THERE’S A SPANISH NEW YEAR’S CUSTOM WHERE YOU EAT 12 GRAPES

A pretty unusual but fun tradition which aims to eat 12 grapes with one’s family when the clock turns 12. The goal is to eat 1 grape each time the clock hits a beat. If you succeed, it’s said that you’ll get lucky for the rest of the year.

The tradition was made popular by the wineries, who wanted to get rid of excess grapes.

12. SPAIN HAS 44 UNESCO WORLD HERITAGE SITES

Only Italy and China has more UNESCO world heritage sites. If you like history, then it’s a good idea to visit Spain!

13. TRADITIONALLY EACH PERSON HAS TWO SURNAMES

Even if this is slowly starting to change, it’s still a tradition to have two surnames. The first one is the father’s surname and the second one is the mother’s surname.

As an example, it would be possible to be named as Juan Gonzales Lopez.

14. SPAIN STILL HAS A KING

Just like Sweden and the United Kingdom, Spain has a king, which is still the head of state, but with little to none power over the country’s laws and regulations. The current King of Spain is Felipe VI.

15.THE BIGGEST CITIES IN SPAIN

If you’re looking for facts about Spain, it might also be interesting to know which are the biggest cities. Here’s a list of the top 10 biggest Spanish cities ranked after population.

• Madrid – 3,166.000

• Barcelona – 1,609.000

• Valencia – 790 200

• Sevilla – 690 566

• Zaragoza – 661 108

• Malaga – 569 009

• Murcia – 441 003

• Palma de Mallorca – 402 949

• Las Palmas de Gran Canaria – 378 998

• Bilbao – 345 122