HALLOWE'EN was practically unheard of in Spain a decade ago, mainly known as the night before All Saints' Day when families traditionally go to the cemetery to tidy up the graves of their loved ones.
But now, it is in full swing and celebrated almost as much as in the USA, where it has become a major date on the calendar.
Over seven million people are expected to be out partying tonight dressed as ghosts, ghouls, witches, vampires, skeletons and and zombies, with over 70,000 organised Hallowe'en parties across the country, according to fancy-dress shops, bars and restaurants.
Hallowe'en discos at an early hour are taking place in many towns for children, and kids' TV programmes have been milking the 'scary season' in Spain over the last week or so.
In fact, Hallowe'en is now one of the five biggest bar-fillers in the country, after the Christmas and New Year holidays and the pre-Lent carnivals.
One in five restaurants and bars will be decorated in keeping with the moment, hanging up pumpkins and cobwebs, organising themed menus, or with staff in ghoulish fancy dress, a survey has revealed.
A celebration that went by completely unnoticed without so much as a chocolate pumpkin on sale in the supermarket until less than a decade ago, Hallowe'en was really only celebrated as a themed night in Irish pubs from the 1980s onwards.
Now, thanks to the rapid rise in American drama and comedy serials on TV dubbed into Spanish, and Erasmus students coming back from their year abroad with tales of other traditions, it is almost as big in Spain as elsewhere in Europe.
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