La Bien Aparecida is celebrated every 15 September in honour of Our Lady of La Bien Aparecida, patron saint of Cantabria, and is a regional holiday throughout the community.
Regional holiday
15 September 2026
593,964
Verified data
In 2026, Our Lady of La Bien Aparecida is recorded as a regional holiday on 15 September 2026. The calendars included in the dataset apply it in Cantabria, covering 593,964 residents in the 2025 register.
This comparison uses only the official working calendars incorporated into the dataset for each year.
| Year | Main date | Where recorded | Residents |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2025 | 15 September 2025 | Cantabria | 593,964 |
| 2026 | 15 September 2026 | Cantabria | 593,964 |
Demographic profile
Age, citizenship, birthplace and average-age structure from the 2025 Annual Population Census.
51.6% / 48.4%
11.4%
64.1%
24.5%
8.1%
12.6%
47.1 years
Comparison with Spain. All five comparisons are population-weighted and use only the 2025 Annual Census. A positive sign means the covered population has a higher value than the benchmark.
| Demographic profile | Covered population | Compared with Spain |
|---|---|---|
| Aged 0–14 | 11.4% | -1.5 pp |
| Aged 65+ | 24.5% | +3.8 pp |
| Foreign citizenship | 8.1% | -5.9 pp |
| Born outside Spain | 12.6% | -6.6 pp |
| Weighted mean age | 47.1 years | +2.6 years |
The largest difference from Spain is in “Born outside Spain”: -6.6 pp.
Sex comes from the 2025 municipal register; all other metrics come from the 2025 Annual Census. Each percentage uses the total from its own statistical operation. INE municipal tables 68535 and 68541.
According to tradition, on 15 September 1605 a small Marian image was found in the window of a chapel dedicated to Saint Mark, on the heights of Marrón (Ampuero). From then on devotion to La Bien Aparecida took root in the mountain country, and the sanctuary at Hoz de Marrón became its main shrine.
In 1905, three centuries after the finding, Pope Pius X declared Our Lady of La Bien Aparecida patroness of the Diocese of Santander; she is also patroness of the autonomous community of Cantabria. She received canonical crowning in 1955. Care of the sanctuary has been entrusted to the Trinitarian Order since 1908. The small carving, about twenty centimetres tall, is one of the most recognisable Marian symbols of eastern Cantabria.
Around 15 September, Ampuero hosts the La Bien Aparecida festivities, with religious services, pilgrimage, cultural activities and popular celebrations. The day is recognised as a Festival of Regional Tourist Interest.
In the working calendar it is a regional holiday in Cantabria. It should not be confused with the Day of the Institutions (28 July), which is civic and institutional.
Festival of Our Lady of La Bien Aparecida, patron saint of Cantabria and of the Diocese of Santander.
Other holidays
Per-municipality data with its official source (regional gazette). Every date is verifiable on the municipality page. Data from festivos.io — CC BY 4.0.