Living with Teenagers in Spain

Find out what out-of-school activities Spain has to offer for young people and teens, including holiday jobs, volunteer work and exchange programmes. Plus information on teenagers and drugs, alcohol, pregnancy and driving...

There are a number of national and regional youth councils which aim to bring together youth groups and promote activities and the interests of young people in Spain.

Attached to the Ministry of Employment and Social Affairs, the Institute of Youth (Insituto de la Juventud, INJUVE) aims to promote cultural communication between youth associations, develop and co-ordinate an information and documentation system, maintain international relations and co-operation in matters related to youth and promote youth exchanges at national and international level.

The INJUVE website has much useful information regarding youth opportunities as well as links to all the local youth councils in the various regions of Spain.

Youth Sports

There is a range of social and sporting activities available to teenagers but these can vary greatly depending on location. Facilities in cities and major towns are generally very good. Municipal sports complexes, known as polideportivos ("multisports"), are located in the larger towns and cities and there are many private country clubs, sports centres and gymnasiums.

Swimming pools and tennis courts are widely available. The cost for most facilities is reasonable.

The local Yellow Pages or Tourist Office is an excellent source of information for these facilities.

Many schools run clubs for sporting and other activities after the school day has finished. There is usually a fee to participate.

Scouting is popular among young people in Spain. Anyone interested in joining or finding out more about the Scout movement in Spain can visit one of the following websites:

International Youth Clubs

The Iberoamerican Youth Organisation gathers together the Ministries and Agencies responsible for youth in Spain, Portugal and Latin America and arranges various activities, training and research. The website (in Spanish) has a useful resource list of all the state institutions dealing with youth in these countries.