Clocks Go Back on the Canary Islands This Sunday

The clocks on the Canary Islands go back one hour this weekend, marking the start of winter time. The change takes place in the early hours of Sunday, 25 October 2026: at 02:00 the clocks are turned back to 01:00. That makes Sunday a 25-hour day, so there is an extra hour of sleep.

Mainland Spain, the Balearic Islands, Ceuta and Melilla change at a different moment, with clocks going back from 03:00 to 02:00 on the same night. The Canary Islands therefore stay one hour behind the mainland, as they do all year round.

In practice, sunrise and sunset will come about an hour earlier on the clock. Evenings on Tenerife will get darker sooner, while mornings will be brighter. Smartphones, laptops and most smart devices update automatically, but it is worth checking car clocks, ovens, alarm systems, timers and any heating or pool controls that run on a schedule, especially in holiday homes.

The rule behind the change is set out in the Spanish ministerial order covering the clock changes from 2022 to 2026, which sets 25 October 2026 as the last date in that calendar. That does not mean the practice is ending: no European decision has abolished the clock changes, so Spain and the Canary Islands are expected to move back to summer time in March 2027, and the debate about keeping one permanent time continues.