Basic hours of business are 8 or 9am to noon or 1pm, and 2pm or 3pm to 6.30pm or 7.30pm. In big city centres shops and other businesses stay open throughout the day, and in July and August most tourist offices and museums are open without interruption. Otherwise almost everything closes for a couple of hours at midday, or even longer in the south. Small food shops often don't reopen till halfway through the afternoon, closing around 7.30pm or 8pm just before the evening meal.

The standard closing days are Sunday and/or Monday, with shops taking turns to close with their neighbours; many food shops such as boulangeries (bakeries) that open on Sunday will do so in the morning only. In small towns you'll find everything except the odd boulangerie shut on both days. This includes banks , which in cities are usually open Monday to Friday from 9am to 4pm or 5pm, making it all too easy to find yourself dependent on hotels for money-changing at poor rates and high commission. Restaurants and cafés also often close on a Sunday or Monday.

Museums tend to open between 9am and 10am, close for lunch at noon until 2pm or 3pm, and then run through to 5pm or 6pm, although in the big cities they will stay open all day. Closing days are usually Tuesday or Monday, sometimes both. Admission charges can be very off-putting, though many state-owned museums have one day of the week (often Sun) when they're free or half-price, and you can often get reductions if you're a full-time student (with ISIC card), under 26 or over 60. Cathedrals are almost always open all day every day, with charges only for the crypt, treasuries or cloister and little fuss about how you're dressed. Church opening hours are often more restricted; on Sunday mornings (or at other times which you'll see posted up on the door) you may have to attend Mass to take a look. In small towns and villages, however, getting the key is not difficult - ask anyone nearby or seek out the priest, whose house is known as the presbytère .