botellón
outdoor drinking party / street drinking gathering
Pronunciation
/boteˈʎon/
Cultural Note
The quintessential Spanish youth tradition: buying cheap alcohol at the supermarket and drinking it outdoors in a park or plaza with a huge group of friends. From 'botella' (bottle) + augmentative '-ón' = 'big bottle.' It's a rite of passage for every Spanish teenager and university student. Technically illegal in most cities now, but it persists like a cultural cockroach. Nothing says 'I'm 19 and Spanish' like a 2-liter bottle of Coca-Cola mixed with rum at 11 PM in a park.
📝 Example Sentences
Cuando era universitario, hacíamos botellón todos los jueves.
When I was a university student, we did botellón every Thursday.
El ayuntamiento ha prohibido el botellón en la plaza.
The city hall has banned botellón in the plaza.