Thanks for posting this and thanks for making clear it's an idiom common in Spain. But you don't clearly say if it's used in other countries. I dont think it is. In three years living in Mexico learning Spanish, I've never heard this used and I've asked a Mexican friend who said it's a Spain thing.
Hasta las tantas: Spain’s Late-Night Idiom
What time is that?
If you’ve ever made plans with Spaniards, you might’ve heard this classic line:
Nos vamos a quedar hasta las tantas.
(We’re staying out until… who-knows-when.)
Wait… las tantas? What time exactly is that?
Let’s break down this fun phrase that perfectly sums up how late nights work in Spain, where bedtime doesn’t stand a chance.
❓ What does hasta las tantas really mean?
It translates to “until such-and-such time” or more informally, “until super late.” The word tantas doesn’t point to a specific hour – it’s delightfully imprecise.
Think:
- 2 a.m.? Could be.
- 4 a.m.? Very likely.
- Sunrise? Absolutely.
Estuvimos charlando hasta las tantas.
We stayed up chatting into the early hours.
Me quedé trabajando hasta las tantas.
I ended up working until way too late.
It’s casual, flexible and culturally loaded – the Spanish way of saying, “Don’t ask me what time. Just know it was late.”
📝 Why it’s hasta las tantas (feminine), not los tantos
In Spanish, “tantas” is the feminine plural form of “tanto” and it agrees with the implied noun “horas” (hours), which is feminine.
So even though the word horas isn’t explicitly said, it’s understood. The full meaning is something like:
hasta las tantas [horas de la madrugada]
(until the many late hours of the early morning)
That’s why we say las tantas, not los tantos, because we’re referring (implicitly) to hours, not just an abstract “many.”
Quick tip: Anytime you see gender in Spanish, think about the hidden noun behind the adjective or quantifier. That’s usually where the answer is.
🧠 Why hasta las tantas hits differently
This idiom isn’t just about time, it’s about emotion and context.
It can imply:
- Exhaustion (if you were up studying or working)
- Reckless joy (if you were out dancing)
- Warm connection (if you were deep in conversation with friends)
That’s the beauty of it, it adapts. Like a good party, hasta las tantas doesn’t need a set schedule.
Compare it to:
“Way past my bedtime”, “until who-knows-when”, “all night long”… but with extra Spanish spice.
Do you want to explore more ways to express time in Spanish?
Here are some useful vocabulary lists just for that:
Spanish time phrases (A1/A2)
Adverbial expressions of time in Spanish (B2)
💃Typical situations where one uses hasta las tantas
You’ll hear hasta las tantas pop up in all kinds of situations. Someone might say they were trabajando hasta las tantas after a long shift, or estudiando hasta las tantas the night before an exam. It’s not just for fun, any late-night activity counts. You could be viendo series hasta las tantas, hablando con amigos hasta las tantas, or, of course, bailando en la verbena hasta las tantas. It’s the go-to way to say you were up way too late, whatever the reason.
Take this fill-in-the-gaps activity about a classic village fair – it’s hasta las tantas in action. Can you spot where it sneaks in?
🌟 Speak like a local: Your final tip
Want to sound fluent and fun? Slide this idiom into your conversations; you’ll sound less like a textbook and more like a madrileño on a summer terrace. Use it when the night gets away from you, in the best way possible.
So next time you’re up late, don’t just say it was late…
Say you were up hasta las tantas 🌙⏳💬
🗺️ Note for Latin America learners
While hasta las tantas is beloved in Spain, it’s not commonly used across Latin America. In places like Mexico, Argentina, or Colombia, people are more likely to say hasta muy tarde, hasta la madrugada, or hasta re-tarde, for example.
⏳ Expand your knowledge on time expressions
Time in Spanish isn’t just about clocks, it’s about context, nuance and expression. From idioms like hasta las tantas to structures with cuando, mientras, or antes de que, mastering time expressions helps you sound more natural and precise. Whether you’re building simple phrases or crafting complex subordinate clauses, each layer adds fluency. Ready to level up? Here’s a shared notebook with some very useful lessons that will sharpen your sense of time in Spanish:
Lessons that express time in Spanish (shared notebook)
Author info
Silvia is a multilingual educator with expertise in English, French, and Spanish, and a passion for helping students excel in language learning. After gaining extensive international teaching experience in the UK and other countries, Silvia returned to her hometown of Vitoria in 2019. Since then, she has been sharing her knowledge and love for languages with learners of all levels. With over a decade of experience, Silvia’s creative and dynamic teaching methods make language acquisition both fun and accessible.
Comments: 4
Hola Carl
You're right, we didn't specify it's not used in Latin America. I just added a final note at the end to make that clear, also mentioning some possible alternatives to use with the same meaning.
Gracias por escribirnos.
Un saludo cordial.
Inma
Lovely little feature, thanks! Am I right to assume, though, that 'tantas' is feminine because 'horas' is understood?
Hola Sylvia
Yes, exactly! It´s feminine because it´s linked to "horas". When we talk about time we say "son las siete [horas], "me levanto a las nueve [horas], "llegó a las tres y media".
We´re glad you enjoyed it.
Saludos
Inma