7 Places to Celebrate a Merry Christmas in Spain
Millions of sparkling lights, thousands of light installations, nativity scenes that look like works of art, splendid parades and processions, entertainment for children and adults, unique traditions, and plentiful feasts — all this is Christmas in Spain. For the country’s residents, this is a deeply religious holiday, but, at the same time, cheerful and colorful. We invite you to immerse yourself in this wonderful Christmas whirlwind to fill yourself with unforgettable impressions.
The Christmas season in Spain officially begins on December 8 with the Day of the Immaculate Conception (Dia de la Inmaculada Concepción). It ends on January 6 with the Day of the Epiphany (Día de los Reyes Magos). But it starts much earlier — at the end of November. Come to Spain during this period to get acquainted with the most amazing and unusual traditions of celebrating Christmas.
You will surely be surprised to know that, although Spain has its own Santa Claus — Papá Noel, children do not receive presents from him on the morning of December 25th. This happens on January 6th. And the gifts are delivered by the three kings, magi, and wise men: Melchior, Caspar, and Balthazar. They are the ones who brought gifts to the baby Jesus, born in Bethlehem. But so that the little ones do not remain without a pleasant surprise after Christmas Eve, each region has its mythical character who gives them sweets. In Catalonia, it is Caga Tio, in the Basque Country — Olentzero, and in Galicia — О Apalpador.
The Spaniards celebrate Christmas Eve (La Nochebuena) with a hearty meal, and then go to a special midnight mass — Misa del Gallo. Its name translates as «Rooster Mass», as it is believed that the rooster was the first to announce the birth of Jesus.
To wish a Merry Christmas in Spain, the most common way to say is «Feliz Navidad!» Another popular Christmas greeting in Spanish is «Que tengas una feliz Navidad!» And if you want to wish someone a happy new year, say «Feliz Navidad y Próspero Año Nuevo»
This is just a short list of what you will learn and feel while celebrating a traditional Spanish Christmas. Each city in the Kingdom has its own unique entertainment and unusual locations. That is why the editorial team of Spain Voyages has prepared a list of the 7 best places to have fun during the Christmas holidays in Spain.
Madrid
From the end of November to the beginning of January, Madrid enchants with the glow of Christmas lights. Around 12 million LED lights are used to decorate the city for the holidays. It is therefore not at all surprising that there is a special Christmas bus route called Naviluz. From November 29 to January 6, it runs through the center of Madrid. It is worth buying tickets online in advance, as many people want to go.
If you prefer walking, then visit Parque del Buen Retiro, Paseo del Prado, and Plaza de Canalejas. We also recommend admiring the Four Seasons Hotel Madrid and its stunning Navidad decor. Also, visit Plaza de España to see a huge glowing ball with a diameter of 12 meters and enjoy a music and light show.
Numerous festive markets add a special atmosphere to the Spanish capital. The most popular ones are located in Plaza Mayor and Plaza de España. Be sure to visit them to buy Spanish Christmas decorations with ornament and sweets.
Ice skating has long been a wonderful holiday tradition in Madrid. For this purpose, you can visit the outdoor skating rink La Navideña in Plaza de España, as well as the indoor skating rinks in Matadero Madrid and inside the Galería de Cristal of the Palacio de Cibeles.
Christmas in Madrid is impossible to imagine without large nativity scenes. There are dozens of them in the city. But we recommend seeing the most impressive ones, with complex plots and many figures, in Plaza de la Villa, Plaza de la Puerta del Sol, as well as in the Royal Palace of Madrid, the Museum of the History of Madrid, and the Palace of Cibeles.
The festive programme in the Spanish capital is always very busy with a wide variety of events. At this time, Teatro Real, Teatro Circo Price, and Matadero Madrid host Christmas concerts and other performances. In the Alfonso XIII Royal Botanical Garden, on the territory of the Complutense University of Madrid, young and adult visitors will enjoy a Christmas journey into the fantastic world of Manantial de los Sueños. This is a beautiful theatrical show with an interesting program and fun adventures.
An unusual, but already traditional event of the Christmas season in Madrid is the San Silvestre Vallecana ten-kilometer race along the festive streets of the capital. It is held on December 31. In 2024, the 60th-anniversary race will take place.
And the Christmas celebrations in Madrid ended with the Three Kings Parade, which is considered one of the most spectacular in Spain. It takes place on the evening of January 5. Brightly decorated floats with the three kings of the East, Melchior, Caspar, and Balthazar, riding on them move through the city centre. They are accompanied by numerous pages, musicians, acrobats, and dancers in colourful costumes. Candies and sweets are thrown to the spectators. The procession goes from Paseo de la Castellana to Plaza de Cibeles, where a spectacular fireworks display awaits the participants.
Christmas in Torrejón de Ardoz can be the most vivid experience of your trip to Spain. This is a small town near Madrid, where the largest Christmas park in the country, Mágicas Navidades, opens every year. From November 15 to January 6, its visitors can fully immerse themselves in the magical festive atmosphere. The park covers an area of 100,000 m² and offers a wide range of attractions. Be sure to take a ride on the giant 42-metre-high Ferris wheel, which offers stunning panoramic views of Torrejón de Ardoz, sparkling with Christmas lights.
But the park itself has no shortage of festive illuminations. Be sure to take beautiful photos against the backdrop of the luminous installations and figures in Laberinto Mitológico. Enjoy one of the park’s most striking shows — the Puerta Mágica video mapping show, covering an area of 1,000 m². Stroll among the fantastically beautiful Asian lanterns depicting animals, insects, and fairy-tale creatures. And admire the mesmerizing art of ice sculpture during the Ice Festival, which features artists from all over the world.
Every hour, the park hosts the musical show El Secreto de la Navidad, during which children and adults can enjoy colorful performances and festive surprises. Also, the largest nativity scene in Spain awaits children and their parents to tell them the story of the birth of Jesus. Another must-see for the youngest visitors to the park is the House of Christmas. Here, Papá Noel and the Three Kings await them. Don’t forget to prepare letters with your most cherished wishes for them.
The park also has a 2,000 m² ice rink, designed by world figure skating champion Javier Fernández. Professional skaters and Javier himself perform here every day, adding to the festive atmosphere.
You can grab a bite to eat and buy souvenirs at the charming Christmas market in Mágicas Navidades.
The park is located on the grounds of the Torrejón de Ardoz trade fair complex, near the Torrejón de Ardoz Cercanías train station. The journey by train, bus, or car from Madrid takes less than half an hour.
Barcelona
Christmas in Barcelona is a magical time when the city turns into a big festive area! It all starts at the end of November with the lighting of the illuminations — Els Llums de Nadal. More than 400 locations in the city are decorated with lights and garlands, stretching a total of 110 kilometres. The most beautiful Christmas light shows are held in Plaza de Cataluña and the streets around it, as well as on Carrer d’Aragó and Gran Via de las Cortes Catalanas. One of the best ways to see them is a Christmas sightseeing tour on a double-decker bus.
If you want to bring the best souvenirs and Christmas ornaments from Barcelona, then go to the festive fairs for which the city is famous. The oldest of them is the Fira de Santa Llúcia. It has been held since 1786 around the Barcelona Cathedral. Also worth visiting are the Fira de Nadal de la Sagrada Família near the city’s main landmark, the Fira de Reis de la Gran Via on the street of the same name, and the Fira Nadal de Port Vell in the port of Barcelona.
And don’t forget to buy the main symbols of Christmas in Catalonia: a figurine of a caganer (a man doing his business) and a log called Caga Tio (or Tió de Nadal), which little Catalans take care of a few weeks before the holiday so that they can squeeze more gifts and sweets out of it.
Read also: Christmas in Catalonia and Barcelona — festive traditions and events
Barcelona during Christmas pleases with a huge selection of cultural and entertainment events — from classical music concerts that sound on the stages of the Gran Teatro del Liceo, L’Auditori, and Palau de la Música Catalana, to open-air performances during the Festival de Nadal in Plaza de Cataluña. And if you are celebrating Christmas in Barcelona with children, be sure to visit Poble Espanyol, where from November 30 to January 5 there will be an extensive festive program with lots of fun activities for the whole family.
And of course, when making a list of things to do in Barcelona on Christmas Day, don’t forget to include attending Midnight Mass. The most beautiful Misa del Gallo is said to take place in the Benedictine monastery of Montserrat, near Barcelona. Its boys’ choir was founded in the 14th century, is one of the oldest in Europe, and tours all over the world.
One of the most unusual traditions of celebrating Christmas Day in Barcelona is the Copa Nadal. This is an annual swim that the Barcelona Swimming Club has been organizing for everyone since 1907. Participants must swim 200 metres across open water in the harbour, next to L’Aquàrium. The race traditionally starts on the morning of 25 December and attracts several hundred participants and a huge crowd of spectators.
The grand finale of the Christmas season in Barcelona is the Three Kings Parade. Melchior, Caspar and Baltasar arrive in Port Vell on the evening of 5 January on the schooner Santa Eulalia. After a ceremonial meeting with the mayor, they transfer to decorated platforms and move through the city. They are accompanied by pages and fairy-tale characters who shower the spectators with candy. The procession goes along Avenida del Marquès de l’Argentera, Via Laietana and Plaza de Cataluña and ends at the Magic Fountain of Montjuïc. Get your seats early, as there are a lot of spectators.
Tenerife
Have you always wanted to spend Christmas in the Canary Islands? Tenerife is a great choice for you! Here, national and island traditions of celebration mix and create a bright and original cocktail. Therefore, your Christmas holidays in Tenerife will leave many pleasant memories.
The weather on the island in December is very comfortable for beach walks, sunbathing, and surfing. In the southern part, the air warms up to +26°C during the day, and in the northern part — up to +23°C. The water temperature near the coast reaches +18°-20°C.
If you dream of a white Christmas in Tenerife, you can climb to the top of the Teide volcano, which is covered with snow in the winter months.
The festive season starts on the last weekend of November when the Christmas illuminations are lit in Santa Cruz de Tenerife, the capital of the island, as well as in La Laguna and La Orotava. Christmas markets, concerts, and performances are held in the main squares of the cities. And in Santa Cruz, the Gastro Navidad Market Fest has already become a tradition, which usually lasts from December 14 to January 6.
The main center of family fun in the capital is the Children and Youth Park of Tenerife or PIT (Parque Infantil y Juvenil de Tenerife). It traditionally opens during the Christmas season on the territory of the Centro Internacional de Ferias y Congresos de Tenerife. Children and adults can enjoy 35 different playgrounds, attractions, an ice rink, musical and theatrical shows, as well as interesting master classes.
In Tenerife, as throughout Spain, the tradition of decorating cities with nativity scenes is very popular. And in this, La Orotava will give odds to any city in the Kingdom. There is even a special route Ruta de Belenes, which takes tourists through 30 nativity scenes. The Spanish nativity scenes are very elaborate and include not only the manger where Jesus was born but also the entire town of Bethlehem with its inhabitants, houses, farms, and markets.
Also on the island, you can see the Belén Viviente (Living Nativity), a theatrical performance of the birth of Jesus, which is held outdoors with the participation of the townspeople. The most popular Belén Viviente are held in La Orotava, the Tigaiga area of Los Realejos, and the Plaza de la Candelaria in Santa Cruz.
A special highlight of your Christmas Day in Tenerife is the Concierto de Navidad Puertos de Tenerife, performed by the famous Tenerife Symphony Orchestra. Every year, this open-air classical music concert is attended by about 20,000 spectators and is broadcast live on Spanish television and online around the world. For this reason, it has been awarded the status of Cultural Event of International Tourist Interest. The event takes place on December 25th at the port of Santa Cruz de Tenerife.
Malaga
Malaga at Christmas is beautiful! Its main festive attraction is the stunningly beautiful illumination of the pedestrian shopping street Calle Marqués de Larios (or simply Calle Larios). By the end of November, it is decorated with hundreds of thousands of LED lights, creating complex compositions in the form of columns and arches. Each year their theme changes. The work of the illumination is synchronized with the sound of popular Christmas melodies, creating an incredible light and sound show.
Calle Larios is the most famous, but not the only location where you can enjoy the beauty of Christmas lights in Malaga. In the historic center of the city, about 80 streets, squares, iconic landmarks, and roundabouts are decorated. Be sure to take a stroll along the city’s central street, Alameda Principal. 270,000 light bulbs shine in the crowns of the trees growing here. Also visit Plaza de la Constitución, Calle San Juan, and Calle Molina Lario — they are no less beautifully decorated.
From November 29, 2024, to January 6, 2025, the La Concepción Historical-Botanical Gardens will host a grand light show, Ilusión. This year, for the first time, Malaga will host a lantern festival dedicated to the celebration of the Chinese New Year. It will be held in the Parque del Oeste from November 29, 2024, to February 12, 2025. On an area of 3 hectares, 600 skillfully made and beautifully illuminated figures in the form of real and mythical animals, as well as fantastic characters, will be installed. In addition, the festival program includes interesting workshops, theater, music, and dance performances.+
When celebrating Christmas in Malaga, Spain, do not miss the video mapping show on the southern facade of the Cathedral tower. It usually takes place daily at 6:45, 8:00, and 10:00 p.m. from December 1 to January 4, excluding December 24 and 31.
Malaga boasts festive markets during Christmas. The two most popular of them are located in Paseo del Parque and on Muelle Uno in the port of Malaga. Here you can buy Christmas tree decorations and souvenirs, clothes, home decor, jewelry, handmade cosmetics, and much more. And be sure to try traditional Christmas sweets — marzipan, turrón nougat, mantecados shortbread cookies, and unusual borrachuelos cakes, which are prepared with the addition of Malaga wine.
And the most unusual place that you should visit in Malaga at Christmas is the English Cemetery. This is the oldest Protestant necropolis in Spain, dating back to 1831. From December 1 to January 4, from 5:00 p.m. to 10:00 p.m., the cemetery becomes a real portal to the Victorian era. Here you can listen to Christmas carols performed by choirs dressed as English carolers of that time, and see a production based on the fairy tale A Christmas Carol by Charles Dickens. Also take a fascinating tour of the cemetery, decorated with sparkling garlands and lights. There will also be a van where you can buy hot chocolate or mulled wine. And the beautiful Gate House will temporarily turn into a store with Christmas goods.
Benidorm
Benidorm is a famous resort on the Costa Blanca coast in the Valencia region. Even in December, it is warm and sunny, and the average daytime temperature fluctuates between +9°C and +18°C. If you come to Benidorm at Christmas, you can spend the holiday in a special atmosphere — enjoy the warmth of the sun and the gentle breeze of the Mediterranean Sea, have fun and learn about local traditions.
We advise you to book a hotel in advance, as during Christmas the demand for rooms increases sharply.
In early December, the city starts BeniNadal — a special festive fair with an extensive program. At the Plaza de SS.MM. Reyes de España, the Christmas Square (Plaza de la Navidad) opens with illuminations, rides, bouncy castles, an ice rink, and a stage for daily concerts. Here you can also see the beautifully illuminated figures of the Three Kings, 10 meters high! And you will find their festive camp in the garden next to the Town Hall.
Benidorm’s little guests will be delighted with the Christmas House, which is open throughout the festive season in the Casa-Museo de l’Hort de Colón. Here, the little ones can enjoy interesting workshops, concerts, puppet shows, and magic shows. And on the eve of Christmas, Papá Noel himself often drops by.
The city is also famous for its nativity scenes. The most monumental one is installed in the Plaza de SS.MM. Reyes de España, and the more traditional one is in the Town Hall building. No Xmas in Benidorm is complete without another important location — the Porrat Navideño festive market in Elche Park. This is the best place to buy Spanish Christmas decorations and taste local delicacies.
A very unusual festive tradition of Benidorm is the San Silvestre Christmas Run. In 2024, it will be held for the 14th time. Everyone can take part, including children. Don’t forget to register in advance and bring a fun Christmas costume.
If you decide to stay in Benidorm for the New Year, be sure to attend the traditional party that takes place on December 31st on Levante Beach (Playa de Levante). And on the evening of January 5th, at 6:00 p.m., the grand parade of the Three Kings takes place. It features colorfully decorated floats and many creative groups, representatives of city associations, and festive groups who throw sweets for children. The procession starts in Elche Park and goes through the streets of the city to the Plaza de SS.MM. Reyes de España and finishes in L’Aiguera Park. Here, the Magi addresses the children from the stage of the Auditorio Julio Iglesias.
Puebla de Sanabria
Puebla de Sanabria is a city in the autonomous community of Castile and León. It is known for its well-preserved medieval architecture, thanks to which it has received the status of a historico-artistic complex and was included in the hundred most beautiful cities in Spain according to National Geographic. It is also located in a very scenic mountainous area within the Sanabria Lake Nature Park.
Despite its modest size, the city is very popular with tourists. And at Navidad, Puebla de Sanabria becomes a real place of pilgrimage. The fact is that in 2018 the city won the competition «Juntos Brillamos Más» from Ferrero Rocher and received as a reward stunning Christmas illumination. And now every year at the beginning of December its cobbled streets are flooded with the light of tens of thousands of golden lights.
The city has an incredible festive atmosphere and fun. Local authorities are preparing a very rich program for guests: concerts with the performance of traditional Spanish Christmas carols, nativity scene exhibitions, theatrical performances, fireworks, and much more. Be sure to visit the Christmas market to taste regional dishes and buy souvenirs. Don’t miss a tour of the famous 15th-century Puebla de Sanabria Castle, also known as the Castle of the Counts of Benavente. And don’t miss the chance to admire the natural beauty of Lake Sanabria on a hiking tour.
Where else to visit in Spain for Christmas
- Visit Cordoba to admire its famous patios, which, apart from Christmas, can only be seen during La Fiesta de los Patios de Córdoba.
- Visit Seville to witness the amazing rite of Los Seises. This is a very complex and ancient dance ritual performed by ten boys in historical costumes in front of the Seville Cathedral on December 8, the Day of the Immaculate Conception (Dia de la Inmaculada Concepción).
- Head to Arcos de la Frontera in Andalusia to see the largest Belén Viviente (Living Nativity Scene) in Spain. The show lasts 5 hours and involves over 20,000 citizens, temporarily transforming Arcos de la Frontera into ancient Bethlehem.
- Explore the sights of Estepa (Seville, Andalusia), home to the main traditional Spanish Christmas sweets: mantecados, polvorones, and marzipan. Visit the La Estepeña factory and visit the Chocomundo Chocolate Museum, the largest in Spain. Estepa loves Christmas so much that it is the first in Europe to turn on its festive lights, 52 days before Christmas.
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