What is the biggest Christmas event in Spain?

1. “El Gordo” Christmas lottery. The Christmas time festivities kick-start in Spain on 22nd December with the National Christmas Lottery. The first prize is popularly known as “El Gordo”.

What is the main Christmas celebration in Spain?

In Spain, a predominantly Catholic nation, it's a common practice for people to attend church on Christmas Eve after their grand Christmas dinner for the 'misa del gallo' at midnight. During this midnight mass, Spaniards renew their faith and celebrate the birth of Jesus Christ on Christmas Day.

What is the most important day during the Christmas holiday in Spain?

The most important day of the Christmas period, and the day on which children receive presents, is the Day of the Three Kings, or Epiphany (January 6). By contrast, nonreligious, civic holidays have been relatively insignificant.

What happens in Spain on the 22nd of December?

Christmas in Spanish. Although Christmas Eve isn't until December 24, Christmas always comes to Spain a few days early, on December 22. That's the day the winning numbers of the hugely popular Spanish Christmas Lottery are drawn and announced in song by schoolchildren on live TV.

What happens on the 23rd of December in Spain?

Father Christmas comes in a different guise in Basque country, dating back to pagan times. Olentzero is a giant peasant type character, dressed in traditional charcoal burner's clothes. Olentzero is carried through Bilbao 23 December and waits for children outside the Arriaga Theatre on Christmas Eve.

What's Christmas like in Spain? | Celebrating Christmas in Spain

What happens on December 25 in Spain?

Christmas day in Spain isn't limited to the 25th of December because traditionally, Spain doesn't have a Santa Claus (Papa Noel). Instead, different regions of Spain have their version of Santa Claus. In Catalonia, families eagerly await Tió de Nadal a hollow log that's brought to life with a face and two legs.

What happens on the 28th of December in Spain?

This is one of the most popular and entertaining Christmas traditions in Spain. December 28 is the day when everyone is allowed to play practical jokes and when it is customary to buy prank items at Christmas markets like the one in the Plaza Mayor in Madrid.

What happens on December 24 in Spain?

The most special night is 24th December, Christmas Eve, when restaurants and hotels offer extraordinary menus to celebrate it in a big way. The meals normally include several starters, for example, Ibérico ham, seafood and delicious cheeses, followed by dishes such as soups, roast meat, fish or stuffed turkey.

What happens on the 26th of December in Spain?

Boxing Day isn't the same in Spain as it is in the UK or other Commonwealth countries; it's not referred to as that and it's not a shopping holiday. What is celebrated on December 26th in Catalonia and the Balearic Islands is Saint Stephen's Day, known as well as the Feast of Saint Stephen.

What happens on December 25th and January 6th in Spain?

Presents Today, Please!

Rather, presents are delivered to children, not on December 6, not on December 25, but on January 6. January 6 in Spain is like our Christmas Day in the United States. That's when the three kings deliver presents to the children of Spain. We have another month to wait for gifts around here!

Does Spain have a Santa Claus?

One of the most unique facts about Christmas in Spain is that there's no Santa Claus. Forget Saint Nick – in Spain, it's the Three Kings or the Three Wise Men (known as Reyes Magos – Melchior, Gaspar and Baltazar) who bring the gifts to good children at Christmas time. They also don't come on Christmas Eve.

What does Spain call Santa?

4. Spanish: Papa Noel (lit. Father Christmas)

What do most people in Spain do on Christmas Eve?

Called Nochebuena, meaning 'good night' in Spanish, Christmas Eve consists of a large and lengthy evening meal with the family. At the end of the meal, typical Christmas sweets are served including turrón, marzipan, polvorones, among many other things.

What are 3 fun facts about Christmas in Spain?

What is January 6th called in Spain?

Día de Reyes, January 6th

Three Kings' Day is celebrated on the sixth by opening presents with family, and by eating a round Kings' Cake (called la rosca de Reyes in Spanish), a tradition which dates back to the 14th century in Europe.

What food do they eat in Spain on Christmas?

A Christmas meal that is almost never-ending

Iberian ham, a wide variety of rich cheeses, seafood, preserves, pickles, elaborate delicacies prepared specially for the festivities... It's almost hard to believe that these are just starters. Then the first course arrives and this typically involves a stew or soup/broth.

Does Spain have Boxing Day?

We Catalans eat a big meal on Christmas Day, with some delicious food followed by neules, torrons, Christmas carols and poems. And the following day, St Stephen's Day, we do it again. But why is St Stephen's Day (Boxing Day) such a firmly rooted custom here when it isn't celebrated in the rest of Spain?

Does Spain do Boxing Day?

It´s only in Catalonia and the Balearic Islands -to my knowledge- that it´s a public holiday, as they celebrate San Esteban (Sant Esteve - St Stephen), a very important familiar day in those regions. In fact, to many catalans it´s more important than Christmas day.

What happens on the night of January 6 Christmas in Spain?

January 6 is the day of the Epiphany, the day when the Three Kings arrived in Bethlehem to give their gifts to baby Jesus. Even though it has become more popular for Spaniards to receive gifts from Santa Claus on Christmas day, our tradition is to receive them from the Three Kings on January 6.

What happens on the 31st of December in Spain?

On the evening of the 31st of December, all televisions in Spain light up with the image of the Puerta del Sol. Thousands of people flock to the square to usher in the New Year and eat 12 lucky grapes to the twelve chimes of the Real Casa de Correos clock.

What happens on the 6th of December in Spain?

CONSTITUTION Day is a bank holiday across Spain every December 6 and marks the anniversary of the referendum which approved a new constitution for the country.

What does Spain do on Boxing Day?

Boxing day is not really celebrated in Spain and although many people are off work throughout the Christmas period, the 26th tends to see most shops open. Traditionally though children write to the three kings on this day with their requests for gifts on 6th January (see below).

What do Spanish people do at midnight on December 31st?

New Year's Eve in Spain is know as Noche Vieja (Old Night). It is a custom to stay at home till midnight and at midnight people eat doce uvas (twelve grapes), one at each stroke of the clock. This is supposed to bring good luck, prosperity, and happiness in el Año Nuevo (the New Year).

What are the 6th and 8th December holidays in Spain?

The winter holiday season kicks off in Spain in early December with two national holidays falling only a day apart: Dia de la Constitució (Spanish Constitution Day) on December 6 and La Immaculada Concepció (also known as La Puríssima) on December 8.

Why is 6 and 8 December a holiday in Spain?

On December 6, 1978, the Spanish people approved the new constitution by 88% in a referendum. This marked a crucial turning point in the transition from a dictatorship to modern-day Spain and is an important anniversary. December 8 is a Holy Day of Obligation in the Catholic Church.