Christmas in Alicante lasts from the switch-on of the Christmas lights in late November until the Three Kings Parade on 5 January. The streets fill with lights, a giant nativity scene goes up in the centre, and there are Christmas markets, a funfair and children’s events almost every day.
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This guide covers when the lights go on, where to see them, the Christmas markets, the nativity scenes, the Christmas funfair, what changes on 24 and 25 December, and the Three Kings.
Christmas Events in Alicante This Season
Events announced so far:
- Christmas lights switch-on20 November 2026, 19:00 · Avenida de la Constitución, Alicante · All ages
- Saint Nicholas' House (Casa de San Nicolás)27 November 2026 – 24 December 2026 · Plaza Séneca, Alicante · Families
Events checked on 10 November 2026.
The dates for next Christmas have not been announced yet, so unless a section says otherwise, the dates, times and places on this page are from last Christmas, which ended on 6 January 2026.
Christmas Lights in Alicante
The next switch-on is on 20 November 2026, at 19:00 on Avenida de la Constitución, the pedestrian street with the big Christmas tree.
The lights are up in 130 locations across the city. For a walk past the best of them, start on the Explanada, walk to the City Hall square, then past the Co-cathedral of San Nicolás and up the Rambla to Avenida de la Constitución, and back to the sea along Calle Bailén.
Last season the lights were on for the last time on 6 January 2026.
The free Christmas bus
Around Christmas, a free bus line runs round the centre, with stops at the Rambla, Luceros, Estación-Óscar Esplá, Calle Portugal, Federico Soto and Teatro. It runs every day from 09:00 to 22:30, every 10 minutes.
The last one ran from 22 December 2025 to 6 January 2026; the council usually announces the next one a few days before Christmas.
More about the Christmas bus in Alicante buses.
Christmas Markets in Alicante
Alicante has no big Central European-style Christmas market, although Christmas markets are becoming more common in the city. Two of them, the Christmas market and the nuts and sweets market, are on Paseo de Federico Soto, the promenade down the middle of Avenida de Federico Soto, between Plaza de los Luceros, which has a TRAM stop, and Plaza de Calvo Sotelo (open it in Google Maps).
The Christmas market (Mercado de Navidad)
Its stalls sell crafts, gifts, decorations and Christmas sweets. It is open from 10:00 to 15:00 and from 17:00 to 23:00 (on 5 January, from 17:00 to midnight).
It ran from 1 December 2025 to 6 January 2026.
The nuts and sweets market (Mercado de Cascaruja y Porrate)
In the last days before Christmas, a second market on the same promenade sells nuts, dried fruit, Christmas sweets and other traditional products (cascaruja is the local word for nuts and dried fruit, and a porrate is a traditional fair that sells them). It is open from 10:00 to midnight.
It ran from 20 December 2025 to 24 December 2025.
Turrón and other Christmas sweets
The classic Spanish Christmas sweet is turrón, a nougat made with almonds and honey. Most of it is made in Xixona (Jijona in Spanish), a town in the hills north of Alicante, and in December you will find it in every supermarket and bakery. Other Christmas sweets are polvorones and mantecados (crumbly shortbread biscuits), and on 6 January, the roscón de Reyes (a ring-shaped cake).
Nativity Scenes (Belenes) in Alicante
Nativity scenes (belenes) are the heart of Christmas in Alicante. Besides the ones below, many shops all over the city set one up in the window or inside, and you will also find them in churches, in shopping centres and in the hall of the train station.
The giant nativity scene
The giant nativity scene (Belén Gigante) stands in the City Hall square (Plaza del Ayuntamiento). Its figures are as tall as a building: Saint Joseph alone is 17 metres (56 ft) tall. Guinness World Records lists them as the largest nativity scene figures in the world.
It was up from 23 November 2025 to 7 January 2026.
The City Hall also has its own nativity scene, inside the building, in its entrance hall on Plaza del Ayuntamiento.
The Belén Social in Plaza de la Montañeta
The Alicante nativity scene makers’ association (Asociación de Belenistas de Alicante) sets up the Belén Social in Plaza de la Montañeta, a few minutes' walk from Paseo de Federico Soto (Google Maps). It is well worth a visit, and Alicante families have been coming to see it for decades.
It has four scenes, each about 4 metres (13 ft) wide, behind large windows on the square: two in the biblical style and two in the popular, traditional Spanish style, with most figures about 20 cm (8 in) tall.
The Montañeta nativity scene opened on 26 November 2025.
It is open every day from 9:00 to 22:00, until 6 January.
The provincial council’s exhibition
The provincial council (Diputación) holds an exhibition of nativity scenes in the exhibition hall of its palace, the Palacio Provincial, at Avenida de la Estación 6, near Plaza de los Luceros (Google Maps). Entry is free.
The last one ran from 3 December 2025 to 6 January 2026; the next one usually opens in early December.
Opening hours (source in Spanish):
| Day | Opening hours |
|---|---|
| Monday to Saturday | 10:00 am to 1:00 pm and 5:00 pm to 9:00 pm |
| Sundays and holidays | 11:00 am to 2:00 pm and 5:00 pm to 9:00 pm |
| 24 and 31 December | Closes at 7:00 pm |
Saint Nicholas’ House (Casa de San Nicolás)
Saint Nicholas’ House is Alicante’s Father Christmas house, where children visit Saint Nicholas, who is also the city’s patron saint. It is in Plaza Séneca, and no booking is needed (booking is only for schools and social groups). It is open in the afternoons from 16:00 or 17:00, depending on the day, until 21:00 (21:30 from 19 to 23 December), and on some mornings from 10:00 to 14:30; on its last day, 24 December, it closes at 14:30.
This season it is open from 27 November 2026 to 24 December 2026.
The Christmas Funfair in Rabasa
The Christmas funfair (Feria de Navidad, also called the feria de los caballitos) is part of Christmas in Alicante, and it stays open after Christmas, into January. It fills the Rabasa fairground, north of the centre, with rides, games and food stalls. Rides cost a few euros each.
It ran from 28 November 2025 to 18 January 2026.
It is open Monday to Thursday from 17:00 to midnight, on Fridays, Saturdays and the eves of holidays from 17:00 to 01:00, and on Sundays and holidays from 11:00 to 01:00; from 20 December to 6 January, every day from 11:00 to 01:00.
Getting to the Christmas funfair
The fairground is in Rabasa, near big shops such as Decathlon (open the location in Google Maps). The easiest way there is by car: there is a large car park next to it. There is no direct bus or TRAM: the nearest stops, about a 15-minute walk away, are Ciudad Jardín on TRAM Line 2 and Divina Pastora on city bus line 04.
Christmas Eve and Christmas Day in Alicante
In Spain the big family meal of Christmas is the dinner on Christmas Eve (Nochebuena), on 24 December. 25 December (Navidad) is a public holiday. On 22 December, much of Spain follows the Christmas lottery draw (El Gordo) on TV, which marks the start of the holidays for many people.
Many shops close early on 24 December and most are closed on 25 December. Restaurants that open on those days usually serve a set Christmas menu, and the popular ones need booking well ahead.
Buses, TRAM and taxis on 24 and 25 December
These details are from the latest notices, for 24 and 25 December 2025: the Vectalia notice covers city buses on 24 December, and the FGV TRAM timetable covers both days. Check for new ones before you travel.
- City buses: on 24 December the last buses leave every terminus at 21:00 and there are no night buses (Vectalia notice in Spanish). For 25 December, check Vectalia’s notices. Lines and fares: Alicante buses.
- TRAM: the TRAM runs a special timetable on 24 and 25 December, different from both its weekday and its holiday timetables. Check the times on the TRAM d’Alacant website before you travel on those days. Lines and fares: TRAM guide.
- Airport bus (C6): the Christmas Eve notice covers the city buses only, so check Vectalia’s notices for the C6 before you travel on 24 December. On other days, the C6 runs as in our C6 guide.
- Taxis: in Alicante city, 24 December counts as a holiday, so the night and holiday tariff (Tariff 2) applies all day, as on 25 December, which is a public holiday, and every trip from 21:00 on 24 December to 07:00 on 25 December adds a supplement of 3€ (official tariffs). More in taxis, Uber, Bolt and Cabify in Alicante.
New Year’s Eve in Alicante
On 31 December, the City Hall usually holds two New Year’s Eve parties: a morning party for families and a night party for adults, where free grapes are handed out for the 12 chimes. Entry is free. Times, places and how to get home that night are in our guide to New Year’s Eve in Alicante.
The Three Kings (Reyes Magos)
Christmas in Spain ends with the Three Kings (Reyes Magos). Most children write their Christmas letter to them, and on the night of 5 January the Kings bring the presents. That evening they parade through towns all over Spain, throwing sweets to the children. 6 January is a public holiday, and the day for the roscón de Reyes.
5 January: the reception and the parade
Before the parade, the Kings greet the children at the Bullring (Plaza de Toros) at 18:00, after a children's show from 17:00 to 18:00. Entry is free but needs an invitation: at least 5,000 are handed out, and how to get them is announced in the weeks before the parade.
The parade (Cabalgata de Reyes) starts at 19:00 on Avenida de la Estación, next to the Palacio Provincial, goes along Plaza de los Luceros, Avenida Alfonso X el Sabio, Rambla de Méndez Núñez and calle Rafael Altamira, and ends in Plaza del Ayuntamiento (route of the 2026 parade). Watching it from the street is free.
The map shows the route of the 2026 parade.
In recent years the parade has had three parts: first dance groups and the Hogueras associations, then scenes from the Bible, such as the birth of Jesus, followed by the Three Kings, Melchor, Gaspar and Baltasar, each on his own float, and last the floats of the sponsors, who hand out presents to the children.
Seats for the parade
Seats along the route are sold in advance. For the last parade they went on sale on 26 December 2025, from 10:00, online at vivaticket.es and in person at the Bullring. They sell out fast, so buy them as soon as the sale opens.
Letters to the Three Kings
In the days after Christmas, the City Hall sets up the camp of the Kings’ royal letter carriers (Campamento de los Carteros Reales) in Plaza Gabriel Miró, where children can hand in their letters.
It was open from 26 December 2025 to 4 January 2026.
The letter carriers also parade through the centre on 4 January from 18:00, from Plaza de España to the bottom of the Rambla (Fondo Rambla), where they collect the children's letters.
Weather at Christmas in Alicante
Days around Christmas are usually mild and sunny, and nights are cool: December averages a high of 17.7°C (63.9°F) and a low of 7.4°C (45.3°F). Bring a warm layer for the evenings out. More in Alicante weather in December.
Christmas in Alicante: FAQ
The next switch-on is on 20 November 2026, at 19:00 on Avenida de la Constitución.
Yes. The Christmas market is on Paseo de Federico Soto, open from 10:00 to 15:00 and from 17:00 to 23:00 (on 5 January, from 17:00 to midnight), and in the last days before Christmas a nuts and sweets market opens on the same promenade. The latest Christmas market ran from 1 December 2025 to 6 January 2026.
It stands in the City Hall square (Plaza del Ayuntamiento). The latest one was there from 23 November 2025 to 7 January 2026. Guinness World Records lists its figures as the largest of any nativity scene.
Yes, but city buses stop early: on 24 December the last buses leave every terminus at 21:00 and there are no night buses. The TRAM runs a special timetable on 24 and 25 December, different from both its weekday and its holiday timetables. These details are from the latest notices, for 24 and 25 December 2025: the Vectalia notice covers city buses on 24 December, and the FGV TRAM timetable covers both days.
It is a Father Christmas house where children can meet Saint Nicholas, the patron saint of Alicante. It is in Plaza Séneca, and no booking is needed (booking is only for schools and social groups). This season it is open from 27 November 2026 to 24 December 2026.
On the evening of 5 January. It starts at 19:00 on Avenida de la Estación, next to the Palacio Provincial, and ends in Plaza del Ayuntamiento. That is the route of the 2026 parade.
No. Watching it from the street is free. Seats along the route are sold in advance and sell out fast. For the last parade they went on sale on 26 December 2025, from 10:00, online at vivaticket.es and in person at the Bullring.
It ran from 28 November 2025 to 18 January 2026. It is open Monday to Thursday from 17:00 to midnight, on Fridays, Saturdays and the eves of holidays from 17:00 to 01:00, and on Sundays and holidays from 11:00 to 01:00; from 20 December to 6 January, every day from 11:00 to 01:00.
December averages a high of 17.7°C (63.9°F) and a low of 7.4°C (45.3°F), so days are mild and nights are cool.