Though Christmas has become one of the largest commercial events in countless western countries, commercialism doesn’t define Christmas in Spain. Devout Catholics in Spain are
deeply religious and focus much more so on the actual events surrounding the birth of Jesus. The important holidays throughout the season clearly illustrate the beginning of Christmas celebrations in Spain.
Tradition
Most people in Spain go to Midnight Mass or ‘La Misa Del Gallo’ (The Mass of the Rooster). The traditional Spanish Christmas dinner is ‘Pavo Trufado de Navidad’ which is basically stuffed Turkey stuffed with truffles. In Galicia (a region in north-west Spain, surrounded by water) the most popular meal for Christmas Eve and for Christmas Day is seafood.
After the midnight service, people walk through the streets carrying torches, playing guitars and beating on tambourines and drums. One Spanish saying is ‘Esta noche es Noche-Buena, Y no Es noche de dormir’ which means ‘Tonight is the good night and it is not meant for sleeping!’ New Year’s Eve is called ‘Nochevieja’ or ‘The Old Night’ in Spain and one special tradition is that one eats 12 grapes with the 12 strokes of the clock at Midnight! Each grape represents a month of the coming year, so if you eat the twelve grapes, you are said to be lucky in the New Year.
Christmas in the Basque Country
In the Basque country (which is a part of northern Spain and southern France), on Christmas Eve, children’s presents are delivered by a magical man called Olentzero. He’s a big, overweight man wearing a beret and smoking a pipe. He dresses like a Basque farmer.
Celebrations
In Spain, holidays are now more affordable than ever. A combination of budget airlines, new resorts and the opening of new areas to tourism has sent holidaymakers flocking to book late deals in Spain. Familiar destinations like the Costa Brava, Ibiza and Majorca are still as popular as ever, but a growing number of tourists are booking villas in the Costa Dorada, Murcia and Valencia. Offering many unique Spanish traditions during the festive season, it would be undoubtedly an extra special Christmas celebration at Spain!
| Destination | Airlines | Price(INR) | ||
| India – Madrid | Qatar Airways |
35894
| ||
| India – Barcelona | Qatar Airways |
39197
| ||
| India – Valencia | Turkish Airlines |
51122
| ||
| India – Malaga | Swiss |
52116
| ||
| India – Alicante | British Airways |
57488
| ||
| India – Bilbao | Air France |
72981
| ||
| India – Seville | Emirates |
65313
| ||
| India – Ibiza | British Airways |
60727
|
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