Christmas in Alicante 2026: a practical guide

When do Alicante's Christmas lights come on in 2026?

2026 date: not announced. In 2025 it came out in mid-November.

2025 for reference:

• Switch-on: Friday 21 November at 19:00 on Avenida de la Constitución (City Council), with the mayor and the Belleas del Foc in front of about 4,000 people (City Council).
• 2.6 million LED lights at 130 spots: 557 arches, 546 lamp-post motifs and 1,800 metres of garlands (City Council).

Best streets for lights and decorations

In 2025 the centre was lit in a champagne tone (City Council):

• Avenida de la Constitución: an 18-metre tree with steady lights and large figures beside it.
• Alfonso el Sabio: arches designed for the city.
• Explanada: three ground figures and, at the Canalejas end, giant "Feliz Navidad" letters.
• Six giant angels: General Marvá, the University and Gran Vía roundabouts, Plaza de San Cristóbal, Condomina at Costa Blanca, and the bullring (official programme).

Official notes do not describe the Rambla or Maisonnave. There was no daily light show.

The giant nativity scene in Plaza del Ayuntamiento

It is not in Luceros: it has stood in Plaza del Ayuntamiento since 2020. That year Guinness certified it as the world's largest nativity scene figures: Saint Joseph is 18.10 metres tall, Mary 10.58 and the Child 3.32, beating Monterrey in Mexico (City Council). It now includes the Three Kings, 11 to 16 metres tall (City Council).

2025 for reference: opened on Sunday 23 November at 19:00 with a light and sound show, and stayed up until 7 January (official programme). The square was closed to traffic (City Council).

2026: not announced. In June the council approved funding to pedestrianise the square, with no works dates (City Council).

Other nativity scenes

2025 for reference (official programme):

• City Hall entrance: large biblical figures by the nativity association, from 27 November.
• Belén Social in Plaza de la Montañeta: four scenes, from 26 November.
• Holy Week brotherhoods, Palacio El Portalet (calle Labradores, 15): until 6 January, closed on Mondays.
• Provincial Council, Adif station and Gran Vía shopping centre, from early December.
• Nativity Museum (calle San Agustín, 3): free, Tuesday to Friday 10:00 to 13:45 and 17:15 to 19:45 (City Council).

Christmas markets and fairs

2025-2026 dates for reference (official programme):

The official programme lists no Christmas markets in Montañeta, the Explanada or Paseíto Ramiro.

Christmas by the sea and Fogueres en Nadal

• Postiguet and Explanada: in 2025, Navi Fitness at the Explanada bandstand (14 December) and a Christmas sea swim at Postiguet (21 December, 9:30).
• Port: there was a skating rink (City Council), with no dates or price published. No Ferris wheel on record.
• Fogueres en Nadal: a Christmas bonfire monument goes up in Plaza de la Montañeta (18 December 2025, 20:00) and is burned on the 21st.

New Year's Eve in Alicante

2025 for reference (official programme), on the Rambla at Portal de Elche:

• Children's party: 10:30 to 13:30, with a midday chimes rehearsal at 12:00.
• New Year's party: 23:00 to 4:00, with free grapes and the Athenas orchestra.
• Chimes: they ring from the City Hall clock; many people gather in the square, others stay on the Rambla and hear them over the speakers (AlicantePlaza).

2026: not announced.

Three Kings Parade 2027: date, time and route

It will be on Tuesday 5 January 2027. Time and route not published.

2026 for reference:

• The Kings reached the Port at about 17:00 (City Council), landing at the Escaleritas de la Reina, and greeted children at the bullring at 18:00, by invitation.
• The parade left Avenida de la Estación, by the Palacio Provincial, at 19:00 (City Council), via Luceros, Alfonso el Sabio, the Rambla and Altamira, reaching Plaza del Ayuntamiento around 21:30 (El Debate).
• About 8,000 seats went on sale on 26 December, on vivaticket.es and at the bullring.

Practical tips

• Public holidays: in the Valencia region Tuesday 8 December is a holiday; the 6th falls on a Sunday and is not moved to Monday 7 (BOE).
• Shops: across the region shops may open on 29 November and 13, 20 and 27 December (Ministry of Trade). On top of that, all of Alicante is a high-tourism zone: from 15 June to 5 January each shop chooses whether to open on Sundays and holidays, except 25 December and 1 January (City Council).
• Free bus: in 2025, from 22 December to 6 January, 9:00 to 22:30 every 10 minutes, via the Rambla, Luceros, the station, Federico Soto and Teatro (City Council).
• TRAM: Luceros is the central station. On New Year's Eve 2025, lines 1 to 4 ran a special late-night service (AlicantePlaza).