Christmas in Bilbao 2026: a practical guide

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

2026 date: not announced. 2025 for reference (Kulturklik, Basque Government):

• Switch-on: Wednesday 26 November 2025 at 20:00 in Doña Casilda Park, next to the light tunnel: over 1.5 million LED lights across the city.
• Hours: 18:00 to midnight every day until 6 January, two hours longer than the year before (Blog Euskaltel).

Streets, trees and light shows

The 2025 highlights, from the city programme as reported by Blog Euskaltel:

• Doña Casilda light tunnel: over 70 metres long, with music-and-light shows at 18:30, 19:30 and 20:30.
• Moyua tree: 14 metres tall, with light-and-sound shows at 19:00, 20:00 and 21:00.
• El Arenal magic forest: 120 illuminated trees.
• Gran Vía: blue lights from end to end.
• City Hall: lit façade and tree; opposite, on the Uribitarte quay, a golden whale.

Suggested evening walk: Doña Casilda, Gran Vía to Moyua, Plaza Circular, El Arenal and the Old Town.

Santo Tomás fair: 21 December

This is the busiest day of Bilbao's Christmas: farmers from the Basque countryside sell their produce and the city eats talo with txistorra (corn flatbread with a thin spicy sausage) washed down with cider. It is held every 21 December; in 2026 that is a Monday. The 2026 programme has not been published.

2025 for reference (Sunday 21 December, Blog Euskaltel):

• Where: El Arenal, the Tinglados and around the Arriaga Theatre. El Arenal is closed to traffic.
• Hours: 9:00 to 20:00.
• Programme: opening around 10:30 at the El Arenal bandstand and the farm-produce awards at 13:30. In the Tinglados, 4,500 charity portions of beans were served at €4.
• Txosnas (food and drink stalls) selling talo and cider around El Arenal and behind the Arriaga.

In 2025 there were 243 stalls, 166 of them direct sales, and over 100,000 visitors were expected despite the rain (Onda Vasca). The fair began in 1915 in Plaza Nueva.

Olentzero and Mari Domingi

Olentzero, the Basque charcoal burner who brings presents, arrives on the night of 24 December. In Bilbao, however, the parade was on the 23rd, not the 24th, in 2025, with a reception on the morning of the 24th (Blog Euskaltel; Kulturklik). 2026 dates are not out.

2025 for reference:

• Tuesday 23, 17:30: greeting from the balcony of the Hotel Carlton and a street parade from Plaza Moyua along Gran Vía, Plaza Circular and calle Navarra to Plaza del Arriaga, with a music show around 18:45.
• Wednesday 24, 11:00 to 14:00: reception for children at the Arriaga Theatre. 1,500 free passes, booked online from 22 December at 10:00, up to 3 per booking.

Christmas markets

2025-2026 dates for reference (Kulturklik; Blog Euskaltel):

• Christmas Market: 35 stalls. Until 21 December, weekdays 17:00 to 22:00 and weekends 11:30 to 14:30 and 17:00 to 22:00; from the 22nd, those split hours every day. Closed on the 25th and the 1st.
• Gabonart: 11:00 to 14:30 and 17:00 to 20:30; mornings only on the 24th and 31st.
• Ice rink on El Arenal and ice slide on the Ripa quay, from 21 November to 6 January.

Nativity scenes

In 2025 the standout nativity scenes were at the Museo de Pasos, the Diocesan Museum of Sacred Art and the Mercado de la Ribera (Blog Euskaltel). 2026 opening hours are not published.

New Year's Eve in Bilbao

We have not found an official City Council countdown in a Bilbao square. Basque TV (EITB) broadcast the 2025 chimes from Plaza Nueva in Vitoria-Gasteiz (EITB).

Mind the transport gap: on New Year's Eve 2024 the metro stopped at 20:30 and restarted at 01:00, then ran all night; Bilbobus stopped between 20:00 and 20:30 and the night bus ran from 01:00 to 09:00 (EITB).

Three Kings Parade 2027

It will be on the afternoon of Tuesday 5 January 2027. Time and route are not published. 2026 for reference (Blog Euskaltel; Kulturklik):

In the morning, from 10:00 to 14:00, the Kings met children at City Hall, with tickets booked online from 30 December.

Practical tips

• Shops: the Basque Country does not set a calendar of authorised Sunday and holiday opening days (Ministry of Trade). 25 December and 1 January are public holidays: expect most places to be shut and check each shop's hours.
• Santo Tomás: go early. El Arenal is closed to traffic, so take the metro or Bilbobus. Bring an umbrella: in 2025 it rained all day.
• Booked receptions: passes for Olentzero and the Kings go fast; book as soon as the website opens.