Betevé, Barcelona’s public broadcaster, has published its guide to Christmas 2026 in Barcelona, covering the street lights, Christmas fairs, the New Year’s Eve show and the Three Kings parade. Many dates are already set, but Betevé says several details, including light times and some fair dates, are still to be updated.
What happened
According to Betevé, Barcelona’s Christmas lights will be switched on at the end of November and stay up until 6 January 2027. More than 130 kilometres of streets will be lit. The galets, the shell-shaped pasta of the traditional Catalan Christmas soup, return as a light motif, and there will be a poem on Passeig Maragall and designs drawn by children. The date of the switch-on ceremony has not been announced yet.
The biggest change this year is New Year’s Eve. The city usually holds its Cap d’Any (New Year’s Eve) show on Avinguda de la Reina Maria Cristina, but because of building works it will move to the Anella Olímpica, the Olympic Ring on Montjuïc. Betevé says it starts from 22 h on Thursday 31 December, with drones and fireworks.
The Cavalcada de Reis, the Three Kings parade that is Spain’s main gift-giving event for children, will take place on the afternoon and evening of Tuesday 5 January 2027. Betevé has not yet published this year’s schedule. In 2026 the Kings arrived by boat at the Portal de la Pau, and the parade went along Paral·lel, the Ronda de Sant Pau and Sepúlveda towards Plaça Espanya and the Font Màgica de Montjuïc.
What it means for you
If you plan to see the lights late in the evening, Betevé gives these hours, which it says are still to be updated: from 17.30 to 1 h Sunday to Thursday, and from 17.30 to 2 h on Fridays, Saturdays and the special dates of 24, 25 and 31 December and 5 January.
Several events already have confirmed dates:
- Nadal al Port on the Moll de la Fusta runs from 27 November 2026 to 6 January 2027, open from 11 h to 23 h every day.
- Barcelona Christmas Tour, a bus route through the lit-up city centre with a guide speaking Catalan, Spanish and English, runs from 26 November to 4 January 2027. It does not run on 24, 25 and 31 December or 1 January.
- Els Llums de Sant Pau, the light trail at the Recinte Modernista de Sant Pau, runs from 19 November to 10 January 2027, with a Little Prince theme and an ice rink included with the trail ticket. It is closed on 24 and 31 December and 5 January. The walk takes 60 to 90 minutes.
- Disseny Market Barcelona, a free Christmas design fair organised by FAD, opens from 11 to 13 and from 18 to 20 December 2026.
- Casa Batlló lights up its façade from late November to 6 January, every half hour between 18.30 and 21.30.
Be careful with fair dates. On Betevé’s page, the listings for the Fira de Santa Llúcia, the Sagrada Família fair and the Port Vell fair still show 2025 dates, so check this year’s dates before you go. In past years the Barcelona Festival de Nadal in Plaça de Catalunya has run from 20 to 30 December. The Sons de Ciutat series of free concerts plays in squares across every district from early December to early January.
Families should act early for the Fàbrica de Joguines, the Kings’ toy factory at Fabra i Coats in Sant Andreu. It opens from late December to 4 January, closed on 31 December and 1 January. Entry is free but you have to book. Betevé reports that last year tickets were released on Wednesday 10 December at 10 h and ran out in just under half an hour. If you want to go, watch for the release date and book as soon as tickets come out.
At Port Olímpic, the Kings arrive by sea on 5 January, at the end of a programme that runs from mid-December. The Tinglado Reial, a Kings-themed event on the Moll Oriental in Barceloneta, usually takes place on 3 and 4 January. Betevé says this year’s times are not yet confirmed.
What to watch next
Betevé says it will soon announce the date of the lights switch-on, final light hours, the full Nadal al Port programme, plans for Plaça de Sant Jaume (which usually has a 15-metre Christmas tree and nativity scenes inside the Ajuntament, the city council, and the Generalitat, the Catalan government), this year’s parade schedule and the booking date for the toy factory. Betevé says it will broadcast the Kings’ arrival and the parade live.
Source: Betevé
Sources
- Betevé: Nadal a Barcelona 2026: Què fer? Llums, fires i agenda d’activitats per gaudir de les festes!, accessed 5 November 2026
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