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Date Published: 15/11/2024

Alicante sets a date for Christmas light switch-on, but it's later than usual

Alicante City Council has postponed the festivities in solidarity with the Valencia flood victims

Alicante has promised a spectacular Christmas display to see out 2024, but residents and visitors will have to wait until Friday November 29 for the grand switch-on, which is a year later than usual.

Following talks with the various merchants’ associations, Alicante City Council took the decision to postpone the start of the festive season out of respect for the victims of the October floods and all those affected by the DANA in Valencia and elsewhere.

Coincidentally, November 29 has also been chosen by Malaga, Zaragoza and Pamplona as the beginning of their Christmas countdown.

All of Spain is now gearing up for the Yuletide celebrations and as usual, Vigo, widely known as the country’s Christmas capital, will become the first to unveil the decorations, switching on the multi-million euro lighting on Saturday November 16.

If your expectations are more modest, the Orihuela Costa’s Zenia Boulevard shopping centre will also be illuminated on Saturday the 16th.

But while Alicante may be holding the season at bay a little while longer, it’s by no means the latest this year. Granada and Córdoba won’t perform the big switch-on until December 1 and December 4, respectively.

The cities of Santa Cruz de Tenerife (November 21), Toledo (November 22), Badalona, which boasts the largest tree in Spain, and Murcia (November 23) will also be ahead of Alicante, and on November 28 it will be the turn of the capital, Madrid, and the city of Barcelona.

Understandably, with a huge clean-up operation still underway, Valencia has halted the hanging of its Christmas lighting for the time being to focus on more immediate priorities. Nearby Castellón and Elche have not yet set a definitive date either.

Meanwhile, in Alicante, the Christmas light will be lit in all their splendour until Three Kings Day on January 6. In general, the lights will be on between 6pm and 1am, but on special dates such as Christmas Eve, New Year's Eve and Three kings, they will be left on until 4.30am.

This year's lighting will consist of more than a thousand decorations in the form of arches, garlands, posters, street lamps and trees in the outlying neighbourhoods and 120 streets in the city centre will be illuminated by different decorations with around 2.5 million LED lights in all.

In addition, visitors can enjoy the 18-metre tree that will be located on Avenida de la Constitución and the Giant Nativity Scene in the Town Hall square that will crown Alicante's Christmas. There will also be two 3D Christmas panels along with the giant bear in the Montañeta square.

In other news: Catch Spain's last full supermoon of the year this week

Image: Ayuntamiento de Alicante

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