Let's Celebrate With Spain!
Did you know?
The Spanish start off their new year by eating 12 grapes, which symbolize each strike of the clock. The tradition of las doce uvas de la suerte started in the late 19th century and is believed to ward off evil while boosting your chances of a prosperous and lucky new year. However, this will work only if you manage to eat all of the grapes in a matter of seconds since they need to be gone by the time the clock finishes striking midnight.
3 Best Places in Spain for New Year’s Eve
1. Madrid’s Puerta del Sol Celebration
The most famous place to celebrate New Year’s Eve in Spain is Madrid’s Puerta del Sol. It’s from here that the New Year’s bells, Las Campanadas, are broadcast around the country.
If you’d like to attend, get there early: upwards of 25,000 people gather in this central square to count down to midnight, grapes in hand!
The atmosphere is festive and lively with revelers dressed in silly hats, wigs, and glasses for purchase in tourist shops nearby. After the bells ring and grapes are eaten, locals and tourists alike pop bottles of cava, toasting and wishing eachother a “Feliz Año Nuevo” (Happy New Year in Spanish) under the fireworks.
2. Barcelona’s Plaça d’Espanya Festivities
Barcelona’s Plaça d’Espanya is a popular spot to celebrate New Year’s Eve in Spain. The square hosts a big party with music, fireworks, and a light show at the Magic Fountain.
At midnight, the crowd joins together to eat the 12 grapes and toast to the new year. Be careful, or you’ll certainly get doused with cava as the crowd goes wild!
As Barcelona is known for it’s nightlife, the party continues in the most popular clubs in the city with a fantastic atmosphere and ends with breakfast just after dawn.
3. Nochevieja Universitaria in Salamanca
Salamanca is home to one of the most unique New Year’s Eve celebrations in Spain. On December 15, tens of thousands of revelers gather in the Plaza Mayor for a pre-New Year’s Eve party known as Nochevieja Universitaria.
Observed since 1999, Nochevieja Universitaria was concocted by university students as a way to celebrate the New Year with friends before returning home for the holidays.
Now, the city’s most anticipated party of the year boasts music, dancing, and fireworks. At midnight, grapes are replaced with sweets. After all, they’ll eat the grapes when celebrating New Year’s two weeks later!
Attending the festivities is a great way to experience Spanish culture with locals.
