La Navidad increasingly arrives in Madrid. The illumination of the city streets, which attracts thousands of people, will take place next Saturday, November 22nd, one week earlier than last year. As promised by Mayor José Luis Martínez Almeida, this “traditional” event will not cost anything. 13 million bombs will be distributed to more than 240 buildings in 21 districts of the capital. The man responsible for creating Christmas magic in Cibeles is race driver Carlos Sainz, two-time World Rally Champion and four-time Paris-Dakar winner. At the last minute, Ayuntamiento pulled out some aces, including installing a giant belém in Plaza de Cortés in front of the Congress of Deputies, a 22-meter-tall fir tree in front of the Metropolis building, and a giant candle in Nuevos Ministerios.
This year’s illuminations in Madrid will be translated into 126 glowing cherries and 7,134 notebooks, which, if placed on the same side on the return trip between Madrid and Toledo, will represent a total of 157 kilometers of decoration. To these are added 13 lighted fir trees and other reasons for a Christmas surprise.
This year, for the second time, light panels will be installed in the Plaza Mayor with pictures drawn by elementary and junior high school students in the school painting contest sponsored by Ayuntamiento. The panels, which designed other smaller panels last year, will also be used to illuminate the city, in this case around Pez Street. These works will be supplemented by those of renowned designers and experts from the Spanish Travel Association (ACME), who in this edition will be responsible for the design of the lighting groups that will be placed on the different streets of the capital.
Ignition occurs daily at the following times:
- From Sunday to July: from 18.00 to 00.00.
- Friday and Saturday: 18:00-01:00.
- December 5th, 6th, 7th, 8th: 18:00-01:00.
- December 24th and January 5th: from 18:00 to 03:00.
- December 31st: from 18:00 to 06:00.
To bring light to Madrid until the day after Reyes, Ayuntamiento invested more than 6 million euros. To save costs, the association has notified that all pumps will be LED to save energy and reduce light pollution. Furthermore, the contract with the award-winning company stipulates that the company will bear the costs associated with energy consumption.
Surprise lighting installation with Belene
The Madrid City Council has gradually revealed its surprises for Christmas 2025-2026. One of the novelties this year is a large Christmas tree that will be installed at the junction of Gran Vía and Alcalá streets, one of Madrid’s busiest corners, imitating the height of the Metropolis building directly behind it. It’s a 22-meter-tall tree with a bubble-like structure, 654 blue balls, 125,000 points of warm white light with flashing effects, and a glowing star crowning it. That in itself is spectacular.
This is one of 13 large Christmas trees that will be installed across the city, and this year the most famous sun, along with Plaza de España, will also appear, even though this location is not the center of the illuminations.
Another new installation is a giant luminous candle, 12 meters high and equipped with 14,000 LED lights, which will be installed in the Nuevos Ministerios area. Located at the intersection of Calle Castellana and Calle Hermanos Pinzón, you can access the interior to take photos and soak up the light.
The birth of a giant in front of Congress will also be added to the news. It will be 12 meters high and 5.5 meters wide, and will feature statues of the Virgin Mary, Niño Jesus, and San José. Meanwhile, the Nacimiento panel that was installed every year on the Ventas Bridge will now be transformed into the Great Niño Jesus.
The list of amazing light installations is completed with three large angels placed in the glory of Atocha, surrounded by glowing trees.
christmas market
La Navidad wouldn’t be Navidad without the Christmas market. Madrid’s most popular Plaza Mayor will be open again this year from November 27th to December 31st, with a total of 104 cases on display containing the most diverse range of products, from decorative items to food. But that’s not all. Other markets are located in Plaza Juan Goytisolo next to the Reina Sofía, Plaza Isabel II and Plaza España, in this case open until June 6th and equipped with wind trucks.
Also along the Recoletos Trail between Colon and Cibeles, the Madrid Community Craft Market Fair will be held, with 150 artisans from all over the country participating, where you can find “unique Christmas presents in ceramics, leatherwork, tailoring, textiles and more, ranging from jewellery, jewellery, jewellery, sombreros and jewellery,” according to Ayuntamiento newspaper.
In Madrid Rio, behind Casa del Reloj, next to Matadero, there is another market with about 20 houses, and right next to it is Puente del Rey, where a kind of Christmas fair will be held, with attractions such as the Torineo track and an ice skating rink.
On the outskirts of El Corte Inglés de la Castellana, a colorful Christmas market will be set up on November 13th and will run until January 5th, 2026.
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