This blog post was originally posted on January 2, 2016, and was updated on October 25, 2022.
Christmas may be over for most of us, but with Three Kings Day in Seville still to come, the festive fun is just beginning!
What is Three Kings Day?
Traditionally speaking, children don’t receive their Christmas gifts until January 6th (Day of the Epiphany). On this day, The Three Kings (Los Reyes Magos) travel all over the country delivering presents. Nowadays, more and more families in Spain are welcoming Santa Claus to their houses and starting to exchange gifts on Christmas Day. However, that doesn’t mean they’re forgetting about Three Kings Day (Día de Los Reyes Magos), and this day remains the traditional gift-giving day in Spain.
How do you celebrate Three Kings Day in Seville?
Celebrations vary throughout the country, but here’s how we celebrate Three Kings Day in Seville!
Spanish people love a good procession! The central part of the Three Kings celebration in Seville, and most other parts of Spain, is the huge parade that winds through the streets of the city on the 5th of January.
Los Reyes Magos announce their arrival by means of a six-hour long journey through Seville known as La Cabalgata de Los Reyes. This symbolizes the arrival of The Three Kings, Melchior, Caspar and Balthasar, to Jesus’ manger to present him with their gifts of gold, frankincense, and myrrh.
Some cities, such as Barcelona, welcome their guests of honor by boat. However, here in Seville, Los Reyes Magos arrive on huge floats. They’re accompanied by smiling locals, armed with unending bags of sweets to throw into the crowd.
For many, this is the highlight of the Three Kings Day in Seville celebrations. Locals gather in huge numbers to see the parade and collect as many of the hard candies as possible. Be prepared to see people of all ages, scrambling through the crowd adding to their caramelo harvest.
While this lively celebration is certainly not for the faint-hearted, with dancers, musicians and all types of performers adding to the spectacle, seeing the Cabalgata de Los Reyes is something you can’t miss if you’re in Seville in January!
Much like how the tradition for Santa Claus, people leave food and drink out for the Kings too. Some families also leave milk and bread to help the camels complete their epic journey.
Kids finally settle down to a restless night’s sleep. When they just can’t bear the anticipation anymore, they rush to the spot where they left out their shoes the night before. There they find the neatly wrapped presents from the Kings waiting for them.
What do you eat on Three Kings Day?
The 6th of January, Día de Los Reyes, would not be complete without the traditional breakfast of Roscón de Reyes. After unwrapping all the presents, the whole family gathers round to tuck into this circular cake. Generally, the roscón comes filled with delicious cream and decorated with brightly colored candied fruit. The candied fruit, or fruta escarchada, represents the jewels on the Wise Men’s clothing when they arrived to Bethlehem.
However, there’s much more to this tradition than just enjoying the taste of the delicious roscón. Carefully hidden inside are two figurines, a faba bean and a king. If you get the slice with the small king inside, you’re the king or queen of breakfast and will have good luck all year round.
Unfortunately, it’s not such great news for the person who finds the faba bean, as they pay for the roscón! These delicious treats are found in pastry shops all throughout the city and devouring your roscón with a nice cup of coffee is the perfect way to celebrate Three Kings Day in Seville.
I actually haven’t learned much about it just yet, but I feel like this could be such a lovely tradition as well!
It really is, Diego. It’s exciting to see how different cultures celebrate the holidays, and Spain’s way is one of our favorites!
Esta cálida no se eso creo