10 Things to do in Vigo at Christmas

Christmas in Vigo is one of the merriest you'll find in Spain, and enjoying it in this city goes far beyond seeing the Christmas lights that are lit in the city's most iconic places. Although seeing the Christmas lights is a perfect activity to include among the best things to see and do in Vigo this season.

Christmas markets, one of the best traditions in Spain, are also available in Vigo and are an excellent alternative to take home a souvenir of the city this season. Another thing you can't miss in Vigo at Christmas is tasting its special Christmas gastronomy.

At Christmas time, the city turns into an illuminated Vigo, so you can find tours that are included among the best tours in Vigo, to get to know the city and see its lights. There is no specific place to see the Christmas lights because they are all over the city. This is one of the main activities to do in Vigo this season.

Vigo is usually the first city to turn on the Christmas lights in Spain, and this is usually done around the second week of November. From then on you can enjoy the Christmas lights until late, so it's one of the best things to see and do in Vigo at night.

Some of the most emblematic places to see these Christmas decorations and take some pictures are: La Alameda, Compostela square, Porta de Sol square, Casco Vello and the Port area, but each of these places have their own particular attractions during this time of year.

Interesting details

• Price: Going on your own is free of charge. But if you want to take a guided tour of lights in the city of Vigo, you'll probably have to pay, although you can also take a free tour.
• Date: You can start enjoying the Christmas lights in Vigo from the second week of November. And if you want to witness the switch-on, you should keep an eye on the news from the City Council to find out when the date will be set for it.
• Timetable: You can enjoy the lights from 18:00 until 00:30 when the lights are switched off.
• How to get there: You can get around the city of Vigo by public transport or by private car.

If there's something Christmassy to do in Vigo, it's walking along Calle del Príncipe. In recent years, it has become synonymous with Christmas, its shopping, its nuances and its joys. In Príncipe Street you can find many Christmas shops to do your Christmas shopping in advance.

This street is also where you'll find the most Christmas atmosphere in the city, as it's home to several places of tourist and cultural interest, such as the Museum of Contemporary Art, MARCO, which is one of the best museums in Vigo.

Christmas decorations completely take over the entire avenue, and you can enjoy them from one end to the other. At one end of the avenue, you can find the large Porta de Sol square, where you can see the Siren statue, but which is also one of the places with the highest concentration of tourists at Christmas.

At the other end of the avenue you can find the big Christmas ball, a typical and traditional Christmas decoration located at the Farola de Urzáiz, a place where you can go to take many Christmas pictures.

Interesting details

• Price: You can do the tour along Calle El Príncipe free of charge. But with so many beautiful things to buy, you will probably spend some money.
• Date: El Príncipe Street usually welcomes Christmas from the end of November.
• Opening hours: You can walk this street all day long, from early in the morning until late at night. However, if you want to shop you will have to do it during the day.
• How to get there: You can get to this street by private car and park near Porta de Sol, or by public transport.

Cíes Market is a large Christmas market that takes place every year in Plaza Compostela, where one of the most popular sculptures in the city, El Dinoseto, is also located. This is one of the best places to do your Christmas shopping before the season starts.

This market is set up from the second week of November and you can see any number of things inside. Moreover, the atmosphere inside is unparalleled. But in the surroundings of the market and the square itself, you can find a number of other attractions that you can enjoy, especially if you go with children.

Just outside the market is usually the Christmas Ferris wheel, where you can climb up and see the city of Vigo from another point of view. This is one of the most beloved attractions by the people of Vigo every year for two reasons. The first is the large number of lights that decorate it, and the second is its height of 55 metres.

Interesting details

• Price: You have to pay approximately 5 euros per person to ride the Ferris wheel in Vigo at Christmas. To enter the Cíes Market you don't have to pay extra money, the prices of the items inside are determined by each stand.
• Date: The market is generally available from the second week of November.
• Opening hours: You can enjoy the market from Monday to Friday from 17:00 and on Saturdays and Sundays from 11:00.
• How to get there: To get to Compostela square you can go by private car as there is parking nearby, or you can also get there by public transport.

Perhaps one of the most popular events in Vigo at Christmas time is the bikers who travel around the city of Vigo bringing sweets, candy and happiness to all the city's residents and tourists visiting Vigo. It's an event that attracts more people every year and it's definitely one of the activities you'll enjoy the most.

The many bikers who gather in Vigo every year to carry out the Papanoelada do it dressed up as Father Christmas and go around the streets talking to people and giving away all kinds of food and sweets for the little ones.

This activity usually takes place at the beginning of Christmas, as a way of welcoming the season. It has been going on for a few years now and is definitely one of the most special events in the city.

Details of interest

• Price: You don't need to pay anything to enjoy the bikers in the city.
• Date: This usually happens between the second week of November and the first week of December.
• Schedule: This event usually occurs during daylight hours, although there is no specific timetable for it.
• How to get there: They are all over the city, so you won't need to get to a specific place to see them.

One of the most anticipated attractions of the year, which is scheduled for the last days of the year, is the Christmas circus in the Coia neighbourhood. Year after year this circus is inaugurated with the intention of attracting more tourists and locals to enjoy the Christmas experience in a big way.

It is also possible to find in the Coia neighbourhood, a good dinosaur exhibition to entertain children and adults. This family plan is not complete without the attraction of multiple inflatables that year after year are placed in this place as an additional playful activity for children. You can find inflatables for all ages.

But this is not all the fun you can have in the Coia neighbourhood, you can also see the Christmas lights that decorate the place since mid-November. Definitely one of the best places to take Christmas photos in Vigo.

The attractions may change from year to year, but what is certain is that Christmas and fun for locals and tourists is taken very seriously in this neighbourhood, making it a must-see for the Christmas season.

Interesting details

• Price: Tickets for the circus and dinosaur exhibition can cost around 7-10 euros per person.
• Date: Generally the circus and other attractions arrive in the neighbourhood at the end of December.
• Opening hours: You can enjoy these attractions from early afternoon until late at night.
• How to get there: You can get to Coia by bus or private car, as there are plenty of parking spaces.

This is one of the best attractions in Vigo, because it's enjoyed by children and adults alike. It's a large ice skating rink located inside the Real Club Náutico. The advantage of this ice skating rink is that it's indoors, unlike the one in the Samil beach car park, which is outdoors.

Either option is an excellent alternative if you want to have time to do a more extreme activity and test your skills on the ice. You'll always be able to hire all the equipment on site, so don't miss out on this fun activity if you don't have skating gear.

In both rinks you can go with children, which is one of the best advantages of doing this activity as a family, because they have as much fun as you do trying to skate on the ice. To complete the attraction, at the Real Club Náutico there is also a big roller coaster for the bravest visitors.

You can enjoy both attractions from mid-November until well into January, that is, during the entire Christmas season in Vigo. They are some of the best things to see and do in Vigo in winter.

Interesting details

• Price: Skating for 50 minutes can cost approximately 7 euros per person.
• Date: You can enjoy this attraction from mid-November until late January.
• Opening times: The ice skating rink is open from Monday to Friday between 16:30 and 22:00. On weekends and public holidays it is open from 11:00 to 22:00. Opening times may change according to the policies of each rink.
• How to get there: To get to the Real Club Náutico you can get there by bus or private car. As you can do to get to Playa Samil, in case you go by car, you can park in the car park near Playa Samil.

This is one of the squares that you will find most crowded during New Year's Eve, because it is precisely at this time of the year when the people of Vigo gather to say goodbye to the old year and welcome the new one. In this sense, this square becomes the main meeting place for the people of Vigo and visitors on this date.

The spectacle of waiting for the new year is the most awaited and the countdown is in charge of the clock located in the Santa Irene Institute, which is one of the most emblematic buildings you can see in this city. In addition, in the square you will see a large monument known as Porta de Atlantico.

The most special feature of this monument is that it was erected in recognition of the Galician migrants who decided to leave the Port of Vigo for America during the 19th and 20th centuries.

Details of interest

• Price: It is free to attend the multitudinous farewell to the old year in the Plaza de América.
• Date: This activity takes place on New Year's Eve, i.e. every 31st December.
• Time: All the people of Vigo gather in this square from early in the afternoon until after midnight to welcome the new year.
• How to get there: To get to the Plaza de América you can follow Castrelos Avenue, the same avenue that leads to Castrelos Park. You can go by private car or by public transport.

Rosalía de Castro Street is one of the most commercial streets in the city of Vigo during Christmas, so this is one of the best activities to do with the family during this time of the year. It has a large number of shops for Christmas shopping.

In addition, in this street of Rosalía de Castro you can enjoy different Christmas attractions par excellence, including the sleigh train and free-fall attractions. You will also enjoy other attractions such as the virtual simulator with different Christmas motifs.

Interesting details

• Price: The price may vary from year to year, so I recommend you visit the Vigo City Council's website for updated prices.
• Date: This amusement park is available throughout Christmas, from November to January.
• Opening hours: Generally open from the afternoon until late at night.
• How to get there: If you go by car, parking is available nearby. The other option is to go by public transport, such as bus or train.

There's a tradition in Vigo that I love and you need to know about, it's the tourist trains and buses that go all over the decorated streets of the city, showing you each of the quintessential Christmas places.

This service is available throughout the Christmas season and there are at least two routes, so you can do each route as many times as you want. The difference between the two is the number of places you can visit. One is shorter and the other is longer.

Some of the places you can see and visit on these Christmas train routes are: Plaza de Compostela, Plaza Fernando el Católico, Policarpo Sanz, Plaza América, Plaza del Bicentenario, among other places. Some of these places belong to the first route and others to the second route. It is up to you to choose the route you want to do.

Interesting details

• Price: Children up to 2 years old are free. The rest of the public can pay between 2 and 4 euros.
• Date: The train is activated in the last weeks of November and stays in the city until the first week of January.
• Timetable: From 17:00 to 00:00 every day.
• How to get there: You can get on the train at Plaza de Compostela and Pintor Lugrís.

The Three Wise Men Parade is one of the most popular Christmas activities in Spain, and Vigo is no exception. It's one of the last Christmas celebrations of the year, and takes place on 5 January, on the eve of Three Kings' Day, to celebrate their arrival.

The one that takes place in Vigo is one of the most important Three Kings' Parades in Spain, and every year it's held for a different reason. Many children take part in these activities where the kings on horses pass through the streets of the city to spread happiness to all the local children.

But this is an activity not only for locals, but also for visitors, so you can't miss the opportunity to see the dramatised visit of the kings coming from the East. It's one of the best things to see and do in Vigo with children.

Interesting details

• Price: It doesn't cost anything to see the Three Wise Men parade.
• Date: It takes place on the night of 5th January.
• Time: It usually takes place in the evening.
• How to get there: To get to Plaza Compostela you can get there by car or by public transport.