Spanish Christmas Lottery 22nd December

An El Gordo Spanish Christmas Lottery ticket from 2009

On 22nd December each year, the Spanish Christmas Lottery, the biggest lottery in the world and an eagerly-awaited kick-start to Christmas, is drawn. In 2017 there were 2,380 million euros in the El Gordo (The Fat One) prize pot. In this video, Tom Bacon explains how the whole El Gordo lottery works.

The Spanish Christmas Lottery

How the numbers are picked

Every 22nd December from 9am in the morning forty children aged 8 to 14 years old from the school 'Colegio de San Ildefonso' in Segovia, which was formerly an orphanage, draw the winning numbers. The children are called 'los niños de San Ildefonso' and in pairs they draw the small wooden numbered balls out of the two big golden drums that contain all 100.000 numbers. One drum has the ticket numbers and the other has the prize amounts. The children come forward in pairs and draw and sing out a lottery ticket number from one drum, and then draw and sing out the prize amount to be awarded to that number from the other drum. This lottery ceremony that takes place at the Teatro Real de Madrid and takes just over three hours, is called 'el soniquete de los Niños de San Ildefonso.' It's very sweet and Christmas in Spain just wouldn't be the same without it.

Naturally because of the money involved it's very exciting viewing if you have a ticket watching the winning numbers as they are called out.

Guide to 'Fat' El Gordo Lottery Spain - Lotería de Navidad

Tenerife in December 2018

The North Pole depicted in Tenerife

December begins with two National public holidays on Thu 6 December for Día de la Constitución Español a (Constitution Day) and Sat 8 December for Inmaculada Concepción (The Immaculate Conception). Many are bound to take the day off on Fri 7 too and take what's known as un puente (translates to bridge) or short break. Naturally, most of December's events are to do with Christmas.

It's customary to put up Christmas decorations on the weekend closest to 8 December, but the holiday period always kicks off proper with El Gordo (The Fat One), the Spanish Christmas Lottery, which is drawn on 22 December, with kids singing out the numbers drawn during a five-hour televised spectacular.

Christmas Day, Tue 25 December will be a Public holiday. For Canarians, this is often recovery day after a big family gathering on Christmas Eve.

Boxing Day isn't a tradition nor holiday in Spain or the Canaries.

There are no municipal public holidays in December.

On 28 December, beware of El Día de Los Santos Inocentes (Day of the Innocent Saints), the Spanish equivalent of April Fool's Day. 

And that, of course, brings us to the end of the year and New Year's Eve.

Tenerife Municipal Holidays 2019

Municipalities and areas of Tenerife

In addition to Tenerife's Public Holidays for 2019, the national, regional and island-specific holidays, each of the 31 municipalities adds its own further 2 local days when town halls and businesses in that location will be closed and often the local main fiestas there are celebrated. These are as follows for next year:

ADEJE.
5 March: Carnival Tuesday / Shrove Tuesday.
14 October: Festival of Santa Úrsula.

ARAFO.
5 March: Carnival Tuesday / Shrove Tuesday.
26 August: Festival of San Bernardo.

ARICO.
5 March: Carnival Tuesday / Shrove Tuesday.
24 June: Festival of San Juan Bautista.

ARONA.
5 March: Carnival Tuesday / Shrove Tuesday.
7 October: Festival of Santísimo Cristo de la Salud.

BUENAVISTA DEL NORTE.
24 August: Festival of San Bartolomé.
25 October: Festival of Nuestra Señora de Los Remedios.

CANDELARIA.
5 March: Carnival Tuesday / Shrove Tuesday.
26 July: Festival of Santa Ana.

EL ROSARIO.
5 March: Carnival Tuesday / Shrove Tuesday.
5 August: Festival of Nuestra Señora de La Esperanza.

EL SAUZAL.
5 March: Carnival Tuesday / Shrove Tuesday.
3 May: Festival of Día de la Cruz.

EL TANQUE.
31 August: Festividad Nuestra Señora de Buen Viaje.
21 October: Festival of Santísimo Cristo del Calvario.

FASNIA.
5 March: Carnival Tuesday / Shrove Tuesday.
19 August: Fiestas Patronales.

GARACHICO.
26 July: Festival of Santa Ana.
16 August: Festival of San Roque.

GRANADILLA DE ABONA.
5 March: Carnival Tuesday / Shrove Tuesday.
13 June: Festival of San Antonio de Padua.

GUÍA DE ISORA.
24 June: Festival of San Juan Bautista.
16 September: Festival of Santísimo Cristo de la Dulce Muerte.

GÜÍMAR.
29 June: Festival of San Pedro Apóstol.
7 September: Festival of la Bajada de Nuestra Señora del Socorro.

ICOD DE LOS VINOS.
5 March: Carnival Tuesday / Shrove Tuesday.
25 April: Festival of San Marcos Evangelista, Patrono de la Ciudad.

LA GUANCHA.
18 January: Festival of Nuestra Señora de la Esperanza.
19 August: Lunes de las Fiestas Patronales.

LA MATANZA DE ACENTEJO.
5 March: Carnival Tuesday / Shrove Tuesday.
6 August: Festival of El Salvador.

LA OROTAVA.
5 March: Carnival Tuesday / Shrove Tuesday.
27 June: Infraoctava del Corpus Christi.

LA VICTORIA DE ACENTEJO.
5 March: Carnival Tuesday / Shrove Tuesday.
2 September: Fiestas Patronales del Municipio.

LOS REALEJOS.
22 January: Festival of San Vicente.
3 May: Exaltación de la Santa Cruz.

LOS SILOS.
5 March: Carnival Tuesday / Shrove Tuesday.
24 June: Festival of San Juan Bautista.

PUERTO DE LA CRUZ.
3 May: Festival of the Holy Cross.
9 July: Festival of la Virgen del Carmen.

SAN CRISTÓBAL DE LA LAGUNA.
5 March: Carnival Tuesday / Shrove Tuesday.
14 September: Festival of Santísimo Cristo de La Laguna.

SAN JUAN DE LA RAMBLA.
24 June: Festival of San Juan Bautista.
9 September: Festival of San José.

SAN MIGUEL DE ABONA.
5 March: Carnival Tuesday / Shrove Tuesday.
30 September: Festival of San Miguel Arcángel.

SANTA CRUZ DE TENERIFE.
5 March: Carnival Tuesday / Shrove Tuesday.
3 May: Festival of Santa Cruz (Fiesta fundacional).

SANTA ÚRSULA.
5 March: Carnival Tuesday / Shrove Tuesday.
21 October: Festival of Santa Úrsula.

SANTIAGO DEL TEIDE.
25 July: Festival of Santiago Apóstol.
26 July: Festival of Nuestra Señora de Santa Ana.

TACORONTE.
5 March: Carnival Tuesday / Shrove Tuesday.
25 November: Festival of Santa Catalina.

TEGUESTE.
25 April: Festival of San Marcos Evangelista.
9 September: Festival of Nuestra Señora de los Remedios.

VILAFLOR DE CHASNA.
29 April: Festival of Santo Hermano Pedro.
26 August: Festival of San Agustín y San Roque.

Fiestas locales propias de cada municipio de la Comunidad Autónoma de Canarias para el año 2019

Tenerife in November 2018

Typical scene at cemeteries on All Saints Day, November 1. Photo carlosdu [CC BY 3.0 ]

The month starts with a National Public Holiday on the 1st November for Todos los Santos (All Saints Day). It is a very important holiday when people return to their town or village to lay flowers on the graves of deceased relatives. There are few religious days that mean quite so much to the people of Spain and the Canary Islands as this solemn festival. More flowers are sold for All Saints Day than there are for Valentines Day, if that gives you an idea of the importance. 

The only Municipal Public Holiday in Tenerife in November 2018 is on the 26 November: the Festivity of Santa Catalina in Tacoronte.

November 17 this year the Isle of Tenerife Rally takes place.

Otherwise, the biggest celebrations in November are for San Andrés on 29 November, the Eve of Saint Andrew's Day, most notably in Icod de los Vinos with the Tablas de San Andrés (see video), while Puerto de la Cruz has its Fiesta del Cacharro y la Castaña (Scrap Metal and Chestnut Festival).

Tenerife in October 2018

12 de Octubre, Fiesta Nacional. Image: Cristina Cifuentes Some rights reserved

On 12 October each year the Fiesta Nacional de España (Spanish National Day), also known as Dia de la Hispanidad (Hispanic Day) is celebrated across Spain and the Canary Islands. Since 2000, October 12 has also been Spain's Day of the Armed Forces, celebrated with a military parade in Madrid. It's a public holiday.

There are the following Municipal Public Holidays in Tenerife in October:

• 8 Oct 18 - Festival of Santísimo Cristo de la Salud in Arona
• 15 Oct 18 - Festival of Santa Úrsula in Adeje
• 22 Oct 18 - Festival of Santísimo Cristo del Calvario in El Tanque
• 22 Oct 18 - Festival of Santa Úrsula - Santa Úrsula
• 25 Oct 18 - Festival of Nuestra Señora de Los Remedios in Buenavista del Norte

Botanical Garden in Puerto de la Cruz

Entrance to the Botanical Garden in Puerto de la Cruz by Koppchen

The Jardín Botánico de Puerto de la Cruz (Puerto de la Cruz Botanical Garden), or to give it it's proper name, Jardín de Aclimatación de La Orotava (Puerto used to be the port of La Orotava) was by created by Royal Order of Carlos III on the 17th August 1788, due to the need to cultivate species from the tropics somewhere in Spain with a suitable climate. This 18th-Century botanical garden with tropical & subtropical plants, including 200-year-old fig tree, is a must visit (especially at the low price). The garden is extremely well kept and most of the plants have good labels in Spanish, English and German.

At 20,000 square meters (just shy of five acres), the garden is not overly huge, but reckon on a minimum of a couple of hours to half a day to look round.

There are seats all around the garden and it is a genuine oasis of calm.

Correct at time of writing: Opening Hours: 9.00 a.m. - 6.00 p.m. Closed: 1st January, Good Friday and Christmas Day. Entrance: €3.00

Jardin Botánico Puerto de la Cruz

Tenerife in September 2018

Plaza in Los Silos

On 8 September each year is the día grande (big day) of the Fiestas de Nuestra Señora de la Luz in Los Silos. These fiestas take place from late August, until mid-September, this year culminating on 16 September with the Octava de la Virgen.

The Romería del Socorro in Güímar on the 7 and 8 September: On the 7th, the icon of Nuestra Señora del Socorro is brought down from the Church of San Pedro in the town centre to the chapel of the Virgin on the beach of El Socorro and, on the following day, is returned to the church of San Pedro.

September has no public holidays and as ever, the biggest celebrations in the month are the Fiestas de Cristo in La Laguna, the key day of which is 14 September with processions and the much-awaited firework display.

For the third year running, Puerto de la Cruz is holding a Summer Carnival, taking place on Friday, Saturday and Sunday, 14, 15 and 16 September 2018. This three day event gives tourists an experience of carnival and townsfolk another party to look forward to.

The Summer Carnival will commence on Friday 14 September at 4pm with an exhibition of carnival costumes in three of the hotels. At the same, dance workshops are taking place at San Telmo. At 7pm there will be a carnival parade along the Martiánez Promenade and San Telmo to the Plaza de Europa. Between 8pm and 10pm, an exhibition of Murga groups, including Los Mamelucos, winners of an historic triple in Santa Cruz, with the verbena (dancing) kicking off from 10pm in the Plaza de Europa.

On Saturday 15 September 2018 various workshops at San Telmo in the morning. At 5:30pm there will be performances from several comparsas. In the Plaza de Europa, from 6pm, performances by choreographed dance troops. At 8pm in San Telmo, comparsa Guaraní Moana. At 8:30pm the Mascarita ponte tacón (Men's High Heels Marathon) from San Telmo to the Plaza de Europa, finishing with a costume and float party and dancing to various artists and the Orquesta Dinacord from 10pm.

On Sunday 16 September 2018, from mid-day until 2pm and from 4pm until 6pm there will be kids shows, activities and bouncy castles in the Plaza de Europa.

Carnaval de Verano con verbenas y “Mascarita ponte el tacón”

Municipal public holidays:

• 3 Sep 18 - Fiestas for the town’s patron in La Victoria de Acentejo
• 7 Sep 18 - Festival of Nuestra Señora del Socorro in Güímar
• 8 Sep 18 - Festival of Nuestra Señora de Abona in Arico
• 8 Sep 18 - Festival of Nuestra Señora de la Luz in Los Silos
• 8 Sep 18 - Festival of Nuestra Señora de los Remedios in Tegueste
• 10 Sep 18 - Festival of San José in San Juan de la Rambla
• 14 Sep 18 - Festival of Santísimo Cristo de La Laguna in San Cristóbal de La Laguna
• 17 Sep 18 - Santísimo Cristo de la Dulce Muerte in Guía de Isora
• 29 Sep 18 - Festival of San Miguel Arcángel in San Miguel de Abona

Romería de El Socorro | Güímar 2017