Spanish New Year’s Eve Traditions
Embassy of Spain USA
· 3 min read
The countdown to New Year’s is on! New Year’s Eve is a very special celebration in Spain. There are a lot of special traditions to welcome the new year that you might not know about. You may have heard of “lucky grapes,” but luck, love and prosperity in Spain come with a whole new group of interesting superstitions and traditions.
Keep reading to discover all the details about 5 Spanish New Year’s Eve traditions that could bring you good luck next year:
12 Lucky Grapes
In Spanish homes, families and groups of friends eat 12 grapes, one by one, at the stroke of midnight as the bells toll in the clock tower of the Puerta del Sol in Madrid. Each of these twelve grapes represent one month of the year. The tradition says that you should finish eating all 12 grapes before the bells finish chiming. This often results in a hilarious race to ring in the new year with your relatives and friends!
Wear red underwear
If “falling in love” is one of your New Year’s resolutions, then you should make sure that you start the new year with some snazzy red underwear. By doing so, Spanish tradition holds that Cupid will find your better half and will bring you love in the new year.
Toast with Cava
Good fortune is one of the most popular wishes for the new year. In Spain, many people drop a gold ring or coin into a glass of Cava before the midnight toast. Those couples that are married toast with their wedding ring inside the glass of Cava.
Play the lottery
A few days before the New Year’s celebration Spaniards pay careful attention to the Spanish Christmas lottery drawing. Some people even believe that rubbing their lottery ticket against a pregnant woman’s belly or a bald man’s head will make it a winner!
Starting the New Year on the right foot
The first step to get love, fortune and luck in the new year is starting the new year on the right foot. Be sure that you put your right foot ahead of your left while you are eat your 12 grapes this New Year’s Eve!
Happy New Year!