The Reyes Magos (the Three Wise Men)

On the 6th of January, we celebrate one of the important Spanish traditions for children, Epiphany or the día de los Reyes Magos. The little ones, and sometimes less little ones receive the presents or charcoal on that day, charcoal if they behaved badly, which they previously ordered in a letter.

Even though the figure of Father Christmas becomes more important in our country, the Reyes Magos day is still more important and every year it is customary to organise a series of related events for the festivity, the most outstanding one is the Cabalgata de Reyes which takes place on the 5th of January and is celebrated in all Spanish villages and cities. The cabalgata is a parade with the Reyes Magos mounted on horses, camels or sitting in carriages, and covering the city’s streets throwing sweets and balls to the children who stand on the pavement, this is, therefore, a very good opportunity to enjoy one of our traditions with your classmates from the Spanish course in Spain.

The most famous in all of Spain is the festivity celebrated in Alcoy in the Alicante community, as it is the oldest in the world (the first parade took place in 1866) and it is considered National Tourist Interest. In this spectacular cabalgata the Reyes Magos’ page boys, their companions, climb up the building façades with ladders to give presents to the children. If you are undertaking a Spanish course in Alicante or Valencia, you can not miss out on the opportunity to see this great show, only a few kilometers away.

After the Cabalgata all children go to bed, a little nervous and looking forward to waking up in the morning to see what the Reyes Magos brought for them. It is also usual to have the traditional sweet of that day, the roscón de Reyes (large ring-shaped cake baked for Epiphany).

You now know that, even if you are not a child anymore, you should behave and ask the Reyes Magos to bring you a Spanish course in Spain.