Christmas Season 2024-2025 in Rome

With festive decorations and dozens of nativity scenes, Rome has plenty to offer during the holidays

Dates: early December–early January

The Christmas season in Rome is special, thanks to delicious traditional food and colorful nativity scenes, called presepe or presepio. The festive atmosphere spreads all throughout the city and can be witnessed in the form of Christmas lights or traditional holiday dishes.

Christmas Traditions in Rome

Holidays begin on December 8th, when the Feast of the Immaculate Conception (La Immacolata Concezione) is celebrated. On this day, festive illumination lights up the entire city of Rome. Lighting up the streets is more of a Northern European tradition but has recently spread to Italy. The event is also celebrated by church masses at the Piazza Mignanelli, fireworks, and celebrations in the city centre.

Christmas trees have also only become popular in the last few decades; there are not as many in Rome as there are in Scandinavian or German cities. One of the largest Christmas trees was previously displayed in front of the Altar of the Fatherland (Altare della Patria) at Piazza Venezia but was recently moved to Piazza del Popolo due to construction at the site. The tree is lavishly decorated with lights and festive adornments, similar to the rest of downtown Rome. Walking around downtown, filled to the brim with holiday ornaments, lights, and decorations, is a memorable festive experience.

Christmas Lights & Markets

The biggest concentration of holiday lights can be observed in tourist areas—the Spanish Steps, Trastevere Street, and via del Corso. Piazza Navona is glowing at night with hundreds of lightbulbs. It also has a large nativity scene, a carousel, and a Christmas market. Holiday fairs are not typical for Italy, so it is not as large as Northern European cities, but Rome has its fair share of Christmas markets, including Piazza Mazzini market and Green Market Festival at Testaccio.

Christmas in Vatican

The Vatican, of course, is one of the most special Christmas destinations. Saint Peter's Square Christmas Tree is glorious and very tall. The tradition to put a decorated tree in front of St. Peter's Basilica appeared in the Vatican City in 1982 with Pope John Paul II, who apparently was used to this custom in his home country of Poland.

Nativity Scene on Saint Peter's Square

Another highlight in Saint Peter's Square is a life-size nativity scene with seventeen statues, some of them created in 1842 by Saint Vincent Pallotti. The scene differs every year, with this year's edition featuring the lagoon center of Grado, recreating the lagoon environment.