What do fireworks, roller skates, and an extra paycheck have in common? They’re holiday traditions in Latin America!
While we’ve been rocking around the Christmas tree here in the United States, the holiday season has been celebrated differently, if no less festively, by our neighbors to the south.
From the longest Christmas celebration in the world to how kids get their gifts, these are some of the holiday traditions you’ll only find in Latin America.
And if you’re in the mood for some música navideña, check out ¡Viva Navidad!, an Audacy Exclusive Station dedicated to Spanish-language Christmas music.
Kids in the United States rush to the Christmas tree on Christmas morning to see what Santa Claus brought them while they were sleeping, but in Brazil, kids find their gifts not under the tree but rather, in their shoes.
While this tradition isn’t unique to the South American country (people do it in some parts of Europe too), a holiday tradition that you don’t find elsewhere is the 13th monthly salary – many employers give their staff an extra month’s salary in December so that they can get gifts for their loved ones.
Fireworks are usually reserved for New Year’s Eve and the fourth of July here in the states, but in El Salvador, it’s not Christmas Eve without sparklers, fountains, and roman candles. Families and friends gather to shoot off fireworks as part of their Christmas celebrations long into the night in the Central American country. Don’t worry about the loud noises waking the kids – they stay up late and open their gifts at midnight.
Did you put roller skates on your wish list this year? In Venezuela, roller skating and rollerblading are so popular during the holidays that some public streets get shut down so that people can attend “patinatas,” or skating parties!
While it can feel like the holiday season gets longer and longer each year (we’re looking at you, grocery stores that put out Christmas cookies the day after Halloween), Puerto Rico has us beat. The Christmas season officially starts the day after Thanksgiving and doesn’t end until mid-January.
One of the most popular holiday traditions in Puerto Rico are parrandas, where groups of musicians visit their friends’ homes at night and play music outside their doors until they are welcomed inside. The party goes all night, with the unsuspecting hosts expected to put out food and drink as a thank you for the entertainment. The favor is usually returned later on, since along with Christmas Eve, Christmas Day, New Year’s Eve, and New Year’s Day, Puerto Ricans also celebrate on the Eve of Three Kings’ Day (January 5), Three Kings Day’ or Epiphany (January 6) and las octavitas, or the eight days after Three Kings’ Day, when there are additional parrandas.
And if you’re in San Juan, the capital of Puerto Rico, in mid-January, there are additional celebrations at the Fiestas de la Calle San Sebastián (the celebrations of Saint Sebastian Street) where revelers can enjoy live music and performances in Old San Juan.
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