Palma Shines: Thousands Celebrate the Start of the Christmas Season at Major Light Show

Grand premiere at Plaza de España – Palma kicks off the Christmas season

On Saturday evening Palma suddenly grew brighter. The city council had moved the traditional switch-on ceremony to a different location: instead of Passeig del Born or Plaça de la Reina, there was more space this year at the Plaza de España. I stood at the edge of the square around 6:30 pm; it was mild, maybe 16–17 °C, and lanterns, food stalls and families with children were everywhere.

Around 25,000 people in the streets

The estimate going around the alleys was about 15,000 people on the plaza alone, approximately 25,000 visitors in the city centre in total. People sang along, some applauded, an elderly man sold hot chocolate from a thermos – details like that give the evening character. The city had also set up small stages: on the Plaça de Cort and at the Plaça del Mercat there was music, street art and children's programs.

Technology, effects and new motifs

The moment of switching on was accompanied by a short staged performance about two "companions in the sky" – more poetic than kitschy – with fog machines, artificial "snow" and a countdown. Then it began: this year about 3,350 new light modules were installed and more than 614,000 meters of fairy lights were laid. Newly illuminated are, among others, Avenida Gaspar Bennázar, Calle Jacinto Verdaguer, Son Espanyol and Plaza Patines. In neighborhoods such as Comte Sallent, Son Sardina, Can Capiscol, Pere Garau and General Riera, motifs were refreshed, as described in Palma in Its Christmas Dress: Lights, Sound and Little Winter Wonders.

What remains are classics like the tent of lights on the Plaza de San Cosme, the roughly 20‑meter-high tree in Parc de Ses Estacions, the striking ten‑meter trees on Avenida Antoni Maura and the large light sphere on Passeig Sagrera.

Cityscape and atmosphere

The decision to use Plaza de España apparently provided more room to move and a sense of safety — families with strollers could see better, and the access routes were well regulated. That so many people came shows: the lights are for many a real starting signal for Advent and part of Palma's Christmas program. Whether you want to call the city "magically transformed for Christmas" is a matter of taste. For one evening, however, Palma felt lively, warm and surprisingly cozy.

The lighting will remain active in the coming weeks and invites evening walks — those looking for a quieter moment should go on weekdays after 8 pm.