How Christmas is celebrated around the world

The UK

All over the UK Christmas is celebrated on the 25th of December, with a combination of traditional and modern customs. Many people mark the occasion by attending church services on Christmas Eve, decorating their homes with festive decorations, sending cards to friends and family, exchanging gifts, and carol singing. During Christmas dinner, everyone pulls Christmas crackers and feasts on roast turkey with all the traditional trimmings. This might include parsnips, Brussels sprouts, and pigs in blankets. Afterwards, Brits often indulge in a classic Christmas pudding for dessert. At 3.00pm on Christmas Day, the Royal Christmas Message is broadcast on TV, radio and online in the UK. 

Brazil

Brazilians usually celebrate Christmas on the 24th of December which ‘for us is a big party and we intend to celebrate all together as a family’ says Pam in the Travelnest Onboarding team. Food is prepared the day before and includes traditional meals such as Chester – which is a special type of chicken with bacalhau, rice with raisins farofa, Peru, Kale salad, Rabanada and Panettone. In Brazil, the festive period continues to be celebrated on the 25th of December until New Year, usually on the beach in beautiful warm weather. It’s not tradition to exchange gifts, Christmas is an opportunity for Brazilians to spend time together to enjoy the moment as a family.

Italy

Generally, the most important time during the festive season in Italy is La Vigilia on Christmas Eve. During dinner on the 24th, families usually come together around the table eating lot of delicious food. The meal lasts late into the night, and then families leave their feasting to attend midnight mass. On Christmas day, you can expect to start the meal with seafood salad, salmon or tuna, gamberetti in salsa rosa (shrimp with cocktail sauce), as well as cured meats. The main course, depending on the region, consists of the famous tortellini in broth, lasagne, or pasticcio or for Customer Onboarding Advisor Will ‘the amazing baked pasta prepared just like grandma taught’ . Whatever the menu, Italians cannot end their lunch without some famous Christmas treats pandoro and panettone. Although some Italian families generally give gifts to children on Christmas Eve or Christmas Day, the tradition should be to wait until Epifania on the 6th of January, to give and receive gifts.

Latvia

The Latvian word for Christmas, Ziemassvētki, means “winter festival”. Many Christmas traditions in Latvia are associated with the winter solstice, and dinner and gifts are exchanged on the eve of the 24th. In the countryside, it is still customary to dress up in specific outfits that each have their own meaning and go from house to house. Business Operations Specialist Kate’s favourite Latvian Christmas tradition is the pouring of luck, and her least favourite is singing a song in order to get presents! It is well debated where the origins of the Christmas Tree decoration come from. While popular belief points to Germany, the Baltic states are still persistent that it began there in 1510. If you visit Riga, you will find a stone marker in Town Hall Square which represents where the first ever Christmas tree ritual originated.

The USA

Christmas tends to be celebrated on the 25th in America, although some people may have Christmas Eve dinner with small groups of family. Americans normally have turkey, beef or ham (or all three!) and plenty of side dishes including bread rolls. Desserts are normally pies, yule logs, and cookies. Travelnest Customer Performance Executive Sarah says ‘we love to decorate the outside of our homes with over the top decorations, so a lot of families will go out Christmas Eve and drive around to see Christmas lights’. Santa is known by several different names regionally, for example in Hawaii he is known as Kanakaloka. A more modern tradition is watching Santa on the Santa tracker hosted by NOAA. 

Greece

In Greece, there is plenty of food and lots of family gatherings which take place over the festive season. Instead of decorating a Christmas tree, Greeks decorate a small boat (Karavaki in Greek). Afroditi from the Travelnest Customer Support team tells us about how the Karavaki symbolises sailing towards the new life that follows the birth of Jesus Christ and with Greece being so connected to the sea, decorating a boat during Christmas also serves as a token of gratitude to the marines and sailors who have devoted their lives to the sea for their country.

Switzerland

The Christmas season in Switzerland is a time of celebration and merriment, and it is one of the many countries in Europe where locals and visitors enjoy Christmas markets and mulled wine. Christmas is typically celebrated on the 24th, and Father Christmas delivers presents during the evening meal. Children tend to get impatient waiting, adds Travelnest Senior Customer Marketing Manager Jack. The main Christmas meal on the 24th consists of ham and scalloped potatoes, with melted cheese and milk baked into it. Dessert is often a walnut cake and Christmas cookies. The team at Travelnest help vacation rental hosts all over the world advertise short-term rental properties easily. Sign up for free to our property management software and get expert advice from our friendly team!