Christmas in Rome is less about big commercial markets and more about lights, nativity scenes and centuries-old ritual. From 8 December, the Feast of the Immaculate Conception, the city dresses up: lights stretch along Via del Corso, cribs appear in churches and piazzas, and St Peter’s Square fills with pilgrims. Here is what to expect in 2026, and what changes over the holidays.
The tree and nativity in St Peter’s Square
Each year the Vatican sets up a giant Christmas tree and nativity scene beside the obelisk in St Peter’s Square. In 2026 the tree is a silver fir about 25 metres tall from the Cugno dell’Acero forest in Terranova di Pollino, in Basilicata. Its decorations are being made by children being treated in Italian paediatric hospitals, through the ceramic workshops of the Lene Thun Foundation. The nativity scene comes from the Archdiocese of Chieti-Vasto in Abruzzo, inspired by the traditions of the region’s shepherds, and a second nativity in the Paul VI Hall is being made by the Viareggio Carnival Foundation. Press reports put the lighting ceremony on 7 December 2026; confirm the date on Vatican News nearer the time. Both usually stay until the Baptism of the Lord in January.
100 Presepi in Vaticano
Under the colonnade of St Peter’s Square, the free 100 Presepi exhibition gathers more than a hundred nativity scenes from Italy and around the world. Reports give dates of 8 December 2026 to 8 January 2027, open daily from 10am to 8pm, closing at 5pm on 24 and 31 December.
Piazza Navona Christmas market
Rome’s best-known Christmas market fills Piazza Navona with stalls selling sweets, toys, nativity figures and the coal-shaped sugar given to naughty children. The city’s 2026 permit runs from 1 December to 6 January 2027, though in recent years stalls have opened a few days into December. The market ends with the Befana, the kindly witch who brings presents on the night of 5 January, and Epiphany on 6 January.
Lights, cribs and other markets
The lights along Via del Corso, Via dei Condotti and the streets around the Spanish Steps make an evening walk magical. Piazza di Spagna usually has a large nativity scene, and churches across the city display presepi, from simple cribs to elaborate Neapolitan scenes. For families, Christmas World in Villa Borghese runs as a paid festive park, reported from 1 December 2026 to 6 January 2027.
Papal celebrations
The Pope celebrates Christmas Mass in St Peter’s Basilica on the night of 24 December. On Christmas Day, Friday 25 December 2026, he gives the Urbi et Orbi blessing from the central loggia at noon, which anyone can watch from the square without a ticket. In 2025, Christmas Eve Mass began at 10pm. The 2026 times had not been published by early November, so check the papal liturgical calendar. Tickets for Masses inside the basilica are free from the Prefecture of the Papal Household and must be requested well in advance. On 31 December the Pope usually celebrates Vespers and the Te Deum, and on 1 January a morning Mass.
What is open and closed
Plan around closures. The Colosseum and the Forum are closed on 25 December and 1 January, and in winter close at 4.30pm with last entry at 3.30pm. The Vatican Museums close on 8, 25 and 26 December and on 1 and 6 January, and the Sistine Chapel closes at 6pm on 4 and 18 December. The Pantheon closes on 25 December and 1 January, and the Capitoline Museums close at 2pm on 24 and 31 December and on Christmas Day. At the Trevi Fountain, paid access starts later on some days: from 2pm on 7 and 21 December, from 11.30am on 24 and 29 December and from 9am on Christmas Day.
New Year’s Eve
Romans celebrate Capodanno with family dinners, lentils for luck and fireworks at midnight. The city usually holds a free concert, often at the Circus Maximus, though the 2026 programme had not been announced by early November.
Tips for a Christmas visit
December is cool and can be wet, with highs of around 13°C. Book hotels early for the week around Christmas and New Year, and reserve restaurants for 24, 25 and 31 December, when many close or serve set menus.