

©/duckycards Celebrate the Day of the Holy Kings

Businesses have normal opening hours.Ĭhristians believe that 3 kings or wise men visited Jesus as a child. Is Day of the Holy Kings a Public Holiday?ĭay of the Holy Kings is not a public holiday.

Why not make it a tradition for your family, too? There really is no place like Puerto Rico during the Nativity season, and Maria’s Beach will offer you the perfect backdrop for an island winter holiday. Celebrating Dia de los Reyes Magos at Maria’sĪs a child, I loved celebrating Dia de los Reyes Magos in Rincón with my family. Old San Juan is especially lively, the streets filled with people and parades, as they play host to the final stop of the “Three Kings” of Juana Diaz – reenactors who travel the island during the week between Christmas and Three Kings Day. On the actual Dia de los Reyes Magos, there is much festivity, with parades, pageants, festivals and family gatherings. Traditional foods include roast pork and coquito, an eggnog-like drink that features cream of coconut, coconut milk, and of course, Puerto Rican rum!Īfter families return home, the children leave out their gifts for the Magi and their camels, and go to bed to await the presents they bring. Many times, there are costumes available for anyone who shows up and wants to take part in the pageant. In the early evening of Vispera de Reyes, most families attend a religious service where the story of the Nativity is acted out by local people. (However, in our family we still got to open our presents on Christmas – our parents didn’t make us wait, happily!)

In exchange, the children are given gifts by the Three Kings that evening. On the eve of Three Kings Day (known as Vispera de Reyes) children leave out candy and small gifts for the kings, and a box of straw for their camels. This caroling differs from the Currier & Ives style, though – it is very lively, and usually involves a variety of instruments, drinks and food! Food, Festivities & Traditions of the Day As the evening progresses, people join each other in caroling (known as parrandas) around the neighborhood, stopping from one house to another and gathering more people each time. Families host parties where people all over the neighborhood come in and out visiting.
DIA DE REYES IN ENGLISH FULL
Traditionally, the days leading up to Three Kings Day are full of festivity and celebration. Unlike much of the United States, many Puerto Rican families do not exchange gifts on Christmas Day, but rather wait until Three Kings Day. For most people in Puerto Rico, preparations for Three Kings Day begin as soon as Christmas ends. Three Kings’ Day, also known as Epiphany or Dia de los Reyes Magos, is a celebration of the three kings who brought gifts to Jesus when he was born. But, if you don’t live in Puerto Rico, you may be wondering what, exactly, Three Kings’ Day is, and what the celebration is all about. On the island, this holiday is celebrated with even more elaborate pageantry than Christmas. One of the most festive holidays of the year in Puerto Rico is Three Kings’ Day, which falls on January 6 every year.
