At midnight on 31 December, Spain goes quiet, then starts eating very fast. With every chime of the clock, people eat one grape: twelve chimes, twelve grapes, twelve months of good luck. This New Year’s Eve falls on a Thursday. Here is how the tradition works, in easy Spanish.
La noticia en español fácil
This story is A2. Look for hay que (you have to) and a few verbs in the past.
El 31 de diciembre es Nochevieja, la última noche del año. Este año, Nochevieja es un jueves. En España hay una tradición muy famosa: comer doce uvas a medianoche, una con cada campanada del reloj.
El reloj más famoso está en la Puerta del Sol, en Madrid. Cada año, miles de personas van a la plaza y millones ven las campanadas en la televisión, en casa, con la familia o con los amigos.
Antes de las campanadas suenan los cuartos. ¡Cuidado! No hay que comer uvas con los cuartos. Hay que esperar a las doce campanadas.
Hay doce uvas, una por cada mes del año nuevo. Si comes las doce a tiempo, la tradición dice que vas a tener un año con suerte.
Comer tan rápido no es fácil. Por eso, mucha gente compra uvas sin pepitas o uvas peladas. En los supermercados venden latas pequeñas con doce uvas.
¿De dónde viene la tradición? La historia más popular dice que en 1909 hubo muchas uvas en la zona de Alicante, y los agricultores las vendieron para Nochevieja. Pero hay noticias de esta costumbre en Madrid desde los años ochenta del siglo XIX.
Después de la última uva, todo el mundo grita «¡Feliz Año Nuevo!», se da besos y abrazos y brinda con cava. Algunas personas llevan ropa interior roja: dicen que también trae suerte.
«¡Una uva por campanada!»
The story in English
31 December is Nochevieja, the last night of the year. This year it falls on a Thursday. Spain has a very famous tradition: eating twelve grapes at midnight, one with each chime of the clock.
The most famous clock is in the Puerta del Sol, in Madrid. Every year thousands of people go to the square and millions watch the chimes on television, at home with family or friends.
Before the chimes come los cuartos, the quarter bells. Careful! You don’t eat grapes during the cuartos. You have to wait for the twelve chimes.
There are twelve grapes, one for each month of the new year. If you eat all twelve in time, tradition says you’ll have a lucky year.
Eating so fast isn’t easy. That’s why many people buy seedless or peeled grapes. Supermarkets sell small tins with twelve grapes inside.
Where does the tradition come from? The most popular story says that in 1909 there was a huge grape harvest around Alicante, and growers sold the grapes for New Year’s Eve. But there are reports of the custom in Madrid from the 1880s.
After the last grape, everyone shouts “Happy New Year!”, kisses and hugs, and toasts with cava. Some people wear red underwear: they say it brings luck too.
Words for New Year’s Eve
Tap the speaker to hear each one.
Nochevieja
A2- Nochevieja[noh-cheh-BYEH-hah] New Year’s Eve
- las uvas[lahs OO-bahs] the grapes
- la campanada[lah kahm-pah-NAH-dah] the chime (of a bell)
- los cuartos[lohs KWAHR-tohs] the quarter bells before midnight
- a medianoche[ah meh-dyah-NOH-cheh] at midnight
- brindar[breen-DAHR] to make a toast
- ¡Feliz Año Nuevo![feh-LEES AH-nyoh NWEH-boh] Happy New Year!
- traer suerte[trah-EHR SWEHR-teh] to bring luck
Grammar spot: “hay que” and two past-tense verbs
Hay que + infinitive gives a rule for everyone: «hay que esperar» (you have to wait), «no hay que comer uvas con los cuartos» (you mustn’t eat grapes during the quarter bells). It never changes, whoever you are talking about.
Hubo and vendieron are in the preterite, the tense for finished events. Hubo is the past of hay: «en 1909 hubo muchas uvas» (in 1909 there were lots of grapes). Vendieron is “they sold”, from vender. Learn the pattern in Lesson A2-08: The Preterite of -ER and -IR Verbs, and practise holiday phrases in Lesson A2-46: Celebrations and Good Wishes.
Spain vs Latin America
The grapes have travelled. Many families in Mexico, Peru, Colombia and other countries also eat twelve grapes at midnight, often making a wish with each one. Other customs are local: in parts of Latin America people run around the block with an empty suitcase to bring a year of travel, or burn a life-size doll, el año viejo, to say goodbye to the old year.
Quick facts
- When: midnight on Thursday 31 December 2026.
- Where: everywhere, but the most famous clock is in Madrid’s Puerta del Sol.
- How: one grape with each of the twelve chimes, not during the cuartos.
- Tip: buy seedless grapes, or a ready-made tin of twelve.
- Afterwards: «¡Feliz Año Nuevo!», kisses, hugs and cava.
Try it
When do you start eating the grapes: with los cuartos or with las campanadas?
Answer: With las campanadas, the twelve chimes. The cuartos come first.
What is the past of hay?
Answer: hubo (there was / there were) for a finished event.
How do you wish someone a happy New Year?
Answer: «¡Feliz Año Nuevo!»
More December traditions: read about the Christmas lottery and el Gordo.