Christmas trees (Christmas firs), Nativity scenes and Illuminations

A thousand years of history and a unique atmosphere, even more so during the Christmas season when the city is adorned with festoons, illuminations and lights that add charm to all the districts and neighbourhoods. The streets and squares of the city are transformed into an enchanted stage for Christmas trees of all types and shapes, small or majestic, set up outdoors but also in shops, shopping centres and hotels. If you wish to immerse yourself even more in the spirit of Christmas, strolling around Rome and entering its churches you can admire nativity scenes of all kinds, from the oldest to the most modern, from cork nativity scenes to those made of papier mache, wood or mother-of-pearl. It is precisely in Rome, in the basilica of Santa Maria Maggiore, that one of the oldest representations of the Nativity is preserved.

Tree on the Spanish Steps/Piazza di Spagna, until 6 January 2025. The tree in Piazza di Spagna, set up and sponsored by Bvlgari, is 13 metres high, weighs about 4 tonnes and is suggestively lit by thousands of LED lights. The futuristic design of the historic Maison evokes the tubogas, an iconic creation of the Roman brand, and perfectly complements the illuminations installed along Via dei Condotti. In the following days, Bvlgari will also illuminate 20 other urban quadrants with Christmas compositions, from Ostia to Tiburtina to Casetta Mattei.

Tree in Piazza San Lorenzo in Lucina, until 6 January 2025. Made by the ‘Piazza San Lorenzo in Lucina’ Association with recycled materials and low-consumption LED lights, it is composed of original and exclusive pieces of collectible design, conceived according to the most innovative and sustainable criteria of the circular economy.

Tree in Largo Goldoni, until 6 January 2025. Macro glass spheres, striped and plain, in shades of bright red, gold, metallic green and light pink adorn the façade of the building that houses Gucci and the very elegant tree that can be admired throughout the Christmas season. The large boules are inspired by the Italian craftsmanship of Murano glass and traditional Christmas decorations.

St Peter's Square tree, from 7 December 2024 to 6 January 2025. The Christmas tree erected in St Peter's Square is a spruce from Ledro, a municipality in Trentino Alto-Adige. Standing 29 metres tall, it will remain in the square next to the reproduction of the Nativity coming this year from Grado. Both symbols of Christmas will be inaugurated in a ceremony scheduled for next Saturday, 7 December, at 5pm, presided over by the heads of the Governorate of the Vatican City State.

Tree in Piazza del Popolo, from 8 December 2024 to 6 January 2025. Rome's traditional Christmas tree, a 22-metre fir tree, will light up the monumental and elegant square from which the Capitoline shopping Trident branches off.

Illuminations of Via dei Condotti, until 6 January 2025. Created by the Maison Bvlgari, like the tree in Piazza di Spagna, the illuminations that shine on the refined shopping street in the capital take up the motif of the tubogas, the brand's iconic creation.

Illuminations of Via del Babuino and Via di San Giacomo, until 6 January 2025. The two elegant Roman streets will light up thanks to Hausmann & Co., which has created lights entirely handmade by designers, blacksmiths, painters, electricians, decorators and installers. An art and sustainability project, with the entirely handmade lights, inspired by the entrance portals of the Hausmann & Co. boutiques, made of environmentally friendly materials, including aluminium and energy-saving LED micro-lamps. In all, 5,400 metres of LED lighting were used, comprising 1,800,000 lighting points.

Illuminations of Via del Corso, from 8 December 2024 to 6 January 2025. The beating heart of Roman shopping will be lit up with beautiful lights between Piazza Venezia and Piazza del Popolo, for about 1,400 metres.

100 Nativity Scenes in the Vatican, from 8 December 2024 to 6 January 2025. The seventh edition of the International Exhibition 100 Nativity Scenes in the Vatican, the exhibition that brings together works by artists from all over the world who have expressed their creativity in representing Nativity scenes, is back. Hosted in the evocative space below Bernini's Colonnade, in St. Peter's Square, the exhibition brings together the numerous cribs, true works of art that, as per tradition, are executed with different techniques, styles and materials, from paper to fabric, from cork to wood, and mirror different cultures and traditions.

Neapolitan monumental nativity scene from the Basilica of Santi Cosma e Damiano
Astonishingly large Neapolitan nativity scene from the 18th century, with figurines made of wood and terracotta: against the backdrop of ancient Rome, the columns of the Roman Forum are the ideal set for the cradle of the little boy.

Nativity Scene of the Church of Santa Maria in Via
Made by the Associazione Italiana Amici del Presepio in Rome, this Nativity Scene with 18th-century figurines created by Nicola Maciariello is set in 19th-century Rome.

Nativity Scene of the Basilica of Santa Maria Maggiore
This artistic masterpiece created by Arnolfo di Cambio in 1291 has eight stone figurines depicting Mary, Joseph and the baby, the ox, the donkey, and the Magi. The basilica also preserves the relic of the Holy Cradle (according to legend, the precious fragments of the wood of the famous manger that welcomed baby Jesus) and the panniculum, recovered in Christmas 2007, a portion of the swaddling clothes with which Mary wrapped baby Jesus.

Nativity Scene of the Basilica of Santa Maria in Ara Coeli/Cappella del Presepio
This ancient Roman nativity scene, with a replica of the celebrated Capitoline Child (the original was stolen in 1994), features the spectacular Gloria by Father F. Codogno (1828) and life-size figures by Luigi Ceccon (1858).

Nativity Scene of the Church of Santa Maria dell'Anima
Nativity scene with splendid wooden statues by Sebastian Osterrieder (1864-1932), made by the sculptor for Wilhelm II, Emperor of Germany and King of Prussia (1888-1918).

Nativity Scene of the Church of San Marcello al Corso
This crib, renowned for its Roman setting, represents the shops of old-style Rome as a backdrop for the nativity scene.

Presepe dei Netturbini (Nativity Scene of the garbage collectors)
Since 1972, Giuseppe Ianni's nativity scene faithfully reproduces, in miniature, the Palestine of two thousand years ago with scenes of daily life, including small houses, cobblestones, roads, rivers, bridges, and aqueducts, made from the marble retrieved of St. Peter's colonnade.

Seven Nativity artworks: a gaze at the sacred heart of Rome
Let's discover together seven precious artworks - kept in churches and museums - by seven great artists who left us their legacy, the "images" of an ancient event seen through their eyes, giving us an experience of styles, lights, colours and emotions. The Nativity of Christ is one of the great artistic and spiritual testimonies depicted in paintings, sculptures, mosaics and frescoes created, over the centuries, by the genius of those arrived in Rome, loved it, chosen it as the ideal city for arts and symbol of eternal beauty.

Cover: Nativity scene in the Basilica of Santi Cosma e Damiano, photo turismoroma