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Festivals & Events in Bilbao
Festivals & Events

Feria de Santo Tomás de Bilbao

Bilbao
Preparing talo dough at the Arenal in Bilbao during the Santo Tomás fair
Photo: Javier Mediavilla Ezquibela / CC BY-SA 3.0 (Wikimedia Commons)

Every December 21st, without fail, Bilbao's Old Town turns into a farmers' market: the Santo Tomás Fair. Free entry, centered on the arcades of Plaza Nueva and the El Arenal area, and a very long line for talo with chorizo washed down with cider or txakoli.

A farmers' market, not a Christmas market

Santo Tomás wasn't born as a festival: it was born as paperwork. At year's end, farmers from the Biscay caseríos would come down to the town to pay rent to the landowners, and they used the trip to sell whatever surplus they had. Everything else grew from there. The market as we know it today was organized in 1915 by musician Félix García Arceluz, "Klin-Klón," and ever since, the date has repeated every December 21st, a fixed date (in 2026 it falls on a Sunday). The important heads-up, because a lot of people show up expecting the wrong thing: this isn't a Christmas market with lit-up stalls, nor an indoor event with set opening hours. It's a one-day agricultural fair, outdoors and right in the street. If you're after ornament stands and carols, you've picked the wrong plan; if you're after baserri produce and street atmosphere, you've got the right one. Schedule and hours for the next edition are published on the official Bilbao City Council website.

Plaza Nueva and El Arenal: where it actually happens

The epicenter is the arcades of Plaza Nueva and the area around El Arenal, the historic spot where the baserritarras used to come down to sell. The fair spills out into the streets of the Old Town, but if you only have a short window, that's where the heart of it is: stalls packed tight under the arches and people eating standing up on every corner. The critical tip here is about logistics, not taste: the arcades function like a funnel. By mid-morning the Old Town is already packed—add the Christmas crowds filling the same streets—and moving under the arches turns into a slow shuffle you can't easily escape once you're in it. If you're bringing a stroller, small kids, or have little patience for crowds, go early or enter from El Arenal and let the flow carry you inward, never the other way. And agree on a meeting point ahead of time: signal and hearing both fail down there.

Talo with chorizo, cider, and what to buy

The dish of the day is talo: a griddled corn flatbread with chorizo tucked inside, washed down with cider or txakoli. It's what every Bilbao local orders on December 21st, and it's also the longest line of the morning, so if you want it without a twenty-minute wait, go early or accept the queue as part of the ritual. Prices are set by each stall and change year to year; ask before you order and don't trust any figures you've read elsewhere. As for shopping, what's on sale is local proximity: cheese, honey, cider, vegetables, and produce from Biscay's caseríos. This isn't tourist craftwork, and that's exactly what sets it apart from any souvenir fair. Practical consequence: fresh goods run out. The good stuff at the small stalls disappears by mid-morning, and by late afternoon you're left with whatever's still there.

What time to go, how to get there, and how to dress

Go early. It's the one piece of advice that solves three problems at once: you get fresh produce before it sells out, you eat talo without the peak-hour line, and you can still move through the arcades without shoulder-to-shoulder crowding. From mid-morning on, the whole nature of the event shifts: it goes from market to human tide—fun if that's what you're after, exhausting if you came to shop. Get there by public transport and forget the car: the Old Town is pedestrian-only and there's nowhere to park that day. The metro has a stop right in the Old Town and another near Abando, a short walk from El Arenal; check lines and schedules for December 21st on the Metro Bilbao website, since they change depending on the day of the week. And dress properly warm: it's December, it's outdoors, and you'll spend a lot of time standing still in line. A waterproof jacket, shoes that can handle wet ground, and hands free for the talo.

Frequently asked questions

When is the Santo Tomás Fair held?
Every December 21st, a fixed date that doesn't shift to the nearest weekend (in 2026 it falls on a Sunday). It's a one-day market, not a multi-day program. Exact hours and the schedule for the next edition are published on the official Bilbao City Council website; it's worth checking a few days ahead.
Do you have to pay to get in?
No. The fair is free and open access: it takes place in the street, around Plaza Nueva and El Arenal, with no enclosure or entry control. The cost is in what you buy and eat or drink, and each stall sets its own prices, so ask before you order rather than assuming a figure.
What do people eat at Santo Tomás?
Talo: a griddled corn flatbread with chorizo inside, paired with cider or txakoli. It's what everyone orders that day, which is exactly why it generates the longest line of the morning. It's eaten standing up, in the street, no table or napkin involved: go early if you don't want to wait too long.
Is it a Christmas market?
No, and mistaking it for one ruins the plan. There are no lit-up stalls, decorations, or enclosed venue: it's a one-day agricultural fair rooted in the rent payments once made by Biscay's farming caseríos. What's for sale is produce from Biscay's caseríos—cheese, honey, cider, vegetables—not craftwork made for visitors.

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