8 Timeless Christmas Stories in Spanish
Spanish Christmas stories are a great tool for improving your language skills while getting in the festive spirit and learning about holiday traditions in the Spanish-speaking world.
We’ve gathered some of the best Christmas stories in Spanish for beginners to advanced learners. Plus, we’ll show you where you can find more great stories like these.
Contents
- 1. “‘Twas Nochebuena” (‘Twas the Night Before Christmas)
- 2. “Inversonia y la Navidad” (Inversonia and Christmas)
- 3. “La historia del niño Jesús” (The Story of Baby Jesus)
- 4. “El festín de Navidad” (The Christmas Feast)
- 5. “La niña de los fósforos” (The Little Match Girl)
- 6. “¡Cómo el Grinch robó la Navidad!” (How the Grinch Stole Christmas)
- 7. “El regalo de los Reyes Magos” (The Gift of the Magi)
- 8. “Cuento de Navidad” (A Christmas Carol)
- Resources for Finding Spanish Christmas Stories
- Write Your Own Spanish Christmas Story
- And One More Thing…
Download: This blog post is available as a convenient and portable PDF that you can take anywhere. Click here to get a copy. (Download)
1. “‘Twas Nochebuena” (‘Twas the Night Before Christmas)
Level: Beginner
This children’s book by
The story is a festive retelling of the classic “‘Twas the Night Before Christmas” with a cultural twist, introducing young readers to the vibrant traditions of a Latino Christmas Eve celebration.
Through rhyming text and colorful illustrations, the book explores customs such as making tamales, singing holiday songs and attending midnight Mass.
2. “Inversonia y la Navidad” (Inversonia and Christmas)
Level: Beginner
This silly, made-up story is about a planet called Inversonia where Christmas is inverted. Santa Claus is Clanta Saus, and he also happens to be blue.
It’s a very short story—just one page. It’s also light-hearted, and the interactions between Clanta and a child are fairly simple to follow.
Though some words and verb conjugations may be unfamiliar, you’ll probably understand them in the context of the story. Write them down and look them up later to avoid ruining the flow of the story.
3. “La historia del niño Jesús” (The Story of Baby Jesus)
Level: Beginner
This traditional Christmas story will be easy to follow because you probably already know it. The story begins with Mary and Joseph going to the stables, followed by Jesus’ birth and the arrival of the Three Wise Men.
You’ll see that some of the words are hyperlinked—these links lead to other stories, songs and poems related to the topic and will help extend your learning.
If you come across a difficult conjugation, look at the root of the word and you should be able to get the gist. For example, at the root of se llamará (will be called) is llamar (to call).
4. “El festín de Navidad” (The Christmas Feast)
Level: Intermediate
While this is a children’s book, you’ll probably find that it’s appropriate for an intermediate Spanish learner. The story follows a wolf, a fox and a weasel as they set out to steal a turkey for their Christmas feast.
It’s a fun read that will likely teach you some new vocabulary. The illustrations and context will help you figure out the meanings of any unfamiliar words you come across, which is a useful method for memorization.
This original story will make you laugh, and the images will keep you engaged as you strengthen your reading comprehension skills.
5. “La niña de los fósforos” (The Little Match Girl)
Level: Intermediate
This classic story by Hans Christian Andersen follows a poor little girl who sells matches in the street. When the little girl lights the matches, she sees beautiful images like Christmas trees and shooting stars—and, finally, her grandmother.
Some find the story’s ending sad or bittersweet. Read it through and see what you think! If you’re having trouble understanding, check out the English version to get the gist of the story and then return to the Spanish version.
Try reading it out loud to practice your pronunciation. And remember that some of the story’s elements are meant to be imaginative, not literal.
Level: Intermediate
This Dr. Seuss story is probably one you know well, which will make it easier to follow along and learn new words as you read. Some of the tenses and vocabulary may give you a good challenge but shouldn’t overwhelm you.
If you’re unfamiliar, the story follows the Grinch, a grouchy creature who despises Christmas and plots to ruin it for the residents of Whoville by stealing their presents, decorations and food.
However, the Whos’ undying festive spirit and love for each other ultimately change his heart, teaching him the true meaning of Christmas. If you love the Grinch, see how scenes from the movie can be turned into mini Spanish lessons:
7. “El regalo de los Reyes Magos” (The Gift of the Magi)
Level: Advanced
8. “Cuento de Navidad” (A Christmas Carol)
Read the story / Check availability on Amazon
Level: Advanced
This is a festive story by Charles Dickens that’s for those who are feeling ambitious. “A Christmas Carol” is an incredible novella that was published in the late 1800s but remains popular today.
The famous story is about a bitter old man, Ebeneezer Scrooge, and his visits from ghosts of Christmas past, present and yet to come. The ghosts have a huge impact on Scrooge, and the story’s ending is incredibly heartwarming.
If you’re struggling to follow the Spanish edition, read the English edition alongside or beforehand. You can also break it up into parts, taking a break after each ghost visit and rereading sections as needed.
Resources for Finding Spanish Christmas Stories
There are plenty of Spanish Christmas stories you can get your hands on, either originally written in Spanish or translated from their English version. Here are a few great resources where you can find more stories to get in the festive spirit:
- Amazon: Amazon offers many children’s books and novellas on the theme of Christmas. Just search “Spanish Christmas stories” or “cuentos de Navidad” to find some great options.
- YouTube: If you’d rather listen to your Spanish Christmas stories than read them yourself, YouTube is a great resource. Search for a specific story in Spanish or use the same search terms as above, followed by “audiolibro” to find the audio versions.
- Guia Infantil: This site offers eight short Christmas stories in Spanish, each with their own moral lesson. They’re short, simple and use basic language suitable for beginners.
You can pair these stories with the video clips on FluentU, where interactive learning tools will help you study Spanish in context.
FluentU takes authentic videos—like music videos, movie trailers, news and inspiring talks—and turns them into personalized language learning lessons.
You can try FluentU for free for 2 weeks. Check out the website or download the iOS app or Android app.
P.S. Click here to take advantage of our current sale! (Expires at the end of this month.)
Write Your Own Spanish Christmas Story
Reading Spanish Christmas stories is great for your Spanish, but so is writing them. This will let you practice your new festive vocabulary. You can write a silly version of a real Christmas tale or write about your family’s Christmas traditions.
Look up a traditional version of that story in English or Spanish and consider all the important elements. If you’re writing about your own Christmas traditions, take some notes first, so when you go to write you have your ideas clear in your mind.
Write the story as best you can, without a dictionary or translation service. When you’re done, go back through with a dictionary and see where you can add some fun descriptions or extra elements to the story.
Want more festive Spanish fun? Put on some popular Spanish Christmas carols or watch a classic Christmas movie in Spanish!
Download: This blog post is available as a convenient and portable PDF that you can take anywhere. Click here to get a copy. (Download)
And One More Thing…
If you've made it this far that means you probably enjoy learning Spanish with engaging material and will then love FluentU.
Other sites use scripted content. FluentU uses a natural approach that helps you ease into the Spanish language and culture over time. You’ll learn Spanish as it’s actually spoken by real people.
FluentU has a wide variety of videos, as you can see here:
FluentU brings native videos within reach with interactive transcripts. You can tap on any word to look it up instantly. Every definition has examples that have been written to help you understand how the word is used. If you see an interesting word you don’t know, you can add it to a vocab list.
Review a complete interactive transcript under the Dialogue tab, and find words and phrases listed under Vocab.
Learn all the vocabulary in any video with FluentU’s robust learning engine. Swipe left or right to see more examples of the word you’re on.
The best part is that FluentU keeps track of the vocabulary that you’re learning, and gives you extra practice with difficult words. It'll even remind you when it’s time to review what you’ve learned. Every learner has a truly personalized experience, even if they’re learning with the same video.
Start using the FluentU website on your computer or tablet or, better yet, download the FluentU app from the iTunes or Google Play store. Click here to take advantage of our current sale! (Expires at the end of this month.)
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