Santa Claus has come to town days earlier in Elche (Alicante)

THOUSANDS lined the streets in the centre of Elche as Santa Claus arrived in the city on December 17.

He was escorted by an entourage of hundreds that included elves, Disney characters, stilt walkers, acrobats and dancers in a parade that started in Avenida de Novelda and continued along Calle Jorge Juan and Calle Blasco Ibañez.

On reaching the Altamira Palace, Santa Claus descended from his sleigh where he greeted and spoke to the waiting children.  Here he was welcomed by city mayor Carlos Gonzalez who thanked him for accepting the city’s invitation and arriving early so that Elche’s child would be able to visit him at the Christmas Market in Paseo de la Estacion.

Accompanied by Fiestas councillor, Mariola Galiana, the mayor then handed over a magic key, which allowed him to enter the city’s houses and leave presents on Christmas Eve, a logical precaution in a Spanish city where few apartments have a convenient chimney.

Thank you for taking the time to read this article, do remember to come back and check The Euro Weekly News website for all your up-to-date local and international news stories and remember, you can also follow us on Facebook and Instagram