Three Kings Day falls on 6 January every year, and in 2027 that is a Wednesday. It is the Christian feast also called the Epiphany, marking the day the three wise men, or Magi, reached the baby Jesus in Bethlehem and presented their gifts of gold, frankincense and myrrh. It is also the twelfth and final day of Christmas, which is why so many families treat it as the proper close to the festive season.
If you have ever wondered why the date never moves, the answer is simple. Three Kings Day is counted as twelve days after Christmas Day, so it lands on 6 January year after year. Some churches, particularly in parts of the United States, observe it on the nearest Sunday instead, but the traditional date most of the world keeps is the sixth.
What is Three Kings Day and why is it celebrated?
Three Kings Day celebrates the visit of the Magi to the newborn Jesus, an event Christians call the Epiphany, a word that means manifestation or revelation. In the story from the Gospel of Matthew, three wise men followed a bright star to Bethlehem and offered three symbolic gifts: gold for a king, frankincense for a god, and myrrh, an embalming oil, foreshadowing the life ahead. Tradition later gave them names, Caspar, Melchior and Balthazar, and crowned them as kings, though the Bible itself names neither the men nor their number.
For Christians the feast is the moment the Christ child is revealed to the wider world beyond the stable, which is why it carries such weight in the church calendar. Globally it is observed by well over a billion Catholics and many other Christians, with the liveliest celebrations found across Spain, Latin America and parts of central and eastern Europe.
Three Kings Day in the United Kingdom: Twelfth Night
In Britain, 6 January is best known as Twelfth Night, the end of the twelve days of Christmas. By long custom this is the day you take down the Christmas tree and decorations, and superstition holds that leaving them up any later brings bad luck for the year ahead. Older traditions tied the night to cake, wassailing and a spot of harmless mischief, a last burst of merriment before ordinary life resumed.
Worth unwrapping early
Women's Merry Xmas Christmas Jumper
From present-wrapping to film nights, Women's Merry Xmas Christmas Jumper keeps everyone toasty and grinning.
It is a gentle, homely occasion here rather than a public holiday, so most people are back at work. That makes Twelfth Night the perfect excuse to pull on your Christmas jumper one final time before it goes back in the wardrobe, or to spend a cosy evening at home in matching pyjamas while the decorations come down.
How Three Kings Day is celebrated around the world
The feast looks very different from country to country, and that variety is part of its charm.
In Spain, 6 January is one of the most anticipated days of the year. On the evening of the fifth, towns hold the Cabalgata de Reyes, a grand parade where the three kings ride through the streets on floats throwing sweets to the crowds. Children clean their shoes and leave them out overnight for the kings to fill with presents, much as British children leave a stocking for Father Christmas. Well-behaved children wake to gifts, while naughty ones might find a lump of sweet sugar coal instead.
Because Three Kings Day rounds off the season together, a set of matching family Christmas jumpers is a lovely way to mark the last day of Christmas with everyone in the photo.
In Mexico and across Latin America, it is Santa Claus who takes a back seat and the three wise men who bring the gifts. The day centres on the Rosca de Reyes, a ring-shaped sweet bread studded with candied fruit to look like a jewelled crown, with a tiny figure of the baby Jesus hidden inside. Whoever finds the figure in their slice hosts the next celebration on Candlemas, 2 February.
Elsewhere the day carries its own flavour. In Poland it is a public holiday, and families mark their doorways with chalk and the kings' initials. In Ireland it is Women's Christmas, when the women of the house finally put their feet up after the cooking is done. In Prague there is even a bracing Three Kings swim in the Vltava river, after which everyone warms up with mulled wine. Greek and other Orthodox communities bless the waters on the same day.
Gifts, shoes and the Rosca de Reyes
Gift-giving sits at the heart of Three Kings Day in the countries that keep it. The three gifts of the Magi are echoed in the presents children receive, and in many homes the morning of the sixth is the real present-opening day rather than 25 December. The custom of leaving out shoes, often with a little hay or water for the kings' camels, is the loveliest detail, and the trail of stray hay left behind is the trick parents use to lead children to their gifts.
If you would like to keep things gentle and indoors, a quiet evening in Christmas pyjamas suits the mood of Twelfth Night perfectly, and the kids' Christmas jumpers mean the whole family can see the season out together.
When does the Christmas season really end?
For most of us Three Kings Day is the true end of Christmas. The twelve days run from Christmas Day on 25 December to the Epiphany on 6 January, so the season closes exactly where the carol about the twelve days does. After the tree comes down and the last mince pie is eaten, the festive calendar quietly resets until next December.
Three Kings Day always lands on 6 January, twelve days after Christmas Day.
The Bible never names the wise men or says there were three of them.
Their gifts were gold, frankincense and myrrh, each with its own meaning.
In Britain, 6 January is Twelfth Night, the traditional day to take the decorations down.
In Spain and Latin America, children leave shoes out for the kings to fill with presents.
Frequently asked questions about Three Kings Day: Date, Meaning & Traditions
Three Kings Day, also called the Epiphany, is a Christian feast on 6 January that celebrates the visit of the three wise men, or Magi, to the baby Jesus in Bethlehem. They brought gifts of gold, frankincense and myrrh, and the day marks the moment Christ was revealed to the wider world. It is also the twelfth and final day of Christmas.
The date is fixed at twelve days after Christmas Day, so Three Kings Day always falls on 6 January. Some churches, mainly in the United States, observe it on the nearest Sunday instead, but 6 January is the traditional date kept across most of the world.
In Spain, 6 January is one of the biggest days of the festive season. On the evening of the fifth, towns hold grand Three Kings parades, the Cabalgata de Reyes, where the kings throw sweets to the crowds. Children leave their shoes out overnight to be filled with gifts, and families share a Rosca de Reyes ring cake. Many shops close on the day itself.
In Britain, 6 January is usually known as Twelfth Night, the end of the twelve days of Christmas. By custom it is the day to take down the Christmas tree and decorations, as leaving them up any longer is said to bring bad luck.
Tradition names the three kings Caspar, Melchior and Balthazar, though the Bible itself names neither the wise men nor how many there were. They are often shown carrying the three gifts of gold, frankincense and myrrh.
