Origins
If you walk through the Historic Center of Santa Marta on December 7th, just as evening falls, you will see something few tourists get to witness. It is not the neon lights of the Zona Rosa or the hustle and bustle of the Rodadero nightclubs. It is a faint, almost shy glimmer, emerging from the sidewalks, balconies, and cobblestone corners. They are velones. Hundreds of lit velones turning the streets into a river of flickering light. This is not a simple Christmas decoration. It is La Noche de los Velones, a ritual that has marked the spiritual pulse of the city for centuries.
To understand where this tradition comes from, you have to go back long before Santa Marta was the tourist port it is today. The first to light candles on these shores were not the Spanish. The indigenous Tairona people, who inhabited the Sierra Nevada de Santa Marta and the foothills descending to the bay, held light ceremonies associated with the lunar cycles and planting. They lit bonfires and resin torches to thank Mother Earth for the harvest and to guide the spirits of their ancestors through the night. When the conquistadors and later the Catholic missionaries arrived, this custom of illuminating the darkness merged with the European religious calendar.
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December 7th is the eve of the Immaculate Conception, one of the most important Marian feasts for the Catholic Church. The tradition of lighting candles that night came to the Americas with the Spanish, but in Santa Marta, it did not remain a mere liturgical act. Here, it blended with the indigenous respect for the night and the healing practices of the African slaves who arrived at the port. In the courtyards of the colonial houses in the center, cooks and free workers began placing candles not only in honor of the Virgin but also to pray for the health of a sick relative, to give thanks for a received favor, or to ward off bad energies. Thus was born La Noche de los Velones as we know it: a syncretic, intimate, and deeply samario ritual.
Timeline or historical milestones
16th Century – The arrival of Catholic tradition
The Dominican and Franciscan friars who accompanied Rodrigo de Bastidas in the founding of Santa Marta (1525) introduced the feast of the Immaculate Conception. The first candles were lit inside the chapels and on the facades of the few existing stone houses. It was an exclusively religious act, controlled by the Church.
18th Century – Popular syncretism
With the port's boom and the arrival of African slaves, the tradition expanded. Candles left the churches and were placed at the doors of homes in the San Miguel neighborhood (today part of the Historic Center) and in the Pescaíto neighborhood. People began associating the light of the velones with home protection and environmental purification. The local term "velón" was born, referring to the large candle, made of wax or paraffin, left to burn all night.
1950s – The peak of the ritual
Santa Marta was still a quiet city, without the tourist boom. La Noche de los Velones was one of the most anticipated events of the year. Families prepared their velones for weeks. Children would go out asking neighbors for "la velita," and the streets of the center filled with the smell of melted wax and flowers. Merchants on Calle 10 and Calle 14 competed to have the longest row of candles in front of their shops. It was a neighborhood party, without city hall or sponsorships.
1980s – The decline due to modernity
With the arrival of mass electricity, LED Christmas lights, and the city's growth towards el Rodadero, the tradition began to lose strength. Many families moved from the center to gated communities. Velones were replaced by electric decorations. The ritual was relegated to a few traditional neighborhoods and the elderly who still remembered its meaning.
2010 – 2020 – The community-led rescue
Cultural collectives and managers from the Historic Center began organizing candle walks to revitalize the tradition. The Mayor's Office of Santa Marta included the event in the official Christmas programming, although with a more touristy than spiritual focus. As of May 2026, the ritual is still alive, but at risk of becoming a mere spectacle for selfies if its essence is not preserved.
Key figures or events
Doña Matilde Pinedo – The last candle keeper of the Center
Doña Matilde, born in 1942 in a house on Calle 16 with Carrera 5, is one of the few people who keeps the ritual alive with the same rigor as 60 years ago. She does not just light velones. She prepares them: she buys the wax at the Plaza de Mercado, pours it into tin molds, and adds essences of rue and basil to "ward off bad vibes." Her testimony is key to understanding the ritual. "It's not just about lighting a candle and that's it," she says. "You have to set your intention. Ask with your heart. If you light a velón and you're thinking about the fight you had with your neighbor, that velón is useless."
Father Juan Bautista – The forgotten syncretism
In the 1960s, Father Juan Bautista, parish priest of the Catedral Basílica de Santa Marta, tried to purify the tradition by eliminating the "pagan" elements (herbs, personal petitions to unofficial saints). His attempt failed. The people of the center turned their backs on him and continued lighting their velones on the sidewalks, outside the church. This event marked a before and after: La Noche de los Velones was definitively left in the hands of the people, not the religious institution.
The candle route – Key streets
The ritual is not done just anywhere. It has a sacred geography within the Historic Center. The streets where the tradition is still concentrated are:
- Calle 14 (between Carrera 2 and Carrera 4): Here you will find Doña Matilde's house and several restored colonial mansions. It is the heart of the ritual. The candles are placed directly on the cobblestone, forming a continuous line that looks like a carpet of light.
- Plaza de Bolívar: Around the statue of the Liberator, informal vendors set up stalls selling velones, flowers, and scented candles. It is the busiest spot for tourists.
- Parque de los Novios: On Calle 17 with Carrera 3, couples light velones to pray for the stability of their relationship. It is a recent tradition, about 20 years old, but it has already taken root.
- San Miguelito neighborhood (around the Iglesia de San Miguel): This is the oldest neighborhood in Santa Marta, where fishing families live. Here the ritual is more austere: small velones, without adornments, placed in recycled tuna cans. The intention is to pray for the safety of those who go out to sea.
The spiritual meaning: petitions, thanksgivings, and healing
La Noche de los Velones is not a carnival. It is an act of communication with the divine, whatever each person's conception of that may be. In Santa Marta, the ritual has three layers of meaning that often intertwine:
- Petition: A velón is lit to ask for something specific: the health of a family member, a job, for a child to return home. The candle must burn until it is completely consumed. If it goes out before, it is interpreted that the petition was heard but the path will be difficult.
- Thanksgiving: Many people light velones to give thanks for a favor received during the year. It is common to see white velones (for thanksgiving) and yellow velones (for petitions for money or work). Red velones are used for love, but with caution: "red attracts passion, but also fights if not handled well," warns Doña Matilde.
- Healing and spiritual cleansing: This is the deepest layer and the least visible to tourists. Some people, especially the elderly, place the velones on street corners where the winds cross. The idea is that the light purifies the environment and "sweeps away" the negative energies that accumulate in homes. It is also common to place velones on door thresholds so that no harmful spirit enters during the night.
A curious fact that very few people know: in some houses in the center, the velones are placed inside a circle of coarse salt. Salt, in African and Tairona tradition, is a protective element. The circle prevents negative energy from dispersing. If you see a salt circle around a velón, you are witnessing a deep cleansing ritual, not a simple Christmas decoration.
Testimonials from local participants: how it feels from the inside
Carlos "Caco" Mendoza – Fisherman from San Miguelito neighborhood
"I haven't missed La Noche de los Velones for as long as I can remember. My father took me as a child. He would light a velón for every fishing trip that went well. Now I do the same. On December 7th, before going out to sea, I light my velón at the door of my house, on Carrera 1 with Calle 11. I don't ask for money. I ask for the sea to respect me. Last year, a velón split in two while it was burning. The next day, my boat's engine broke down. It wasn't a coincidence. That velón was warning me."
María Fernanda Rueda – Tour guide and cultural manager
"I started organizing candle walks five years ago, because I saw the tradition was being lost. Tourists would arrive in Santa Marta on December 7th and had no idea what was happening. They saw the candles and thought it was a city hall event. They didn't know it was a neighborhood ritual. Now, on my tours, I explain that each candle has a story. People connect deeply. I have seen foreigners cry when they understand it's not a show, but a way to pray for those who are no longer here. Last year, a lady from Germany lit a velón for her mother, who had died during the pandemic. That's what makes this night special: no matter where you come from, we all have something to ask for or give thanks for."
Don Hernán Díaz – Merchant from Calle 14
"I've had a hardware store here since 1975. Before, December 7th was the most important day of the year for commerce. People bought candles, matches, cans. Now I sell more LED lights than velones. It's sad. But there are still those who come to buy the big velones from me, the classic ones. I give them a special price that day, because I know it's a tradition that needs to be cared for. Last year, a young guy bought 20 velones from me. I asked him why so many. He told me: 'To put them at my grandmother's house, who can't go out anymore.' That gave me hope."
Contrast with the modern party: why this ritual is disappearing
It is impossible to talk about La Noche de los Velones without mentioning what has happened in the last 15 years. Santa Marta has grown. The Historic Center has filled up with hostels, bars, and restaurants for tourists. On December 7th, many streets that used to be filled with velones are now filled with plastic tables and chairs. The loud music from the bars drowns out the silence the ritual needs. The velones compete with the LED screens of commercial establishments. It is a brutal contrast: the flickering light of wax against the cold light of advertising billboards.
Furthermore, the Mayor's Office has tried to "institutionalize" the tradition. In recent years, they have organized a "Festival of Light" that includes concerts, laser shows, and fireworks displays. The problem is that this has nothing to do with the original ritual. La Noche de los Velones is silent, intimate, homemade. It doesn't need a stage. It needs people to turn off the TV, go out to their front door, and light a candle with intention. That cannot be manufactured from a municipal office.
Another factor is gentrification. Many traditional families from the center have sold their houses and moved to more distant neighborhoods like Mamatoco or Gaira. The new homes are apartments in gated communities, where there is no sidewalk to place velones. The ritual has shifted to peripheral neighborhoods, but without the historical context of the center, it loses part of its meaning. In Mamatoco, for example, people light velones, but they do it inside their homes, not on the street. The community dimension has been lost.
However, all is not lost. As of May 2026, there are signs that a new generation is rediscovering the ritual. Young artists and musicians from the center have started organizing alternative "velatones," combining the candle tradition with acoustic concerts and poetry readings. It is not the same as the original ritual, but it at least keeps the flame alive. Literally.
How to experience La Noche de los Velones like a local
If you are in Santa Marta on December 7th, forget about the Rodadero and the nightclubs. The real experience is in the Historic Center. Here are some recommendations for you to experience the ritual with respect and without looking like just another tourist:
- Buy your velón at the Plaza de Mercado: Don't buy supermarket scented candles. Go to the Plaza de Mercado de Santa Marta (Carrera 1 with Calle 11) and look for the artisanal candle stalls. Ask for the beeswax velones
Current state
La Noche de los Velones has been regaining its relevance in recent years, becoming an event that attracts both locals and curious tourists eager to learn about this tradition that lights up the Historic Center of Santa Marta. However, the current state of this festivity reflects a mix of modernity and tradition, where new generations are beginning to revalue the ritual that has been part of samario culture for decades.
This event, celebrated on December 7th, is not only a visual spectacle but also a manifestation of the region's cultural identity. In recent years, contemporary elements have been incorporated, such as live music and artistic activities, which complement the traditional experience. However, it is important to note that some of the original customs, such as the preparation of wax velones and their arrangement on the streets, have remained intact, allowing attendees to connect with local history.
Plaza de los Novios
Insider Tip: Arrive early to find a good spot in the square, where the velones create a magical atmosphere. Don't forget to try an "arequipe" from the area, sold nearby, to enjoy a perfect combination with the festivity.
Parque de los Novios
Insider Tip: This park is ideal for enjoying live music while watching the illumination. Bring a blanket to sit on and enjoy the company of friends and family, creating a community atmosphere.