Easter Traditions Around the World: Egg Hunts, Bonfires & Festive Feasts in 2025

Easter, the most important feast in the Christian calendar, commemorates the resurrection of Jesus Christ and heralds the arrival of spring in much of the world. Yet beyond its religious core, Easter has evolved into a kaleidoscope of regional customs—from the crack of wooden rattles in Central Europe to the smoky scent of barbecued lamb in Greece, from Bermuda’s soaring kites to Norway’s obsession with crime novels. Whether you celebrate on 20 April 2025 (Western churches) or 27 April 2025 (Orthodox), these traditions share a common purpose: gathering communities, honoring renewal, and—of course—enjoying plenty of food.

Easter’s date shifts because Western churches follow the Gregorian calendar while Eastern Orthodox communities base their liturgy on the Julian calendar. The festival’s theological arc begins on Palm Sunday, intensifies during Holy Week—Maundy Thursday’s Last Supper, Good Friday’s crucifixion—and culminates in the joyful dawn of Easter Sunday. Many folklorists trace egg symbolism back to early Mesopotamian Christians (who stained eggs red to recall Christ’s blood) and even older pagan spring rites celebrating fertility. Over centuries, liturgical drama mingled with local culture, giving us an astonishing patchwork of practices

United Kingdom: Egg Rolling & Pace‑Egging
Families in Lancashire and Scotland dye hard‑boiled eggs, then race them downhill—symbolic of the stone rolled from Christ’s tomb. Children in Cumbria perform “pace‑egg” plays, a medieval folk drama of death and rebirth.

Germany: Osterfeuer (Easter Bonfires) & Egg Trees
Villages across Lower Saxony ignite towering bonfires on Holy Saturday to chase winter demons away. In Thuringia, families hang painted eggs on budding trees—an airy gallery of color called an Osterbaum.

France: The Giant Omelette of Bessières
On Easter Monday, Bessières cooks a 15,000‑egg omelette in a pan six meters wide, feeding thousands. Legend says Napoleon demanded a colossal omelette after enjoying a local innkeeper’s breakfast.

Italy: Scoppio del Carro in Florence
A 17th‑century cart stuffed with fireworks is ignited by a mechanical dove that “flies” from the cathedral altar. A spectacular explosion promises good harvests and civic luck.

Spain: Seville’s Semana Santa Processions
Hooded penitents (nazarenos) trudge barefoot behind baroque floats called pasos, while brass bands play mournful marches. The disciplined pageantry draws millions of pilgrims and tourists alike.

Greece: Red Eggs & Midnight Fireworks
After a midnight “Christos Anesti” liturgy, rockets light the Aegean sky and friends crack crimson eggs with the wish “Chronia Polla!” The winner with the last unbroken shell enjoys a year of luck.

Sweden & Finland: Easter Witches
Children dress as friendly witches, trading hand‑drawn cards for sweets—an echo of older folklore that witches flew to Blockula on Maundy Thursday.

United States & Canada: White House Egg Roll and Parade Culture
Washington, D.C.’s White House Easter Egg Roll (dating to 1878) now includes STEM activities and story time. Across North America, churches stage sunrise services on hilltops and beaches, followed by lavish brunch buffets.

Mexico: Cascarones & Passion Plays
In Veracruz and parts of northern Mexico, hollowed eggs filled with confetti (cascarones) are smashed on friends’ heads as a prank of blessing. Taxco’s Passion Play, featuring costumed penitents dragging heavy crosses, is one of Latin America’s most striking devotional spectacles.

Guatemala: Alfombras de Aserrín
Residents of Antigua create kilometer‑long “carpets” from dyed sawdust, depicting Mayan motifs and Christian scenes. Processions walk over them, transforming art into ephemeral devotion.

Brazil: Chocolate Eggs & Malhação de Judas
Brazilians exchange elaborate chocolate eggs—some the size of footballs—while coastal towns burn effigies of Judas Iscariot at noon on Holy Saturday in a cathartic ritual called malhação.

Bermuda: Good Friday Kite‑Flying
Color‑splashed hexagonal kites, said to symbolize Christ’s ascension, ride the Atlantic breeze. Locals feast on hot‑cross‑bun sandwiches layered with spicy cod.

Ethiopia & Eritrea: Fasika Fast‑Break
After 55 days of strict vegan fasting, Orthodox households slaughter a goat or lamb before sunrise mass. Traditional dishes like doro wat (spiced chicken) and tej (honey wine) turn Easter into a culinary homecoming.

South Africa: Pickled Fish & Sunrise Worship
Cape Malay communities cure yellowtail in vinegar, turmeric and onions—a custom that emerged when fishing nets rested on Good Friday. Nationwide, believers gather on beaches, mountains and Johannesburg’s Zoo Lake for open‑air hymn singing.

Nigeria: Easter Monday Carnivals
In Lagos and Calabar, church youth groups parade with masquerade dancers and talking drums, blending Christian joy with Igbo and Yoruba performative arts.

Ghana: Kwahu Paragliding Festival
Coinciding with Easter, the forested Kwahu Plateau hosts international pilots soaring above crowds in a heady mix of tourism and spirituality.

Philippines: Salubong & Moriones
At 4 a.m. on Easter Sunday, statues of the Risen Christ and the Virgin Mary meet in a dramatic street tableau called Salubong. On Marinduque Island, helmeted “Moriones” centurions roam for a week, recreating the legend of Longinus.

Australia & New Zealand: Bilbies and Beach‑side Services
To highlight endangered native fauna, Australian confectioners sell chocolate bilbies instead of bunnies. In both countries, Easter Monday marks the end of the long‑weekend road‑trip tradition known as “The Big Hop.”

Papua New Guinea: Floral Crosses
Villagers weave fragrant frangipani and hibiscus into giant crosses carried to hilltop churches amid rhythmic kundu‑drumming.

India (Goa & Kerala): Syro‑Malabar High Mass
St. Francis Xavier’s Basilica in Goa fills with Konkani hymns, while Kerala Christians boil kuswar (coconut‑jaggery sweets) and serve appam with mutton stew at family reunions.

Japan & South Korea: Emerging Egg‑Decorating Trend
Although Christians are a minority, theme parks like Tokyo Disney run pastel “Egg Hunts,” and Seoul bakeries sell sakura‑themed hot‑cross buns to millennials hungry for global culture.

Hot Cross Buns An English Good Friday staple marked with a flour‑paste cross, spiced with cinnamon and studded with currants to signify tears of Christ.

Pashka & Kulich Rich, cheesecake‑like pashka and tall, cylindrical kulich—crowned with “XB” icing for “Christ is Risen”—anchor Slavic celebrations.

Roast Lamb Echoing the Jewish Passover lamb and the “Lamb of God” imagery, roast spring lamb with rosemary graces Greek, Lebanese and Argentine tables alike.

Tsoureki Bread Sweet, braided Greek loaf flavored with mahlepi and mastika, braided around dyed‑red eggs to symbolize Christ inside the tomb.

Chocolate Eggs & Bunnies Industrialized in 19th‑century Germany and Switzerland, hollow chocolate eggs became a global marketing sensation; in 2025, vegan oat‑milk versions dominate supermarket end‑caps.

Digital natives are reinventing Easter in sustainable and connected ways. Urban parents swap disposable plastic eggs for wooden or crocheted shells filled with seed packets. Scandinavian bloggers teach natural dyeing with red‑cabbage, turmeric and beetroot, while 3‑D‑printed molds let hobbyists create reusable chocolate shells. In 2020 the pandemic spurred livestreamed liturgies; today, hybrid worship apps like “Easter AR Hunt” layer augmented‑reality clues in local parks, keeping tech‑savvy teens engaged. Brands ranging from Patagonia to Cadbury now sponsor “plastic‑free egg trails,” reflecting a broader shift toward ethical celebration.

• Re‑create Germany’s Osterbaum by hanging blown, hand‑painted eggs on a backyard branch
• Host a Mexican cascarón smash, using biodegradable confetti
• Serve a pan‑continental brunch: pashka cheesecake, hot cross buns and Brazilian brigadeiro eggs
• Screen a virtual tour of Seville’s processions for cultural context
• End the night with a Bermudian kite launch at a local beach or park

Conclusion

From the solemn echo of cathedral bells to the joyful shriek of children pelting each other with confetti‑filled eggs, Easter’s diverse customs reveal humanity’s universal longing for renewal. Whether you wake before dawn for a South African beach service, crack red eggs in Athens, or hide chocolate bilbies in an Australian garden, each ritual—ancient or emerging—threads you into a two‑millennia‑long tapestry of faith, folklore and festivity. This Easter, borrow a tradition from across the globe, share a meal with loved ones, and remember that every cracked shell and blooming flower tells the same enduring story: life triumphant over darkness.