Natale al Jambo

Christmas at Jambo1, between Trentola Ducenta and the Agro Aversano

From early December until Epiphany, the Jambo1 Shopping Center in Trentola Ducenta, in the province of Caserta, becomes one of the most popular Christmas destinations in Campania. Natale al Jambo is more than just a display of lights and shop windows: it is a full-scale festival built around a themed village, an ice rink, two exhibitions, and a nearly daily calendar of shows, most of which are free to attend. While it primarily serves the Agro Aversano and the area north of Naples, the event attracts families from across the entire province of Caserta and beyond.

Santa's Village and the Jambo Airlines flight

The heart of the festival is Santa's Village, set up inside the center. The 2025 edition debuted a national exclusive: the Jambo Airlines simulator, a life-sized airplane where children board and, thanks to augmented reality, travel to the village directly through the clouds of the North Pole. Upon arrival, they enter the letter-writing room, where every wish can be penned and sent, followed by the Gift Factory, with complimentary gadgets on the conveyor belt, and finally Santa's bedroom, filled with interactive games and photo opportunities.

The real ice skating rink

In the center's outdoor area, a covered and heated ice rink of approximately 350 square meters is set up every year, using real ice rather than a synthetic surface. It is managed by the company Ice Mad, affiliated with CONI and the Italian Sports Center, with federal instructors on hand to assist beginners. In the 2025 edition, the rink also hosted performances by Italian skating champions.

Neapolitan nativity scenes, art, and Terraquarium

Two exhibitions are hosted alongside the village. The Naples Nativity Scene Exhibition, curated by the La Luna degli Artisti association with the patronage of the Campania Region, is organized into three sections: classic 18th and 19th-century Neapolitan nativity scenes, contemporary interpretations, and nativity scenes created by children, with workshops dedicated to schools. The second exhibition, Terraquarium – World of Predators, offers a journey through marine and terrestrial species: white-tip sharks, pythons, anacondas, African spiders, an American alligator, and piranhas.

Shows, music, and entertainment

The performance schedule runs throughout the holiday season, featuring a variety of genres: gospel choirs, traditional bagpipe players (zampognari), magic shows, bubble shows, ventriloquists, puppets, stilt walkers, and Christmas bands. The festival concludes on January 6th with the Befana celebration. These events are complemented by ongoing activities: gift-wrapping stations, interactive games, creative workshops, roaming entertainment, and the distribution of Epiphany stockings.

A community asset

Jambo1 is no ordinary structure: it was long the largest asset confiscated from organized crime in Campania and, in recent years, has been highlighted as an example of evolution from a shopping center into a cultural, social, and economic hub for the Agro Aversano, averaging about 5.5 million visitors per year. In January 2026, the Naples Court of Appeal annulled the seizures against the company owning the structure. The Christmas festival remains one of the events that has most strongly linked the center to the local area: during the 2025 Christmas weekend alone, approximately 80,000 total visitors were recorded, with 31,000 visits to the village.

When to go

Those seeking a quieter experience should choose weekdays or early afternoons: on December weekends, and particularly between the Immaculate Conception and Christmas, attendance is very high and queues for attractions can be long. Christmas activities are suspended on days when the shopping center is closed, specifically December 25th, December 26th, and January 1st.