![\"Beautiful](\"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/ie\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/11\/2_GettyImages-898911254.jpg\")
Christmas trees have started popping up in homes across Ireland in the past week(Image: Getty)<\/p>\nWith temperatures dropping across Ireland, experts have revealed when households should ideally put up their Christmas decorations.Christmas trees have started popping up in homes across Ireland in the past week(Image: Getty)<\/p>\n
Temperatures have plummeted across Ireland in recent days. Some areas have even seen sprinkles of snow and Met Eireann has issued a low temperature and ice warning<\/a> for 10 counties tonight, with lows of -3C expected.<\/p>\n With winter <\/a>already making itself felt, it may be tempting for households to bring a bit of early festive cheer. Christmas trees have started popping up in homes across Ireland <\/a>in the past week, leaving some wondering if it’s time to start decorating – even though the big day is still five weeks away.<\/p>\n But according to tradition, superstition and etiquette experts, there is a ‘right’ time to put up your decorations if you want to stay on the safe side of festive luck.<\/p>\n A new survey from tarot reading platform Tarotoo<\/a> found that nearly 1 in 10 Irish people (9%) strongly believe putting your tree up too early brings bad luck, with another 16% somewhat agreeing. That means a quarter of all respondents think early decorating could tempt fate.<\/p>\n At the same time, almost half of the country (48%) disagrees with the superstition, including 30% who are strongly against the idea. Meanwhile, 28% remain undecided, showing that many Irish homes are still unsure about when it’s safe – or lucky – to start decorating.<\/p>\n So when is the ‘right’ time to put up your tree? Traditionally, many Irish households put up their Christmas trees<\/a> around December 8, which is linked to the Feast of the Immaculate Conception. Some homes may put them up a bit earlier, such as the first weekend in December or around the time of the Late Late Toy Show<\/a>, on December 5 this year.<\/p>\n But etiquette experts say there is a clearer guideline based on tradition. Etiquette Consultant Jo Bryant explained: “There are no real rules, it’s a matter of what people want to do. However, Christmas does seem to be creeping earlier. In America, it rolls from Thanksgiving into Christmas and I think we’re starting to see Christmas earlier and earlier.”<\/p>\n For those who want a more official rule, Marie-Helene Ferguson, CEO and founder of the London School of Etiquette, points to the church calendar. She said: “There’s a clue in the name there, with Christmas! Advent is a church day, the beginning of the church year, and it’s different every year. So if you wanted a traditional reason for putting up your decorations, that would be as good a reason as any.”<\/p>\n Advent starts on Sunday, November 30, this year, which is the traditional and superstition-approved ‘safe’ date to decorate your home.<\/p>\n Bryant also warned that putting decorations up too early, especially real trees, can backfire for practical reasons. She told RTE: “The time to enjoy decorations is definitely before Christmas. If you have a real Christmas tree and put it up in November, it’ll be looking really tired by Twelfth Night, so you probably want to be hanging back until mid-December.”<\/p>\n She added that families with small children may want to decorate a bit earlier for excitement, saying: “If you have small children, you might put the tree up a little earlier for maximum enjoyment from it. If you want to start feeling festive a little earlier, popping a wreath up is quite a nice way to start marking the festive season without getting carried away too early.”<\/p>\n While superstition still plays a role in Irish homes, Tarotoo’s survey shows that many people are happy to decorate whenever it suits them.<\/p>\n Do you believe that putting up your Christmas tree too early brings bad luck?<\/strong><\/p>\n The research was conducted by Censuswide on behalf of tarot reading platform Tarotoo, surveying 500 respondents aged 18 and over in Ireland between November 3 and November 17, 2025.<\/p>\n\n