Strasbourg Christmas Market

Background

Strasbourg's Christkindelsmärik (market of the Christ Child) is recorded as far back as 1570 and is regarded as the oldest Christmas market in France, which is why the city is known as the Capital of Christmas. Each year before Christmas, more than ten markets with hundreds of wooden chalets spread through the old town. The Christkindelsmärik on the Place Broglie is the oldest; on the Place Kléber stands the Great Christmas Tree, some 30 metres tall and hung with lights; and the lanes around the cathedral glitter. The stalls sell Alsatian mulled wine, the little Alsatian Christmas biscuits called bredele, gingerbread, hand-carved wooden crafts and Christmas decorations, and there are themed markets such as a Christmas village and an eco-market.

Local customs

• Browsing the Christkindelsmärik on the Place Broglie
• seeing the Great Christmas Tree on the Place Kléber
• the lights around the cathedral
• tasting mulled wine and bredele
• shopping for wooden crafts and Christmas decorations

Travel tips

• The Christmas market usually opens in late November and closes on 24 December
• the opening date is announced each year by the City of Strasbourg and is subject to official announcement. The markets are free to enter. Weekends and evenings are busiest, while weekday daytimes are calmer. Security checks and traffic restrictions apply in parts of the old town, so take the tram or walk, and dress warmly for the winter cold.

2027 schedule

• The opening date of the 2027 Strasbourg Christmas Market is pending official announcement
• by past practice it opens in late November and closes on 24 December.