The 15 Best French Christmas Markets to Visit 2026

Are you ticking off trips to Europe's best Christmas markets? If so, you can't miss France.

France runs Christmas markets from the second half of November until Christmas Eve, and in a handful of cities right through to early January.

This guide covers the 15 best of them across 13 towns and cities — from Strasbourg, the oldest market in the country, to Lyon, Lille and the three that take over central Paris — with the dates each one is expected to run in 2026, what it is actually known for, and how easily you can reach it from the UK.

• Christmas market dates in France 2026
• Christmas Markets in Alsace
• Christmas Markets in Champagne
• Christmas Markets in Hauts-de-France
• Christmas Markets in Auvergne-Rhône-Alpes
• Christmas Markets in Gironde
• Christmas Markets in Occitanie
• Christmas Markets in Paris
• Which French Christmas market should you visit?
• Frequently asked questions

Christmas market dates in France 2026

This is the first thing most people want to know, so here it is up front.

The great majority of French Christmas markets open in the second half of November and close on 24 December. A smaller group — Annecy, Colmar, Reims and the Paris markets among them — stays open between Christmas and New Year, which makes them the ones to aim for if you can only travel in that quiet week.

Each city publishes its official 2026 dates during the autumn, and at the time of writing most organisers have not yet confirmed theirs. The table below gives the dates each market is expected to run, based on the pattern of recent years. They move very little from one year to the next, so they are a reliable guide for booking time off or a hotel — but always confirm the exact dates on the market's official site before you book.

Which French Christmas markets open earliest?

Lyon and Mulhouse are usually the first to open, in the third week of November, followed by Paris. If you want a market in mid-November, those are the three to look at.

Which stay open between Christmas and New Year?

Annecy typically runs into the first days of January, Colmar and Reims to around the end of December, and several of the Paris markets through to early January. Strasbourg, Lyon and most of the smaller Alsace villages close on 24 December, so check before you plan a trip for that week.

The 15 best Christmas markets in France for 2026

Ranked by what each one does better than the rest, not by size alone.

Alsace takes the first six places, which is no accident — the region was part of Germany for long stretches of its history, and Christmas markets originated in Germany.

The best Christmas markets in Alsace 2026

Alsace is the densest cluster of Christmas markets in France, and the reason most people book a trip here rather than to a single city. Strasbourg, Colmar, Eguisheim, Ribeauvillé and Kaysersberg sit within about an hour of each other, so a long weekend based in one town covers four or five markets comfortably.

What to eat at the Alsace Christmas markets

The food is half the reason to come. Look out for:

• Bredele — small spiced Christmas biscuits, sold by the bag in every market
• Vin chaud — mulled wine, usually red, sometimes white in Alsace
• Mannala — a sweet brioche man eaten around St Nicholas' Day
• Pain d'épices — dense honey and spice gingerbread
• Knacks — the local smoked sausage, served in a baguette
• Bretzels — soft pretzels, plain or with cheese
• Christstollen — fruit loaf with marzipan
• Quetschentaart — Alsatian plum tart
• Foie gras — Alsace produces a large share of the world's supply
• Galettes — savoury buckwheat pancakes

1. Strasbourg Christmas Market 2026

If you only ever visit one French Christmas market, make Strasbourg the one.

Strasbourg in Alsace has been running its market since 1570, which makes it the oldest in France, and the city calls itself the Capital of Christmas without much argument from anywhere else.

The market is not one site but a spread of separate markets across the city centre, with several hundred stalls between them, a giant tree on Place Kléber and the glittering cathedral lit up behind it.

It is also the busiest, particularly at weekends in December. Go on a weekday, or stay the night and walk the Petite France quarter after the day trippers have gone.

At a glance

• Expected 2026 dates: 26 November – 24 December (official dates to be confirmed)
• Where: across the city centre, centred on Place Kléber and the cathedral
• We loved: the decorated half-timbered houses in Petite France
• Official info: Strasbourg, Capital of Christmas, plus our full Strasbourg Christmas market guide and our pick of hotels near the Strasbourg Christmas market

2. Colmar Christmas Markets 2026

Colmar is the one people mean when they say a French Christmas market looks like a film set.

Six separate markets run across the old town — among them Place de la Cathédrale, Place des Dominicains, the Koïfhus and the Little Venice quarter, where the chalets line the canal. There is an ice rink, a letterbox for letters to Father Christmas, and carol singing from the canal boats.

It is smaller and easier to walk than Strasbourg, and it stays open past Christmas Day, which makes it the better choice for a trip in the last week of December.

At a glance

• Expected 2026 dates: 26 November – 29 December (official dates to be confirmed)
• Where: six markets across Colmar's old town, including Little Venice
• We loved: the canalside chalets in Little Venice after dark
• Official info: Colmar Christmas markets, plus our Colmar Christmas market guide and where to stay in the region

3. Eguisheim Christmas Market 2026

Eguisheim is officially one of France's most beautiful villages, and it is laid out in concentric rings of colourful Alsatian houses around a central square, with the three castles of Eguisheim on the ridge above.

The market is small, artisanal and refreshingly free of mass-produced tat — local produce, craft stalls and mulled wine. It is 15 minutes from Colmar, so most people do both in a day.

At a glance

• Expected 2026 dates: late November to the end of December, usually closed for a few days over Christmas itself (dates to be confirmed)
• Where: the central square and surrounding lanes
• We loved: the ring of painted houses lit up around the square
• Official info: Eguisheim Christmas market

4. Ribeauvillé Christmas Market 2026

Ribeauvillé does something none of the others do: a medieval Christmas market, with merchants in period costume, acrobats, jugglers and fire-eaters, and a farandole winding through the streets. It runs over two weekends only, so it needs planning around rather than dropping into.

At a glance

• Expected 2026 dates: two weekends in early December (exact dates to be confirmed)
• Where: throughout the medieval town centre
• We loved: the street performers — it feels like a festival rather than a shopping trip
• Official info: Ribeauvillé medieval Christmas market

5. Kaysersberg Christmas Market 2026

Kaysersberg sits on the Alsace Wine Route beneath a ruined castle, and its market runs on the weekends leading up to Christmas rather than daily. Expect a Christmas treasure hunt for children, toy exhibitions and the Night Watchman's Parade through the old town after dark.

At a glance

• Expected 2026 dates: the four weekends before Christmas (dates to be confirmed)
• Where: the historic centre, below the castle
• We loved: the Night Watchman's Parade
• Official info: Christmas in Alsace

6. Mulhouse Christmas Market 2026

Mulhouse is the outlier in Alsace, and worth it for that.

The city was built on textiles, and every year it commissions a new fabric design that is used to dress the whole city centre — stalls, banners, decorations. There is a big wheel over the market and two local cakes you will not find further north: berawecka, a dense dried-fruit loaf, and pebkucha.

At a glance

• Expected 2026 dates: late November to just before Christmas (dates to be confirmed)
• Where: Place de la Réunion and the city centre
• We loved: the annual fabric design running through the whole market
• Official info: Mulhouse Christmas market

Best Christmas markets in Champagne 2026

7. Reims Christmas Market 2026

Reims puts its market directly in front of Notre-Dame de Reims, the cathedral where French kings were crowned, and projects a light show onto the facade through the evening.

It is one of the largest markets in northern France, with festive, craft and food stalls, an ice rink nearby, and champagne houses in every direction — which is the real reason to come.

It also runs past Christmas Day, and it is under an hour from Paris by TGV.

At a glance

• Expected 2026 dates: 25 November – 27 December (official dates to be confirmed)
• Where: Place d'Erlon and in front of the cathedral
• We loved: the light show on the cathedral facade
• Official info: Reims Christmas market

Christmas markets in Hauts-de-France 2026

This is the region to look at first if you are travelling from the UK.

Lille is 90 minutes from London by Eurostar, and the Channel ports put Boulogne-sur-Mer, Amiens, Arras and Cherbourg within a short drive of a ferry — close enough that a French Christmas market becomes a day out rather than a holiday. All four hold markets; check each town's tourist office for this year's dates, as the smaller ones are confirmed later than the big cities.

8. Lille Christmas Market 2026

Lille's market takes over Place Rihour with around 90 wooden chalets, a big wheel on Place du Général de Gaulle, a skating rink at the old Chamber of Commerce and a wooden caterpillar ride outside the Opera House. The Flemish influence shows up in the food — warm chocolate waffles alongside the mulled wine.

It is the most practical market on this list for a UK visitor, and Lille is a genuinely good weekend city in its own right.

At a glance

• Expected 2026 dates: late November to the end of December (dates to be confirmed)
• Where: Place Rihour, with attractions spread across the centre
• We loved: being able to leave London after breakfast and be at the market for lunch
• Official info: Lille tourist office

Christmas markets in Auvergne-Rhône-Alpes 2026

9. Annecy Christmas Market 2026

Annecy has the best setting of any market in France: a canal-laced old town on an alpine lake, with mountains behind it.

The market is part of the town's wider Christmas in the Alps programme, with close to 150 exhibitors a day selling decorations, gifts and handmade work.

It also has the longest run on this list, staying open into the first days of January — so it is the answer if your only free week is the one after Christmas. Annecy is worth a couple of days regardless of the season.

At a glance

• Expected 2026 dates: 26 November – 3 January (official dates to be confirmed)
• Where: the old town and lakefront
• We loved: the market stalls reflected in the canals
• Official info: Lake Annecy tourist office

10. Lyon Christmas Market 2026

Time this one right and it is the best trip on the list.

Lyon's market on Place Carnot is good without being remarkable — but it overlaps with the Lyon Festival of Lights, four nights in early December when the entire city becomes a light installation and buildings, squares and the river are projected onto. Book accommodation early; the city sells out.

Lyon also usually opens earlier than most, around 20 November, if you want a market before December.

At a glance

• Expected 2026 dates: 20 November – 24 December (official dates to be confirmed)
• Where: Place Carnot, with further markets across the city
• We loved: the Fête des Lumières — go for this, and treat the market as a bonus
• Official info: Lyon Christmas markets

The best Christmas markets in Gironde 2026

11. Bordeaux Christmas Market 2026

Bordeaux runs around 100 chalets along the Allées de Tourny in the city centre, drawing several hundred thousand visitors across the season. The draw here is the region rather than the market itself: wine, oysters, canelés and a climate mild enough that you are not queuing for mulled wine purely to keep warm. It is a good pairing with a romantic winter weekend.

At a glance

• Expected 2026 dates: late November to the end of December (dates to be confirmed)
• Where: Allées de Tourny
• We loved: the food and wine stalls, which are a cut above the usual
• Official info: Bordeaux Christmas market

The best Christmas markets in Occitanie 2026

12. Toulouse Christmas Market 2026

Toulouse fills Place du Capitole with more than 100 white wooden chalets, Christmas trees and one of the larger ice rinks in France — one of several open-air ice rinks worth a detour.

The stalls lean towards jewellery, design pieces and wooden toys, and the food is emphatically southern: churros, aligot and duck rather than sausage and pretzels.

At a glance

• Expected 2026 dates: late November to the end of December (dates to be confirmed)
• Where: Place du Capitole
• We loved: aligot in the cold, and an ice rink under the Capitole
• Official info: Toulouse tourist office

The best Christmas markets in Paris 2026

Paris runs more than a dozen Christmas markets across the city, the largest of them at La Défense with several hundred stands. Three are worth going out of your way for, and between them they cover most of what people come to Paris at Christmas for.

Most run from mid-November into early January, so Paris is also the safest bet for a trip between Christmas and New Year.

13. Tuileries Garden Christmas Market 2026: La Magie de Noël

The biggest and most central, in the Jardin des Tuileries between the Louvre and Place de la Concorde. It is as much a funfair as a market — ice rink, carousels, a Ferris wheel with a view down the Champs-Élysées — alongside the craft chalets, gourmet food and mulled wine. It also opens earliest and closes latest of the three.

At a glance

• Expected 2026 dates: mid-November to early January (dates to be confirmed)
• Where: Jardin des Tuileries, 1st arrondissement
• We loved: the Ferris wheel at dusk
• Official info: Tuileries Garden Christmas market

14. Paris Notre-Dame Christmas Market at Square Viviani 2026

Around 40 stalls in a small square directly across the Seine from Notre-Dame, with the cathedral as the backdrop. This is the one for actual gift shopping rather than fairground rides: handmade crafts, artisanal producers and a deliberate emphasis on local and eco-friendly makers.

At a glance

• Expected 2026 dates: late November to Christmas (dates to be confirmed)
• Where: Square René-Viviani, 5th arrondissement
• We loved: Notre-Dame lit behind the stalls
• Official info: Paris tourist office

15. Montmartre Christmas Market at Place des Abbesses 2026

The smallest of the three and the most local in feel, tucked into Place des Abbesses below Sacré-Cœur. Handcrafted gifts, decorations, crêpes and hot chocolate, in the part of Paris that least resembles the rest of it. Combine it with the walk up to the basilica for the view over the city.

At a glance

• Expected 2026 dates: late November to late December (dates to be confirmed)
• Where: Place des Abbesses, 18th arrondissement
• We loved: crêpes on the walk up to Sacré-Cœur
• Official info: Paris tourist office

Which French Christmas market should you visit?

Thirteen destinations is a lot to choose between, so here is the short version.

• Never been to a Christmas market before: Strasbourg. It is the oldest, the biggest and the one everything else is measured against.
• A long weekend from the UK: Lille, 90 minutes from London by Eurostar. Or Reims, which adds champagne houses to the market.
• Several markets in one trip: base yourself in Colmar and cover Colmar, Eguisheim, Ribeauvillé, Kaysersberg and Strasbourg in three days.
• Travelling with children: Toulouse or the Tuileries in Paris — both pair the market with ice rinks and fairground rides.
• Going after Christmas Day: Annecy, Colmar, Reims or Paris. Most of the rest close on 24 December.
• One trip, maximum spectacle: Lyon during the Fête des Lumières in early December.
• Avoiding the crowds: Eguisheim or Kaysersberg on a weekday, or Mulhouse, which most visitors skip.

Once you have picked one, the next decision is where to sleep — the small Alsace villages have very few rooms and they go early, so book before the dates are confirmed if you can cancel free of charge.

Frequently asked questions

Where are the best Christmas markets in France?

Alsace, in the north-east. Strasbourg, Colmar, Eguisheim, Ribeauvillé and Kaysersberg are all within about an hour of each other and take the first five places on most rankings, including ours. Outside Alsace, the strongest are Reims in Champagne, Lyon, Annecy in the Alps, and the three central Paris markets.

When do French Christmas markets start?

Most open in the second half of November — Lyon and Mulhouse are usually first, around the third week, with the majority following in the last week of the month. Paris starts around mid-November. Almost all are open by 1 December.

What town in France is known for Christmas?

Strasbourg. It has run a Christmas market since 1570, longer than anywhere else in France, and markets itself as the Capital of Christmas. Colmar, 45 minutes south, runs it close on looks.

Strasbourg or Colmar — which is better?

Strasbourg if you want scale, history and the full spectacle; Colmar if you want something prettier, more walkable and less crowded. Colmar also stays open past Christmas Day, when Strasbourg has closed. They are 45 minutes apart, so the honest answer is to do both.

Which French Christmas markets are easiest to reach from the UK?

Lille is the clear winner at around 90 minutes from London St Pancras by Eurostar. Paris is a little over two hours. If you are driving, the Channel ports put Boulogne-sur-Mer, Arras and Amiens within an hour or so of Calais, and Cherbourg's market is a short drive from the ferry terminal.

Are French Christmas markets open between Christmas and New Year?

Some are. Annecy usually runs into early January, Colmar and Reims to around the end of December, and several Paris markets through to the first days of January. Strasbourg, Lyon and most of the Alsace villages close on 24 December, so check the official dates before booking a trip for that week.

Give a hotel stay near a French Christmas market

Still looking for the best Christmas gift for someone who would rather have a trip than another jumper?

With our gift vouchers for hotels you can gift a hotel stay and let them choose the market, the town and the weekend themselves — which matters when half these dates are still unconfirmed.

They pick where and when they redeem it, from around 750,000 hotels worldwide, and no limited expiry date by when to use the card. The voucher can be personalised and arrives as a physical card or by email. Have a look at where our hotel gift vouchers can take you.

Done with France? Next, explore Germany, where the tradition began, or our guides to the best markets in Belgium, Switzerland, Italy and the UK.