The 6 Best Christmas Markets in Alsace

Alsace in midwinter looks like a picture from a storybook about Christmases past. Think historic towns and villages framed by the region’s signature half-timbered houses, and market squares filled with little chalets selling everything from wooden toys and woollen mittens to hot chocolate and spiced wine. This unique part of France, near the Swiss and German borders, might even be the true home of Christmas as we know it, with a rich blend of deeply-rooted holiday traditions. Some delicacies, stories and handicrafts are common to every Christmas market in Alsace, but each has its own unique character and customs to discover. Whichever you visit, you’ll find a new array of lights and decorations around a different programme of seasonal events. And, of course, a family-friendly Novotel hotel to help make your Christmas as cosy and merry as possible.

The capital of Alsace is also known as the Capital of Christmas. Strasbourg is the region’s biggest city, and hosts its oldest Christmas market too, first held here in 1570. At the centre of the Grande-Île area stands a mighty 30-metre Christmas tree, specially selected from the Alsace forest. And surrounding that, more than 300 chalets sell all the region’s best produce: craft beers, spiced wines, gingerbread from the local bakers’ guild and pottery from nearby Soufflenheim and Betschdorf. Novotel Strasbourg Centre Halles puts you only 15 minutes’ walk from the market, with family rooms ideal for Christmas as two children under 16 can stay free.

Daily from 26 Nov–24 Dec in Place Broglie and the streets surrounding Petite-France. For more information

Even by the high beauty standards of Alsace, Colmar is a gorgeously quaint place to spend Christmas, especially at Novotel Suites Colmar Centre. From the sauna and hammam to the buffet breakfast, this hotel is a real winter warmer, only five minutes’ walk from the heart of the seasonal festivities. Along Colmar’s canals, cobbled lanes and timber-framed houses strung with twinkling lights, you have no fewer than six Christmas markets to discover:

• Place Jeanne d’Arc: Sample local charcuterie, cakes and brandy in traditional Alsatian village surrounds, and look out for a flock of sheep outside the church.
• Koïfhus: Colmar’s Old Customs House makes a wonderful medieval setting for a handicraft market, where specially selected artisans showcase their woodwork, glassware, ceramics and woolly hats.
• Place de l’Ancienne Douane: The ornamented Old Town square and fountain outside the Koïfhus becomes a lovely fairy-lit cluster of huts selling sweet treats and gifts after dark.
• Petite Venise: A children’s market full of brightly coloured cottages that specialise in local seasonal favourites like hot apple juice. Kids can also ride the landmark carousel, and post their letters to Santa.
• Place des Dominicains: Browse for handmade Christmas decorations from alleys lined with little houses around Colmar’s Dominican Church, known for its striking 14th-century stained glass. 
• Rue de la Montagne Verte: A gourmet market to mark the year’s end, with nine cabins run by top chefs from local restaurants, all serving their own Alsatian specialties from appetisers to desserts.

Colmar Christmas Market, 25 Nov–29 Dec, stalls open Monday to Thursday, 11am-7pm, Friday to Sunday, 10am-8pm, December 24 11am-5pm, December 25 11am-7pm, December 26 10am-8pm. For more information

Another favourite Alsace Christmas market is a scenic 13km drive from Colmar in the postcard-pretty medieval village of Kayserberg. A cluster of wood-framed houses nestled between hillside vineyards at an altitude of over 800 metres, the place has a dreamlike feel at this time of year, when the windows are decorated with fir garlands. Its traditional festive market puts a particular emphasis on quality of craftsmanship, and 30 vendors are specially chosen to occupy the chalets every year. Here you’ll find only the finest Alsatian ceramics, fabrics, white wines and manneles (Christmas brioche pastries in the form of little men).

Kayserberg Christmas Market is held every weekend (Fri, Sat, Sun), 28 Nov–21 Dec. For more information

Novotel Mulhouse Bâle Fribourg can be your jump-off point for exploring the snowy Black Forest in winter, crossing the Swiss border to Basel or simply staying put to enjoy Mulhouse – home to a truly special Christmas market in Alsace. Serving out of little chalets around the Place de la Réunion, specialised vendors offer hot spiced variations on wines from nearby Mulhouse vineyards. Most are whites, like Riesling and Pinot Blanc, though you’ll also find more classic vin chaud made with Pinot Noir, the region’s only red. 

Mulhouse Christmas Market is open daily, Sun–Thurs 11am-8pm, Fri & Sat 11am-9pm, 21 Nov–23 Dec. For more information

Novotel Mulhouse Bâle Fribourg also makes a perfect base for visits to France’s largest open-air museum. The Écomusée d’Alsace is modelled on the Alsatian villages of previous centuries, with 80 wood buildings recreating a bygone time and place. They look most beautiful during its annual Christmas market, when every door opens to reveal toy workshops, craft showrooms and warm rustic kitchens baking fresh bredeles – those cinnamon-scented biscuits so essential to Advent in Alsace. Tractor rides and Christmas storytelling sessions entertain the kids, and even after market season ends, the celebrations continue into New Year for the procession of the Three Kings.

• Écomusée d’Alsace, Chemin du Grosswald, 68190 Ungersheim
• 6 Dec–4 Jan (Epiphany Procession on 7 Jan), open daily 10am–5pm
• Adults €16.50, children (4-17 years) €11, free for kids under 4
• For more information

A relatively modern Christmas market founded in 1986, just a smidge over the Alsace regional border into Franche-Comté, Montbéliard is so joyously possessed with the holiday spirit that it’s well worth checking out. At the centre of a grand medieval city with a strong German influence, more than 200 market chalets fill the main square at Place Saint-Martin. The Christmas light show is the most spectacular around, shaping coloured bulbs into a street-long passage of volutes and arches. Barely 20km away, Novotel Belfort Centre Atria lets you take in even more of the region’s historical charm, at a stylish modern hotel that’s only a few minutes’ walk from Belfort’s Old Town centre.

Montbéliard Christmas Market is open daily 23 Nov–24 Dec. For more information

With these six to choose from and many others to discover, let’s get you organised for your festive stay among the Christmas markets of Alsace.