Écomusée d'Alsace at Christmas: the village in festive dress

At Ungersheim, in the Haut-Rhin, the Écomusée d'Alsace replays a Christmas of times past every winter. The reconstructed Alsatian village, its half-timbered houses and its timber-framed farms take on Christmas trees and garlands for the whole season. There are no rows of craft chalets here as on a town square: the visit feels more like stepping into a hamlet of the early twentieth century, peopled with volunteers in costume, storytelling and two fixed dates, the arrival of Saint Nicholas and then that of the Three Kings.

The village of the Écomusée d'Alsace at Christmas: decorations, Saint Nicholas and the Three Kings

Around a hundred Christmas trees and several kilometres of garlands dress the streets and houses of the village, where some trees hang from the ceiling rather than standing on the floor. A nativity scene and the “house of elves and tales” complete the decor, looked after by volunteers who tell stories to visitors and offer a tasting of bredele, the little Alsatian Christmas biscuits, at the Maison des Goûts et des Couleurs. The cobbled streets and the genuine farmhouses, brought here from all over the region stone by stone, are decorated differently each year according to the museum team's choices, which gives you a good reason to come back from one season to the next.

The guided tour “Christmas in the village”, included in the ticket, sets off three times a day, at 10.30am, 2.30pm and 4.30pm. Two fixed dates punctuate the season: on Sunday 6 December 2026, the arrival of Saint Nicholas, with a parade of halberdiers and musicians followed by an afternoon snack at the end of the day; on Sunday 3 January 2027, the arrival of the Three Kings, with a procession and a meeting with Balthazar, Melchior and Caspar.

The traditional Alsatian characters take part in these events and in the night-time walking show “Sacrées Lumières”: Christkindel, Hans Trapp and Frau Berschta (sometimes called Frau Faste depending on the source), who in 2025 confronted the Alsatian village of 1920 with the arrival of Santa Claus. That 2025 edition ran from 19 to 28 December, with evening departures from 5.30pm to 7pm for about an hour and a quarter outdoors. The 2026 edition has not yet been announced, even though the museum's booking page lists “the Christmas show” among the season's events, which suggests it will be repeated, to be confirmed before booking.

One point is worth making clear: there is no dedicated craft market during this season. Anyone looking for chalets and sellers of local crafts will be better served in Colmar or Mulhouse, less than half an hour away by road.

Dates and opening times for the 2026 Christmas season

The official 2026 calendar opens the village from 10am to 6pm on 4, 5 and 6 December, on 11, 12 and 13 December, from 18 to 23 December then from 26 to 30 December, and finally on 1, 2 and 3 January 2027. The museum stays closed for the whole of November, apart from 1 November which closes the summer season, as well as on 24, 25 and 31 December 2026.

That last point deserves a mention: the village stays closed on Christmas Day, which the official page for the season confirms, and last admission is at 5pm. Booking ahead, in particular for the Advent weekends that draw more visitors, saves queueing at the entrance.

Tickets and prices: a single scale for the season

During the Christmas season, the day ticket costs €16.50 full price (€15.50 online), €14 concession (€13 online), €11 for children aged 4 to 17 (€10 online), with a family pass at €50 (€49 online); entry is free for children aged 3 and under. Buying online therefore saves a euro per person.

The undated 2026 season ticket, at the same price as the day ticket, is valid on any opening date until 3 January 2027. Combined tickets also exist: Écomusée and Parc du Petit Prince at €33 for adults and €27 for children, Écomusée and Cité du Train in Mulhouse at €29 and €19, or an annual pass at €57 for adults and €38 for children. The combination with the Parc du Petit Prince is only useful in the warmer months: the park closes from early November to April, which covers the Écomusée’s Christmas season. Tickets are sold on the museum’s official website, which handles them itself.

For a family of four with two children over four, allow €55 at the ticket office, €51 online, or €49 with the family pass bought online, for a day's entry, excluding food and excluding the evening show if it runs again in 2026. Booking online remains the cheapest option. The journey from Mulhouse or Colmar is short, which keeps the transport budget down compared with a trip further afield.

Getting there from Mulhouse, Colmar or further away

By car, the Écomusée is 20 minutes from Mulhouse, 30 minutes from Colmar and about an hour from Strasbourg, via the A35. Parking on site is free, with spaces reserved for campervans. By train, Bollwiller station, on the Mulhouse-Colmar line, serves the site about 30 minutes' walk away, or some ten minutes by bike for those who bring one. The site does not give a journey time from Basel: better to work that route out yourself.

This closeness to Mulhouse and Colmar makes a full day possible: the village during the day, then a Christmas market in the evening. It also explains why the Écomusée works well as a complement to a trip built around the Alsatian markets, rather than as a destination on its own.

• A village decorated in the old style, with around a hundred Christmas trees and several kilometres of garlands in the streets and houses.
• The arrival of Saint Nicholas, on Sunday 6 December 2026, with a parade of halberdiers and an afternoon snack.
• The arrival of the Three Kings, on Sunday 3 January 2027, with a procession and a meeting with Balthazar, Melchior and Caspar.
• A natural fit with the neighbouring markets: the Mulhouse Christmas market, the Colmar Christmas market and the Eguisheim Christmas market, less than half an hour away by road, for a mulled wine in the evening (also worth making at home, starting with our guide to mulled wine and its variations).
• The Hôtel Les Loges, on the site itself, handy for a stay spread over two days.

Where to stay and what to budget for the visit

The three-star Hôtel Les Loges stands on the Écomusée site, with its restaurant La Taverne. Its December opening calendar follows the Advent weekends and the Christmas holidays. Half board for an adult is given as €40, buffet breakfast at €14 for an adult and €7 for a child, a cot at €8 a night; a Christmas dinner is offered at the restaurant.

Room rates are not published on the site: better to ask the hotel directly for a quote. For families who prefer a base in town, Mulhouse and Colmar offer a wider choice of accommodation, twenty or thirty minutes away by road, with more options to suit any budget.

More than a traditional market with its chalets and its mulled wine drunk standing in the cold, the Écomusée d'Alsace at Christmas offers immersion in a reconstructed village, designed for families with children and for anyone who wants to rediscover Alsatian Christmas traditions at their own pace, over half a day or a full one. Closed shoes and warm clothes remain a good reflex: the visit takes place entirely outdoors, walking from one house to the next. It is above all an outing built on a slow rhythm, the opposite of the timed circuits of the big theme parks.