Christmas Markets 2026: What’s New This Year in Strasbourg, Colmar, Metz, Paris and Lyon
The Christmas markets 2026 open as early as Thursday 12 November at La Défense, and several major cities are changing their look: a new light arch on place Broglie and a real-ice rink at the Palais Rohan in Strasbourg, an ice trail and a 50-metre Ferris wheel in Metz, the return of a Christmas market on the Champs-Élysées, a “Le Sommet” area with an ice rink at La Défense, a sound and light show at the Unterlinden museum in Colmar. Opening hours are shifting too, with four late-night openings in Strasbourg and earlier closing times in Lyon during the Fête des Lumières.
Strasbourg: an arch on place Broglie, an ice rink at the Palais Rohan and four late-night openings
The Strasbourg Christmas market runs from Friday 27 November to Thursday 24 December 2026, from 11.30am to 9pm, opening at 2pm on the first day and closing at 6pm on 24 December. Four late-night openings until 10pm are scheduled on Fridays 11 and 18 December and Saturdays 12 and 19 December. No chalet stays open after the evening of the 24th: the extension to 27 December, considered for a while, will not happen. The city-centre illuminations, for their part, switch on from 20 November and stay up until 4 January.
First new feature, on place Broglie: a new light arch covers the two aisles of the Christkindelsmärik, the historic market. Second, in the courtyard of the Palais Rohan: a real-ice rink, with paid entry, open from 27 November to 3 January from 11.30am to 9pm, with the same late-night openings as the chalets and a 6pm closing from 24 to 26 December and on the 31st. Third, on the façade of the Hôtel de Ville: a set designed by Victor Weinsanto, an Alsatian house inside a snow globe, lit up with a story told every hour from 4pm to 9pm, from 27 November to 3 January. The market on the terrasse Rohan also changes its name and becomes the “Quai des saveurs et des savoir-faire”.
The two opening evenings, Friday 27 and Saturday 28 November from 6pm to 9pm, host a fire and light trail by the Carabosse company on the Petite France side. The Grand Sapin on place Kléber, 30 metres tall and brought from the Walscheid forest in Lorraine, lights up to music every hour from 4pm to 9pm. At its foot, the Village du Partage brings together 110 charities in 14 chalets.
For getting there, the Broglie, Langstross Grand’Rue and Alt Winmärik tram stops close every day from 11.30am to 9pm, and Homme de Fer, which stayed open in 2025, now closes at weekends during the same hours: head for République for place Broglie, Porte de l’Hôpital for the cathedral, Faubourg National for the Petite France. The Grande-Île is closed to traffic and parking, the Kléber, Gutenberg and Broglie car parks are reserved for season-ticket holders, and the park-and-ride sites cost €4.20 for the day, bus and tram included for up to seven people.
Access checks cover the historic centre from 11.30am to 9pm, with bulky bags inspected at the entrances, and security gates are announced around the market, their locations yet to be confirmed.
Our article on getting to the Strasbourg Christmas market details car parks, tram, train and coaches. To combine Strasbourg with Colmar and the villages of the wine route, our Alsace at Christmas itinerary takes three to four days.
Metz: an ice trail, a 50-metre Ferris wheel and 140 chalets
The Metz Christmas market is the one that changes the most. From Friday 20 November to Wednesday 30 December 2026, closed on 25 December, it brings together around 140 chalets across five squares, 15% more exhibitors than in 2025, including around twenty newcomers and 45% from the Moselle. The chalets on place de la République, place d’Armes, place Saint-Jacques and place Saint-Louis open Sunday to Thursday from 11am to 9pm and until 10pm on Fridays and Saturdays (11am-4pm on 24 December, 11am-8pm on the 30th). Place de la Comédie comes alive in the evening: 5pm-11pm on weekdays, 11am-11pm at weekends, closed on 24 and 25 December. The opening ceremony takes place on Saturday 21 November at 2.30pm on place des Charrons, where the arts and crafts market stays in place until 13 December.
The synthetic ice rink gives way to an ice trail, a skating path through greenery between place de la République and the Esplanade. On place d’Armes, the Ferris wheel rises to around 50 metres, against 41 last year, with enclosed, heated cabins. On place de la République, the City Skyliner panoramic tower reaches 81 metres. Place Saint-Jacques becomes a children’s village: five chalets, rides, a carousel and a visit from Father Christmas, with free activities.
On the water, two attractions. The “Messin”, a 120-seat electric boat accessible to people with reduced mobility, offers a free trip of around twenty minutes on the lake from the pontoon under the Moyen Pont, on Fridays, Saturdays and Sundays from 5pm to 9pm until 13 December, then every day from 16 to 30 December, except on the 24th and 25th. At the Lac aux Cygnes, dancing fountains perform every evening from 5pm to 9pm, from 20 November to 3 January. The lantern trail, now in its 15th year, lights up the square Boufflers with more than 2,000 lanterns from 21 November to 30 December, from 5pm to 8pm Sunday to Thursday and until 9pm on Fridays and Saturdays.
To get there, the buses and park-and-ride sites of the LE MET’ network are free on Saturdays and Sundays from 21 November to 20 December, the first hour is free on the “shopping” parking spaces in the city centre and some car parks drop to €1 in the evening. Another date in Lorraine, the Nancy Christmas market goes hand in hand with the Saint Nicholas festivities.
Paris and La Défense: the Champs-Élysées get their market back, the esplanade gains Le Sommet
Paris: the Tuileries from 14 November, the Champs-Élysées from the 22nd
In Paris, the news is the return of a Christmas market on the Champs-Élysées, from Sunday 22 November 2026 to Monday 4 January 2027, at the lower end of the avenue, in the renovated gardens between the Concorde and the Rond-Point. It has 200 chalets, including 22 for crafts and “Made in Paris”, and a closure is announced on 31 December. A natural-ice rink near the Pavillon Ledoyen, a carousel on place Clemenceau and a Father Christmas house are announced. The organisation is in the hands of the Comité Champs-Élysées and 2A Organisation, which also runs La Défense.
On the other side of the Concorde, the Tuileries market runs from Saturday 14 November 2026 to Sunday 3 January 2027, every day from 11am to 11.45pm: 95 chalets and attractions, 18 of them artisans, a 250 m² ice rink, a Ferris wheel of around 80 metres, free entry. The Notre-Dame market, on square René-Viviani, gathers 40 exhibitors from Thursday 26 November to Sunday 27 December (10am-8pm, 9pm on Fridays and Saturdays), free entry. The Alsatian market at the gare de l’Est, in its 44th year, takes over the forecourt from Wednesday 2 to Friday 18 December, from 9am to 7.30pm and from 10am to 7pm on Sundays. The Paris Christmas market page puts the capital’s ten markets on a map.
La Défense: more than 300 chalets and a new area, Le Sommet
The La Défense Christmas market runs from Thursday 12 November to Thursday 31 December 2026, with more than 300 chalets on the esplanade. Its new feature for 2026 is called Le Sommet: a festive area with a 504 m² ice rink around a 20-metre illuminated tree and daily DJ sets, open until Sunday 3 January 2027. Parades pass through every Wednesday and Sunday. The village opens Monday to Thursday from 11am to 9pm, Fridays until 11pm, Saturdays from 10am to 11pm and Sundays from 11am to 9.30pm, with reduced hours on 24 and 31 December (11am-6pm) and a 3pm opening on 25 December, as at Le Sommet on 1 January.
Colmar: a new show at the Unterlinden museum and more comfort
The Colmar Christmas market opens on Monday 23 November and closes on Tuesday 29 December 2026, Monday to Thursday from 11am to 7pm and Friday to Sunday from 10am to 8pm (11am-5pm on 24 December, 10am-8pm on the 25th and 26th). The gourmet market on place de la Montagne-Verte, the Ferris wheel and place Rapp last longer, until 3 January 2027, every day from 11am to 10pm and until 5pm on 31 December. Nine cabins there are run by nine master-restaurateur chefs, with cooking shows in the middle of the market. The 200 exhibitors, 72% of them from Alsace, include around fifteen new artisans.
The paid novelty is called “Once Upon a Night”, a sound and light show at the Unterlinden museum, from 5pm to 6.30pm in sessions every 15 minutes, at €8 per person, free for under-12s, museum entry included. Sessions run from Wednesday 25 November 2026 to Sunday 3 January 2027, except on Tuesdays and on 24, 25 and 31 December and 1 January. On place Rapp, “Noël Féerique” brings together rides, illuminations and sweet treats.
The rest of the changes are about comfort. A web app, reached through the QR codes displayed around town, gives practical information and a crowd calendar. The number of toilets rises to nearly a hundred cubicles, against 60 last year. When busy, especially at weekends, the rue des Marchands, rue des Serruriers and rue de la Poissonnerie become one-way for pedestrians. The park-and-ride at the Parc des Expositions costs €5 for the day, return bus trip included, on 28 and 29 November then on 5, 6, 12, 13, 19 and 20 December, with no shuttle or car park on 26 and 27 December. Tourist coaches must park there after dropping off, and their passengers no longer get a free shuttle. A Christmas information point also awaits visitors at the station.
From Colmar, the Kaysersberg and Riquewihr markets round off a day, and our Christmas market weekend in Alsace around Colmar links the old town and the wine route over two days.
Mulhouse: 103 chalets, 13 new artisans and a fabric you can scan
The Mulhouse Christmas market, in its 36th year and themed around authenticity, runs from Friday 20 November to Sunday 27 December 2026, with place de la Concorde open until Tuesday the 29th. It has 103 chalets on place de la Réunion, place des Cordiers and place des Victoires, with 38 artisan chalets including 13 newcomers and 25 food chalets, six fewer than in 2025. Opening hours: 11am-8pm Monday to Thursday, 10am-9pm Friday to Sunday, closing at 6pm on 24 and 27 December, closed on the 25th, opening at noon on the 26th.
The 2026 Christmas fabric is called “Jardin d’hiver”, created by the Alsatian duo Vois là: 14,600 metres of fabric, a QR code woven into the pattern that opens a musical accompaniment, a range of objects by 17 designers and sales by the metre at the Boutique aux étoffes. On place de la Réunion, a 24-metre by 2-metre “Écrin d’hiver” serves as a cocoon, and 80 XXL lampshades light up the rue de l’Arsenal. A “secret market” in the parc Jaquet, an immersive family adventure in sessions of 25 people on Fridays, Saturdays and Sundays, is announced, with paid entry and a price still to come.
For parking, the Université and Nouveau Bassin park-and-ride sites cost €2 for the day, return tram trip included for up to seven people.
Lyon: place Carnot, and earlier closing times during the Fête des Lumières
The Lyon Christmas market stays on place Carnot, from Friday 20 November to Thursday 24 December 2026, with more than a hundred chalets: 11am-8pm Monday to Thursday, 11am-10pm on Fridays, 10.30am-10pm on Saturdays, 10.30am-8pm on Sundays. The change to note concerns the hours during the Fête des Lumières, from Saturday 5 to Tuesday 8 December: the market closes at 6pm on 5, 6 and 7 December and at 5pm on Tuesday the 8th.
A “Fabriqué à Lyon et ses alentours” chalet brings together six certified makers, including Onze Octobre for candles, To Mo for ceramics and Dimanche for leather goods. Eighteen charities, including the Armée du salut, the Blouses roses and the EFS, share chalets, with one chalet reserved for employment and integration associations.
Christmas markets 2026 dates: the summary table
The 2026 dates of the ten markets mentioned, sorted by opening date, with the headline novelty or the point to remember for each.
| City | 2026 dates | What’s new or worth noting |
|---|---|---|
| La Défense | 12 November to 31 December (Le Sommet until 3 January) | Le Sommet, a 504 m² ice rink around a 20 m tree |
| Paris, Tuileries | 14 November to 3 January | Ferris wheel of around 80 m, 250 m² ice rink |
| Metz | 20 November to 30 December, closed on the 25th | Ice trail, 50 m Ferris wheel, the “Le Messin” boat |
| Mulhouse | 20 November to 27 December (place de la Concorde until the 29th) | 103 chalets, “Jardin d’hiver” fabric with a musical QR code |
| Lyon | 20 November to 24 December | Closing at 6pm then 5pm during the Fête des Lumières |
| Paris, Champs-Élysées | 22 November to 4 January | The market is back, 200 chalets |
| Colmar | 23 November to 29 December (gourmet market, Ferris wheel and place Rapp until 3 January) | “Once Upon a Night” sound and light show at the Unterlinden museum, web app |
| Paris, Notre-Dame | 26 November to 27 December | 40 exhibitors, free entry |
| Strasbourg | 27 November to 24 December | Arch on place Broglie, ice rink at the Palais Rohan, four late-night openings until 10pm |
| Paris, gare de l’Est | 2 to 18 December | Alsatian market, 44th year |
Where to stay near the markets mentioned
Availability with our partners, town by town.
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