Ajaccio Christmas Market

The Ajaccio Christmas market goes by a Corsican name, Natali in Aiacciu. The town council sets it up on two squares in the centre, Place Campinchi and Place Foch, a few steps from the harbour. The 2026 edition opens on Friday 4 December and closes on Thursday 24 December at 6pm. We have these dates from the call for exhibitors the council published in August 2026: the public programme had not appeared as of 8 October 2026.

Two squares, two moods

The council has confirmed the location for 2026: the chalets stand on Place Campinchi and Place Foch, as in 2025. Place du Diamant, the market’s former site, is still under construction work. The Corsican tourist board (Agence du tourisme de la Corse) still lists it on its page: do not follow that address.

In 2025, the council counted 58 chalets. Place Foch, around the statue of Napoleon, hosted 24 gift chalets and Santa’s house. Place Campinchi brought together 34 food chalets, the food hall and the ice rink. For 2026, the council is looking for local producers, artists and craftspeople. It has listed the chalets it expects: churros, sweet treats, children’s games, photos with Santa, hot food and gift ideas. It has not published the number of chalets for the coming edition.

One chalet on Place Foch is set aside for local associations. In 2024, 29 associations took turns there. Since 2025, solar generators have powered the market: 27 panels installed on Place Campinchi have replaced the old generators.

2026 opening hours and late nights

The market opens every day at 10am. It closes at 9pm from Sunday to Thursday, and at 10pm on Fridays and Saturdays. On 24 December, everything closes at 6pm. The council has announced three late-night openings until midnight. It has only dated one of them, the City Trail night on Sunday 20 December 2026. On those evenings, it allows the Place Foch chalets to close from 8pm.

Ice rink, Santa and parade: the 2025 programme

The council has not yet published the 2026 programme. The events below are those of the 2025 edition, which ran from 28 November to 28 December.

• Santa arrived by boat at the quai d’honneur of the Tino-Rossi harbour, at 5.30pm on opening day. His house stood on Place Foch, near the statue of Napoleon.
• The 450 m² ice rink took up Place Campinchi, next to the food hall, from 10am to 8pm. A session cost €5, a pass for seven sessions €25. Gloves and a helmet were compulsory on the rink.
• Concerts livened up the market on Fridays and Saturdays until 10pm.
• The illuminated Grand Parade set off from Place Abbatucci and ended at the Diamant.
• A children’s show, pony rides and bouncy castles rounded off the programme.
• The City Trail, a 9.4 km night run, started from the Christmas village.

Getting to the Ajaccio Christmas market

The market is 300 metres from the ferry terminal: you step off the ferry and walk to Place Campinchi. The Chemins de fer de la Corse railway station and the bus station, on Boulevard Sampiero, are less than 500 metres from Place Foch. Napoléon-Bonaparte airport is 11 km away, a quarter of an hour by road outside peak traffic.

From mainland France, public service flights link Paris-Orly, Marseille and Nice to Ajaccio all year round, and a return trip in a day is possible. Corsica Linea runs overnight crossings from Marseille, in around thirteen hours. Corsica Ferries sails from Toulon to Ajaccio in nine hours by day or eleven hours by night. We have not checked the sailing days for December 2026: ask the ferry companies before you book. By train, the Bastia-Ajaccio line of the Chemins de fer de la Corse takes nearly four hours.

• The Bastia Christmas market opens from 10 to 23 December 2026, two and a half hours away by road or by train on the Chemins de fer de la Corse line.
• In the south, the Porto-Vecchio Christmas market and the Bonifacio Christmas market can be visited in the same day, 30 km apart.
• The Calvi Christmas market and the island’s other events are gathered on our page of Christmas markets in Corsica.