Angers Christmas Market

The Angers Christmas market goes by a lovely name: Soleils d'hiver, or “winter suns”. From late November to early January, the historic heart of the city lights up and around a hundred chalets take their places between Place du Ralliement and Place Molière. Angers plays the neighbourhood Christmas card, with artisans from the region, vintage rides and a programme of events that goes well beyond the market itself. A human-scale, warm-hearted gathering where you can wander without elbowing your way through.

Soleils d'hiver, Angers' Christmas since the 1990s

The Christmas market first came to Angers in 1996, according to the city's heritage archives. Three decades on, it has become the centrepiece of Soleils d'hiver, the festive programme run by the city council: markets, illuminations, street shows, rides and a visit from Father Christmas, all packed into a city centre you can cover on foot.

In 2025, the traders' chalets occupied four sites: Place du Ralliement, Rue Lenepveu, Place du Pilori and Place Molière. The Jardin du Mail completed the picture with Father Christmas's house and the Ferris wheel. Adding it all up, the local press counted close to 160 chalets along the whole route, around sixty of them in Father Christmas's village alone.

Angers Christmas market dates and opening hours

The 2025 edition of the markets ran from 27 November to 30 December, every day from 11am to 8pm. Late openings set the rhythm every weekend until Christmas: Friday until 9pm, Saturday until 10pm. Two exceptions worth noting: on 24 December the chalets closed at 5.30pm, and on the 25th they opened from 3pm to 8pm. The Soleils d'hiver festivities themselves carried on until 4 January 2026.

For the 2026 edition, the city has not yet published the official dates. The event falls in the same window every year: opening in late November, chalets closing just before New Year. The announcement usually comes in the autumn on the City of Angers website.

Good news for your budget: entry to the market is free.

Chalets, 1900 carousel and Ferris wheel: what's on

The aisles bring together around a hundred exhibitors, largely local according to the Destination Angers tourist office. On the chalet menu: crafts, decorations, jewellery, festive food and sweet treats. Plenty to fill your sack without setting foot in a chain store.

As for entertainment, the 1900 carousel turns on Place du Ralliement from 11am to 8pm for the whole event. At the Jardin du Mail, the Ferris wheel gives a view over the city-centre illuminations, while Father Christmas's house and the elves' workshops keep the children busy. Add the street shows and the decorated shop windows, and you have an outing that fills a whole afternoon, or an evening if you stay for the late opening.

Getting there, parking and going further

You can reach the centre of Angers without a car: tram line A and buses 1, 2, 4, 6, 9 and 10, Foch-Maison Bleue stop, a stone's throw from the chalets. If you drive, the Ralliement and Mail covered car parks are the closest to the market. By train, Angers Saint-Laud station leaves you a short walk from the historic centre.

Angers pairs well with the other markets of western France. Nantes Christmas market is under an hour away by train, with its village set right in the city centre. In the other direction, Tours Christmas market rounds off a fine Loire circuit, châteaux included. Three cities, three moods, one railway line.

One last tip: aim for a Friday or Saturday evening in early December. The late openings show the illuminations at their best, and the crowds of the final weekends have not arrived yet.