Laval Christmas Market

On the banks of the Mayenne, beneath the lit-up outline of the castle, Laval Christmas market lines up its fifty or so chalets in Square de Boston. The river reflects the garlands, the Pont Aristide-Briand is covered in thousands of tiny lights, and the 32-metre Ferris wheel towers over the whole scene. Laval has turned winter into a moment of its own with “Les Lumières de Laval”, which dress the town from late November to early January. The market itself runs for just a few days in December, set right in the middle of this season of lights.

Square de Boston, the chalets and the river

Square de Boston takes its name from the twinning between Laval and the English town of Boston, in Lincolnshire, sealed in 1958. It is an old garden, laid out on the riverbank in the 19th century, and it lends itself well to this gentle funfair atmosphere. The chalets line up between the trees, a stone’s throw from the water, and you drift from one to the next without ever losing sight of the reflections on the Mayenne.

The fifty or so stallholders mix crafts, designer pieces and treats. Some sell gift ideas, others hot food to take away and nibble as you walk. The stroll stays short and easy to follow: you do the round at your own pace, head back to the stall that caught your eye, then go and see the Ferris wheel. From the top of its gondolas, the view sweeps across the old town, the castle and the slate roofs.

Around the market, “Les Lumières de Laval” transform the rest of the centre. The Château-Neuf, the Pont Aristide-Briand and the riverbanks are covered in illuminations, with a theme that changes from one year to the next. There is an opening firework display, projections on the castle and shows spread across the town. The market is just one piece of a bigger picture, which makes you want to extend your walk well beyond the chalets.

The size of the place works in its favour. With around fifty stalls, you can do the round without rushing and double back for the cider or rillettes stall you spotted on the way in. You leave with a bottle, a turned wooden object or a charcuterie board, and a little story attached to each purchase. Families get plenty out of it, between the Ferris wheel, the smell of hot sugar and paths that are easy to follow with a pushchair.

Treats and specialities from the Mayenne

The Mayenne is a land of livestock farming and hedgerow country, and you can tell from the stalls. Mayenne ham, dried and matured, often comes in thin slices or on a sharing board; it is one of the department’s flagship products, protected by a geographical indication. Rillettes, farmhouse cheeses and local cider complete the savoury picture. On the sweet side, fouace, the golden brioche you tear apart by hand, has pride of place, as does the quernon d’ardoise from neighbouring Angers, a little blue square that mimics the region’s roofs.

These products are not here by chance: they tell the story of a land of meadows, orchards and farms that shaped the local cuisine. The stallholders enjoy explaining their work, and a simple question about how a ham is matured or how a cider is made is often enough to get the conversation going. That is also the point of the market: tasting before buying, comparing two cheeses, leaving with enough to fill a festive platter.

Mulled wine flows from stall to stall, sometimes backed up by hot cider, more in keeping with the Mayenne’s identity. The Mayenne has some fine cider makers, and pommé, an apple preserve cooked in a cauldron for hours, is a local treat you can still find on some stalls. If you want to recreate it at home afterwards, a homemade mulled wine recipe captures those orange and cinnamon aromas rather well. A few food highlights to look out for as you wander:

• Matured Mayenne ham, to taste by the slice or take home vacuum-packed.
• Fouace, a soft brioche scented with orange blossom.
• Quernon d’ardoise from Angers, bluish chocolate and nougatine that wink at the slate roofs.
• Cider and mulled wine, served by the glass to warm up between two aisles.
• Farmhouse cheeses and rillettes from the hedgerow country, perfect for putting together a board.

Opening hours, getting there and the Ferris wheel at Laval Christmas market

Entry to Laval Christmas market is free, as is the whole of Les Lumières de Laval. The exact dates of the December 2026 edition have not yet been announced by the town: they are to be confirmed, but the market is held every year for a few days in Square de Boston, in the first half of December. The illuminations stay on much longer, from late November to early January.

To get there, Laval station is a real asset: it puts the town on the Paris-Rennes line, just over an hour from the capital by TGV and about twenty minutes from Rennes. From the station forecourt, the centre and Square de Boston are about ten minutes away on foot. By car, several car parks surround the town centre; on busy evenings it is better to park on the edge of the pedestrian area and finish on foot, a chance to walk along the illuminated riverbanks. Square de Boston and its surroundings are step-free, so accessible for pushchairs and for people with reduced mobility.

The 32-metre Ferris wheel remains the star attraction for families, with its sweeping view over the castle and the Mayenne. In place for the whole of Les Lumières, it keeps turning beyond the market days, often from late November to early January, so you can enjoy the panorama even outside the chalet weekend. An opening firework display, shows and projections set the pace of the season, but their exact schedule follows that of Les Lumières and is confirmed each autumn. For firm dates for the 2026 edition, check with the Laval tourist office a few weeks beforehand, once the programme has been published.

What to see around the market in Laval

Laval rewards those who linger. The old town rises in tiers on the right bank, crowned by the medieval castle and its keep, one of the few Romanesque keeps in France with its timber hoarding still intact. You climb up through steep lanes lined with half-timbered houses, also lit up during Les Lumières, which makes the walk all the more pleasant on a winter evening. The viewpoint from the top of the town takes in the river and the slate roofs that give Laval its bluish tint.

Below, the Saint-Julien washhouse boat recalls the days when people came to do their washing on the river; it is one of the last of its kind still visible in France, moored along the Mayenne. Laval is also the birthplace of Henri Rousseau, “Le Douanier”, the self-taught painter who became a leading figure of naive art, and the town devotes a museum to him in the former Vieux-Château. Between two rows of chalets, a break in its galleries makes a pleasant contrast with the bustle of the market.

The riverbanks themselves are worth the detour. A path follows the Mayenne and leads to Square de Boston from the old town without leaving the water’s edge, between reflections of the illuminations and moored barges. It is one of the prettiest ways to reach the market, especially once the lights are on.

No more than an hour’s drive away, several neighbouring markets are worth the trip. Angers Christmas market spreads its chalets among grander heritage. To the east, Le Mans Christmas market makes the most of its illuminated Plantagenet old town. On the Brittany side, Rennes Christmas market is about twenty minutes away by train, enough to enjoy two different atmospheres in the same day.

Between the glowing riverbanks, the Ferris wheel and the flavours of the hedgerow country, Laval makes a friendly winter stop, where people happily chat for a moment with the maker behind the stall before leaving with their hands full. It is a town that suits a winter day out with the family or as a couple, with the river as the common thread from one end of the walk to the other.