Porto-Vecchio Christmas Market

The Porto-Vecchio Christmas market, U Marcatu di Natali, sets up in the town centre from 8 to 31 December 2026. The town council published these dates on 22 September 2026 with its call for chalet applications. The market opens on the island’s feast day and closes on New Year’s Eve, as in 2024 and 2025.

Three squares around the church of Saint-Jean-Baptiste

The town council meeting of 9 September 2026 set the location of the chalets. The traders’ chalets occupy Place Henri-Giraud and Place de l’Hôtel-de-Ville for the whole of the market. Artisans and producers set up alongside the church of Saint-Jean-Baptiste, on Place de la République, by rental period: 8 to 15 December, 17 to 24 December, then 26 to 31 December. An artisan may therefore be there for only part of the month. In 2025, the Andemu Portivechju association’s traders’ chalet stood at 3 Cours Napoléon. The council organises the market through its events department, together with this association.

Corse Net Infos counted 39 chalets in 2025. For 2026, the council writes that their number is limited, without giving a figure. Exhibitors sell products linked to Christmas traditions: goods, drinks, food, decorations. Drinks stay below 18% alcohol.

2026 dates and opening hours of the Porto-Vecchio Christmas market

The market runs from Tuesday 8 to Thursday 31 December 2026. The application pack requires chalets to open every day, at a minimum from 10am to 1pm and from 3pm to 10pm. 25 and 31 December are exceptions, with no published hours. These are minimum hours for exhibitors: some chalets may open longer. The 2026 entertainment programme had not appeared as of 8 October 2026.

8 December: procession and blessing of the market

8 December is the island’s feast day, the feast of the Immaculate Conception. In 2025, the opening followed this calendar: a procession from the church of Saint-Jean-Baptiste at 5pm, mass at 5.30pm, concerts by Suarina and A Vadina, then the blessing of the market at 7.30pm. The council has not yet confirmed this sequence for 2026, but the market opens again on 8 December.

Ice rink, Santa and workshops

Corse Net Infos announced shows, magic and an ice rink for the 2025 edition, the rink opening from 26 November, before the chalets. Santa and a face painter welcomed children at the traders’ chalet, from 10am to 12.30pm and from 2.30pm to 7pm on 13 December. The association also ran craft workshops. For 2026, the town council voted on 9 September for an ice rink from 25 November to 3 January 2027, almost two weeks before the chalets arrive and three days after they leave. An hour on the ice costs €3 up to the age of 16 and €5 above, helmet provided; gloves (€5) and hats (€15) are on sale. It opens at 9am every day, closing at 7pm from Monday to Thursday and on Sundays (8pm during the school holidays) and at 10pm on Fridays and Saturdays. It closes at 5pm on 24 and 31 December and stays shut on 25 December and 1 January.

Mulled wine, roasted chestnuts and canistrelli

The Corsican tourist board lists mulled wine, roasted chestnuts and canistrelli among the treats of the 2025 market. The 2026 rules ask for Christmas-related products, including drinks below 18% alcohol, without detailing the menu.

Getting to Porto-Vecchio

Figari Sud Corse airport is 23 km away, about 30 minutes by road. Public service flights link Paris-Orly, Marseille and Nice to Figari all year round. Corsica Ferries serves the port of Porto-Vecchio from Toulon, in around 14 hours, and from Nice, in around 13 hours: these are typical crossing times, check the December sailings. No train goes to Porto-Vecchio.

By car, allow 30 km and 40 minutes from Bonifacio, 126 km and more than two hours from Ajaccio, 145 km and nearly three hours from Bastia. These times come from a route calculation without traffic.

• The Bonifacio Christmas market, from 9 to 20 December 2026, is 40 minutes away: visit both on the same day.
• The Bastia Christmas market opens from 10 to 23 December 2026 on Place Saint-Nicolas.
• If you sail from Toulon or Nice, both towns have their own Christmas market too.