Ribe Christmas Market

The Ribe Christmas Market fills Torvet, the square in front of the cathedral, on the four Advent weekends, from 26 November to 23 December 2026. Jul i Ribe, “Christmas in Ribe”, is organised by the town’s traders’ association with a team of volunteers, around a single theme: Peters Jul, a Christmas tale in verse from the 1850s. Craft and food chalets, the night watchman’s rounds, horse-drawn carriages and a concert in the cathedral set the pace of these four highlights in Denmark’s oldest town.

Ribe Christmas Market 2026: dates and opening hours

The market is concentrated on four periods: 26 to 29 November, 3 to 6 December, 10 to 13 December and 17 to 23 December 2026. A typical weekend opens on Thursday from noon to 7pm, Friday from noon to 5:30pm, Saturday and Sunday from 10am to 4pm. For the final stretch, from Monday 21 to Wednesday 23 December, the chalets open from 10am to 5:30pm.

Between weekends, a little life stays on the square. A few chalets selling gløgg, æbleskiver and roasted almonds open every day, the others only at the weekend.

The official opening takes place on Saturday 28 November 2026 at 10am on Torvet, in front of the Hotel Dagmar. Visitors come to wake Father Christmas, then the tall tree on the square is lit.

Peters Jul, the theme of Christmas in Ribe

Jul i Ribe takes its cue from Peters Jul, a collection of Christmas verse written by the Krohn brothers in the 1850s. The link with the town comes down to a house. The two brothers are said to have spent several Christmases with relatives living at Torvet 3, the building next to the Hotel Dagmar, right in the middle of the market. The organiser, Ribe Handelsstandsforening, relies on a group of volunteers, the Julegruppen, to put together the programme for these four weekends.

What the chalets on Torvet have to offer

Two sizes of chalet share the square. The large ones are reserved for food, the small ones house crafts and home knitting. The number of chalets is not announced. For those with a sweet tooth, the Glühwein bar, the æbleskiver, the roasted almonds and the klejner, Danish Christmas doughnuts, make up the core of the menu.

Facing the cathedral, in Processionsgangen, a food market brings together beer, coffee, honey, cheese, chocolate and julespegepølse, the Christmas salami.

Night watchman, carriages and a concert in the cathedral

The night watchman makes his rounds through the old streets on Friday and Saturday at 4pm. A horse-drawn carriage does the rounds, the little train Futte carries visitors free of charge, and a barrel organ plays on the square. The Ribes Vikinger museum has its visitors roll beeswax candles. The cathedral’s Christmas concert is set for Thursday 17 December 2026 at 7pm.

Where to find the market and how to combine it with Tønder

The market takes place on Torvet, at the foot of the cathedral, in the centre of Ribe, in Jutland, and entry is free. The Tønder Christmas Market, South Jutland’s Christmas town, is around forty kilometres to the south: enough to fit both into a single weekend.

The country’s other listings are gathered on our page on Christmas markets in Denmark, and the Copenhagen Christmas Market has its own page.