Turku Christmas Market

The Turku Christmas market, Vanhan Suurtorin joulu, is held on the Old Great Square (Vanha Suurtori) and in the courtyard of Brinkkala House over four weekends: 28 and 29 November, 5 and 6, 12 and 13, 19 and 20 December 2026, from 11am to 5pm. The rest of the week, the square is clear of stalls. Turku presents itself as Finland’s Christmas city, and it is from the Brinkkala balcony, on this very square, that the Christmas Peace is declared every 24 December at noon.

2026 dates and opening hours: four weekends

The association Turun Suurtorin keskiaika ry opens the market on Saturdays and Sundays from 11am to 5pm, from 28 November to 20 December 2026. Eight days in all, the last four weekends before Christmas. If you come on a weekday, you will find the square and the Brinkkala courtyard without the stalls.

Crafts, glögi and Santa Claus in his workshop

The stalls offer crafts, Christmas sweets and glögi, the Finnish mulled wine; music and circus acts liven up the square, and Santa Claus receives children at “Pukin paja”, his workshop. The setting is the Old Great Square itself, with the courtyard of Brinkkala House as an extension.

The declaration of the Christmas Peace, every 24 December at noon

On 24 December at 12 noon, as the cathedral bells ring, the City’s head of protocol reads the declaration of the Christmas Peace from the balcony of Brinkkala House, in Finnish and then in Swedish. The City traces the tradition back to the 14th century; it has been read from the Brinkkala balcony since 1886, the current text dates from 1903, radio has broadcast it since 1935 and television live since 1983, on Yle.

The interruptions can be counted: the Great Wrath, from 1712 to 1721, the years 1809 to 1815, December 1917 and 1939. In 2020 and 2021, the declaration was read to an empty square. If you are in Turku on 24 December, come before noon: the market finished four days earlier, but this is where the Christmas moment that Finnish television broadcasts live takes place.

Getting to the Turku Christmas market

For winter 2026-2027, Turku airport receives flights only from Gdańsk, Riga and Stockholm according to Finavia: no direct flight from France, Belgium, Switzerland, London, Madrid or Rome. You land in Helsinki, which has direct flights from Paris-CDG, Nice, Brussels, Charleroi, Zurich, Geneva, London, Madrid and Rome, then the train reaches Turku in around 2 hours according to VR’s timetables; times and tickets on vr.fi.

In the city: Vanha Suurtori 3, 20500 Turku, for Brinkkala House and its courtyard.

• The Helsinki Christmas market occupies Senate Square from 27 November to 22 December 2026, every day.
• The Tampere Christmas market opens from 21 November to 22 December 2026 on the Keskustori, 1 hr 40 min by train from Helsinki at the quickest.
• Our page of Christmas markets in Finland brings together the country’s listings and the traditions of Christmas Eve.