Colmar Christmas Market

Place des Dominicains

The largest market, with about 60 chalets beside the Dominican church. It is the classic stop for crafts and gifts, and it sits a short walk from the other squares. A guided walk such as Secrets of the Colmar Christmas Markets or the Christmas Market Walk with a Local covers the market squares and their stories.

Place de l'Ancienne Douane

About 50 chalets line both banks of the Lauch here, running up to the Koifhus porch. This is the postcard view of the Colmar Christmas market, with stalls reflected in the canal. Both market walks above pass through this square.

Place Jeanne d'Arc

This is the market for regional products: foie gras, charcuterie, wine, schnapps and bredala, the Alsatian Christmas biscuits. Come here for food gifts rather than decorations. It follows the same daily hours as the other markets.

The Children's Market in Petite Venise

On Place des Six Montagnes Noires, the children's market has animals, a mechanical nativity, mulled apple juice, a horse ride and Santa's giant letterbox. No separate hours are published, so it follows the main market hours.

The Koifhus Craft Market

The old customs house holds an indoor craft market with about 20 local craftspeople. Hours are not published separately, so treat it as open within the main market hours. It is one stop on the Secrets of the Colmar Christmas Markets walk.

The Gourmet Market and Ferris Wheel

The Gourmet Market sits on the Plateau sportif de la Montagne Verte, with 9 cabins run by 9 chefs, a standing bar and a cooking show. It opens daily 11:00-22:00 and stays open to 3 January, well past the stall closing times. The ferris wheel is beside it at 2 rue de la Montagne Verte.

Place Rapp

The Christmas Fair on Place Rapp keeps the same dates and hours as the Gourmet Market, 11:00-22:00 to 3 January. The square has an illuminated ice rink, though no rink dates or price are published. Check on site if skating matters to your plan.

Weekday Plan

Monday to Thursday the stalls open at 11:00 and shut at 19:00. That leaves the evening free: the Gourmet Market and the ferris wheel run to 22:00, and the illuminations are lit at nightfall on Friday and Saturday and every night during the season, with 1,150 computer-driven light sources on fiber optic. Guided illumination tours cost $7.79 (€7) for adults, $5.57 (€5) for ages 12-18 and are free under 12.

The Secrets of the Colmar Christmas Markets walk starts at Musée Unterlinden and tastes local products at the stalls.

Weekend Plan

Friday to Sunday the stalls run 10:00-20:00, one hour earlier and one hour later than on weekdays. The illuminations are lit at nightfall on both weekend evenings. The ferris wheel and the Gourmet Market stay open to 22:00, so the squares empty of stalls before the night ends.

The Two Calendars Side by Side

The table compares the two official calendars and daily hours, from the Colmar tourist offices and the city of Strasbourg. The pattern is simple: Colmar covers the whole season, Strasbourg stops on 24 December.

From 25 to 29 December only Colmar is open. Strasbourg closes on 25 December and stays shut to New Year's Day, so late-December trips belong in Colmar. Note that Colmar markets close exactly on time for security, and on 24 December they shut at 17:00.

Seeing Both in One Trip

If you want both cities, book a tour that links them. From Strasbourg, the Christmas Markets Tour from Strasbourg is a 7-hour small-group day at $170.40 per person covering Colmar and one more village, and the Best Alsace Christmas Markets from Strasbourg runs 10.5 hours over Riquewihr, Kaysersberg and Colmar, at $124.96. From Paris, the Colmar Christmas Markets from Paris is an overnight coach weekend at $300 covering both cities' markets.

There is no hotel stay: you sleep on the coach Friday and Saturday night.

Which Village Is Open When

The table lists the official dates for the six villages most often paired with Colmar. Kaysersberg is the trap: its market opens Friday to Sunday only, on four weekends. Ribeauvillé runs a medieval market across two weekends, while Eguisheim and Turckheim run almost the whole season.

Riquewihr market hours are not published here, so check locally.

Christmas Shuttles from Colmar Station

From 27 November to 20 December, Christmas shuttles run from Colmar station to the villages without a car. Tickets are online only, on sale from 12 November at 12:00, with extra tickets released 3 days before travel. Children under 12 ride free but still need a ticket.

Or Let a Tour Drive

A tour removes the ticket rush and the parking question. The pick is the Enchanting Christmas Villages Tour, 8 hours at $145 with hotel pickup and a Ribeauvillé wine tasting included. The Christmas in 4 Alsatian Villages covers Ribeauvillé, Riquewihr, Kaysersberg and Eguisheim in 7.5 hours at $145, and the 4 Wonders of Alsace Day Tour, rated 4.9 from 654 reviews, costs $151.

One caution: Kaysersberg's market is Friday to Sunday only, so a weekday tour that names the village may see it without its market running. For something different, the Mittelwihr Christmas Cellar Show pairs a cellar visit and a tasting of 4 wines at $28, and the Christmas Markets Across 3 Borders adds Germany and Switzerland for $153.36.

Staying in Colmar: Walks and Tastings

The cheapest way to add a guide is the 2 hour Secrets of the Colmar Christmas Markets walk at $23, which starts at Musée Unterlinden and covers Little Venice and the Koifhus. The 1 hour Christmas Market Walk with a Local at $110 includes one hot beverage and one local snack for a group of up to 8. For the town rather than the stalls, the 2 hour Colmar Unusual Walking Tour at $39 is rated 4.9 from 314 reviews, and the Colmar Walk and Wine Tasting at $50 adds a tasting of 3 Alsatian wines at a winery.

Food comes into its own on the 3.5 hour Colmar Alsatian Food Tour at $89.74, a full meal of bretzel, Bibeleskäs, Munster cheese and tarte flambée. In the evening, the Once Upon a Night at Unterlinden ticket costs $9 for museum access and a 10-minute light show in the cloister.

Adding the Villages

The pick is the 8 hour Enchanting Christmas Villages Tour at $145, a small group of 7 with hotel pickup, free time in Kaysersberg, Riquewihr and Eguisheim, and a wine cellar tasting in Ribeauvillé included. Rated 4.4 from 83 reviews. The 7.5 hour Christmas in 4 Alsatian Villages at $145 adds Ribeauvillé for a fourth village, with guided 1.5-hour visits and pickup around 8:30 a.m.

To go further afield, the 9 hour Christmas Markets Across 3 Borders at $153.36 covers Fribourg en Brisgau, Basel and Eguisheim, rated 4.8 from 33 reviews. Outside the markets, the 8 hour 4 Wonders of Alsace Day Tour at $151 is rated 4.9 from 654 reviews, with wine tasting available to purchase. A quieter option is the 1.5 hour Mittelwihr Christmas Cellar Show at $28 on Saturdays in December at 5:00 PM, in French, with 4 wines and bredalas.

Village markets keep their own days: Kaysersberg runs Fri-Sun only and Ribeauvillé runs two weekends, so check before you book.

Coming from Strasbourg, Basel or Paris

No need to sleep in Colmar to see the markets. From Strasbourg, the 7 hour Christmas Markets Tour from Strasbourg by Ophorus costs $170.40 and caps at 8 people, while the 10.5 hour Best Alsace Christmas Markets from Strasbourg at $124.96 adds Riquewihr and Kaysersberg, rated 4.9 from 10 reviews. From Basel, the 9.25 hour Colmar Christmas Market from Basel at $71 also stops at the Ribeauvillé medieval market, with food and drink included.

From Paris, the Colmar Christmas Markets from Paris is an overnight self-guided coach at $300: it leaves 1 Av. de Wagram at 11:30 PM on Friday and returns Sunday between 6:00 and 7:00 AM, covering Colmar and Strasbourg, self-guided, with no hotel stay.