Colmar Christmas Markets: What to Eat & Drink

The short version: Colmar’s six Christmas markets run from Monday 23 November to Tuesday 29 December 2026, spread through the old town from Place des Dominicains to Petite Venise, and the gourmet market and Ferris wheel stay open to 3 January 2027. Drink vin chaud made with Alsace white wine or Pinot Noir, buy bredele and pain d’épices at Place Jeanne d’Arc, and eat kougelhopf, tarte flambée and munster cheese in a winstub. Colmar is also the gateway to the Christmas villages of the Alsace Wine Route. On a short visit, a guided market tour is the easiest way to taste your way through the old town.

At a glance

Question	Answer
Dates 2026/27	23 November to 29 December 2026; the gourmet market and Ferris wheel to 3 January 2027
Drink	Vin chaud (white or Pinot Noir mulled wine), Alsace wines, schnapps, hot apple juice for children
Street food	Tarte flambée, foie gras, Alsatian charcuterie, chef-made plates and oysters at the gourmet market
Sweet	Bredele, pain d’épices, kougelhopf, Christstollen, mannele
Best markets	Place Jeanne d’Arc, Place des Dominicains, Place de l’Ancienne Douane, Petite Venise
Best time to go	Weekdays; Advent weekends are the busiest, so check the official attendance forecast before you go

What to drink at the Colmar Christmas markets

In Colmar, vin chaud is made with Alsace wine: either white wine or Pinot Noir, the region’s red grape, warmed with spices and sweetened with honey, without ever coming to the boil. Order the white version, vin chaud blanc: it is lighter and more fragrant than the red mulled wine of most German markets. Children and drivers get mulled apple juice, orange juice or strawberry juice instead.

Colmar sits on the Alsace Wine Route, with wine villages a short bus ride away. At the Place Jeanne d’Arc market, local producers sell Alsace wines and fruit schnapps (eau-de-vie) by the bottle, so it is the place to buy Riesling, Gewurztraminer or Pinot Noir to take home. During Advent, wine estates around Colmar also open as Caves de Noël, Christmas cellars for tastings; check the programme on the official Christmas site.

What to eat at the Colmar Christmas markets

Food	What it is	Where to find it
Bredele (bredala)	Small Alsatian Christmas biscuits in many shapes and flavours, baked in every Alsace home in December	Place Jeanne d’Arc
Pain d’épices	Alsatian honey spice bread, glazed as “gingerbread tongues” or soft with local honey; also hung on Christmas trees	Place Jeanne d’Arc and Pâtisserie Gilg
Kougelhopf	The tall, ring-shaped Alsace yeast cake with raisins soaked in kirsch	Pâtisserie Gilg
Foie gras	Alsace’s festive terrine, sold by local producers at the markets	Place Jeanne d’Arc
Tarte flambée (flammekueche)	Very thin dough spread with cream, onions and lardons, baked hot and fast	Savoury stalls and winstubs across the old town
Munster	The soft, strong washed-rind cheese from the Munster valley, west of Colmar	Marché Couvert and winstub menus
Christstollen	A Christmas brioche with candied fruit and cinnamon, filled with almond cream and dusted with icing sugar	Bakers’ stalls and pastry shops
Mannele	An all-butter brioche shaped like a little man, eaten for Saint Nicholas on 6 December, often with hot chocolate	Bakeries from early December
Sprengerle and berawecka	Anise biscuits pressed in carved wooden moulds, and a dense bread of dried fruit soaked in kirsch	Place Jeanne d’Arc and town bakeries

The one thing not to miss is a mixed bag of bredele with a cup of white vin chaud at Place Jeanne d’Arc. The market is built to feel like a small Alsatian village, and the biscuits are the taste of an Alsace Christmas.

The best Colmar Christmas markets

The six markets sit within a few minutes’ walk of each other in the old town. For 2026 the official Christmas site confirms 23 November to 29 December, open Monday to Thursday 11:00 to 19:00 and Friday to Sunday 10:00 to 20:00. On 24 December they close at 17:00, and on 25 and 26 December they are open 10:00 to 20:00.

Place des Dominicains

About sixty wooden chalets surround the Église des Dominicains, whose 14th-century stained glass windows are lit up at night. This is the market for Christmas tree decorations; take a vin chaud and walk the square after dark to see the windows glow.

Place de l’Ancienne Douane

Around fifty chalets gather around the Schwendi fountain on Place de l’Ancienne Douane, at the foot of the Koïfhus, the old customs house, whose façade is lit in the evening. Contemporary creations sit alongside traditional decorations. In the heart of the old town, it is the natural place for your first vin chaud.

Place Jeanne d’Arc

The food market. Place Jeanne d’Arc recreates the atmosphere of a traditional Alsace village among half-timbered and classical buildings, and its chalets sell foie gras, charcuterie, wine, schnapps, pain d’épices and bredele. Come hungry and leave with edible gifts.

Petite Venise, Place des Six Montagnes Noires

On Place des Six Montagnes Noires, beside the canals of Petite Venise, is the children’s market: a carousel, mulled apple juice and Father Christmas’s giant letter box. Adults come for the view along the Lauch at dusk.

Koïfhus indoor craft market

Inside the Koïfhus, the medieval customs house, about twenty local craftspeople show their work: ceramics, glass, wood carving, hats and jewellery. It is the warm, covered stop on a cold evening.

Gourmet market on Rue de la Montagne Verte

The gourmet market is nine cabins run by nine chefs and master restaurateurs, cooking everything from starters to dessert, oysters and Alsatian specialities, to eat on the spot or take away. It stays open with the Ferris wheel until 3 January 2027, daily 11:00 to 22:00 (to 17:00 on 31 December), and it hosts free cookery shows on Wednesday evenings in Advent.

Where to eat a proper meal near the markets

A winstub is the Alsatian wine tavern: wood panelling, regional cooking and wine by the pitcher. In Colmar most are in and around Petite Venise. Book ahead for December evenings.

Wistub Brenner (Michelin listing), a MICHELIN Guide selected restaurant, is an authentic winstub in the heart of Petite Venise. Order Papi Lucien’s onion tart, the salad with Comté and cervelas sausage, or choucroute with braised pork knuckle and Pinot Noir sauce. Price level: €€.

Le Comptoir de Georges (Michelin listing), a MICHELIN Guide selected restaurant, is a former butcher’s shop turned brasserie with a modern winstub feel, right on the Petite Venise market square. Order the Alsace specialities or one of the choice cuts of meat. Price level: €€.

La Maison Rouge (Michelin listing), a MICHELIN Guide selected restaurant, is a historic house a stone’s throw from Petite Venise, where chef Jean Kuentz moves between regional and more modern dishes, with well-chosen wines. Price level: €€. Closed on Wednesdays and Thursdays.

Winstub de la Petite Venise serves simple, classic Alsace cooking. Order the munster salad, fleischnakas (pasta rolls filled with meat), choucroute, and the iced kougelhopf for dessert.

Pâtisserie Gilg on the Grand’Rue has made Alsatian pastry since 1936. Buy its kougelhopf and “grandmother’s” pain d’épices to take home.

Marché Couvert, the covered market hall in Petite Venise, has about twenty traders selling cheese, meat, fish, bread, pastry and regional produce. It is the best place to buy munster for the journey home; it is closed on Mondays.

Names link to Google Maps for directions. We checked these places in October 2026. Christmas opening days change, so check before you go.

Christmas market tours to book in Colmar

Colmar is small, but its markets, winstubs and the wine villages around it reward a guide who knows which stalls bake their own bredele and which cellars open for Christmas. These are the Christmas market, food and wine tours we rate for the season.

Experience	Length	Rating (reviews)	Best for	Book
Colmar Highlights Walking Tour and Wine Tasting	2 hours	4.9 (272)	Old Town and Alsace wine	Check availability
Secrets and Magic of the Christmas Markets	2 hours	5.0 (4)	The markets with a guide	Check availability
Alsace Medieval Villages and Wine Tasting Day Tour	9.5 hours	4.7 (124)	The Wine Route villages	Check availability
Christmas Markets Across 3 Borders, from Colmar	8 hours	4.6 (24)	A three-country day	Check availability

Our pick: the Colmar Highlights Walking Tour and Wine Tasting, rated 4.9 from 272 reviews on GetYourGuide.

Ratings as shown on GetYourGuide in October 2026. Seasonal tours sell out in December, so check the listing for live dates and prices.

Tips for visiting

• Do not drive into the centre: the old town is closed to vehicles during market hours from 23 November to 29 December.
• Use the Park and Ride at the Parc des Expositions on Advent weekends (28 and 29 November, 5 and 6, 12 and 13, 19 and 20 December 2026); the parking fee includes the bus to the centre.
• Arrive by train: Strasbourg is about 30 minutes away, so Colmar is an easy day trip.
• Take the Christmas shuttles from Colmar station to the Wine Route villages, including Kaysersberg, Riquewihr, Ribeauvillé and Eguisheim, from 27 November to 20 December 2026. Tickets are sold online only from 12 November 2026 (day passes 8 euros on the Eguisheim line Monday to Thursday, 17 euros Friday to Sunday), and seats are limited.
• Check the official attendance forecast on the Colmar Christmas site and avoid the busiest days if you can.
• On 24 December the markets close at 17:00; after 29 December only the gourmet market and Ferris wheel stay open.

Frequently asked questions

When are the Colmar Christmas markets 2026?

From Monday 23 November to Tuesday 29 December 2026, Monday to Thursday 11:00 to 19:00 and Friday to Sunday 10:00 to 20:00. The gourmet market and Ferris wheel stay open until 3 January 2027.

What do you eat at the Colmar Christmas markets?

Bredele, pain d’épices, foie gras, charcuterie, tarte flambée, kougelhopf and Christstollen, with vin chaud to drink. For a sit-down meal, book a winstub such as Wistub Brenner or Winstub de la Petite Venise.

What is vin chaud blanc?

Mulled white wine made with Alsace white wine, spices and honey, warmed without boiling. It is lighter than red mulled wine and sold at the drinks chalets across the markets.

Which Colmar Christmas market is best?

For food, Place Jeanne d’Arc and the gourmet market on Rue de la Montagne Verte. For atmosphere, Place des Dominicains and the Ancienne Douane, and for families, Petite Venise.

Are the Colmar Christmas markets open on 25 and 26 December?

Yes. In 2026 the markets are open 10:00 to 20:00 on both 25 and 26 December, after closing at 17:00 on 24 December. They end on 29 December.

Is a Christmas market tour worth it?

Yes if you have one day. A guide links the markets and Petite Venise in one walk, points you to the right bredele and vin chaud, and leaves time for a winstub lunch or a trip out to the wine villages.

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