Strasbourg Christmas Markets Map: the Nine Sites

The first surprise for every visitor: there is no single Christmas market in Strasbourg. There are 8 official markets plus the independent OFF, spread across the squares of the Grande Île, around 300 chalets in total.

Local press counted 284 precisely for the 2025 edition, 65 of them on Place Broglie alone. All nine sites are less than ten minutes' walk apart, but the order you walk them in changes the day completely.

Before you set off: getting onto the island

During the market the Grande Île is pedestrianised from 11.30am to 9pm and three city centre tram stops close during the day: Broglie, Langstross Grand'Rue and Alt Winmärik.

Get off at République, which is the handiest if you start at Broglie, or at Faubourg de Saverne, Ancienne Synagogue / Les Halles, or Porte de l'Hôpital. Every bridge onto the island has a security checkpoint where bags are inspected.

The nine sites, square by square

1. Christkindelsmärik, Place Broglie: the original

This is where it all started in 1570. With its 65 chalets, Place Broglie remains the historic and popular heart of the event: tree decorations, nativity figures, wooden toys, candles, and most of the Alsatian sweet specialities.

Dense, lively and traditional. Its full story, including what the impossible name actually means, is on our page about the Christkindelsmärik. See it early in the day, before the afternoon peak.

2. Around the cathedral: the spectacular one

On Place de la Cathédrale and Place du Château, the chalets sit against the most impressive building in Alsace. This is the most photographed site and the busiest.

Craft, glassware, bredele biscuits and mulled wine with the lit pink sandstone façade behind. Come twice: once in daylight for the stalls, once at dusk for the façade seen from rue Mercière.

3. At the foot of the Great Tree, Place Kléber: the symbol

The largest square in Strasbourg carries the Great Tree, around thirty metres tall, lit every evening. It stays standing into January, well after the chalets have gone, and it has a page of its own.

Around it, the Village du Partage gathers the charities: this is the solidarity side of the market, less commercial and more moving than the rest.

4. Quai des délices, Palais Rohan terrace: the food one

Along the river Ill, between the Palais Rohan and the old fish market, this site is given over entirely to food: tarte flambée, grilled bretzels, mulled wine and sweet things, eaten facing the water.

This is our recommended lunch stop, and the lit quays in the evening are a considerable bonus. If you do not know what any of it is, our guide to Alsatian food explains the menu.

5. Carré d'Or, Place du Temple Neuf: the elegant one

In the middle of the shopping quarter, a more intimate market oriented towards designers, and the quietest of the big sites.

This is where you find presents that do not look like everyone else's, in a hushed atmosphere that could not be further from Broglie. The lighting here is particularly well done.

6. Small Alsatian producers, Square Louise Weiss: the real thing

Our declared favourite. In this small square in La Petite France there are only Alsatian producers: winegrowers, beekeepers, cheesemakers, jam makers.

No resale, no middlemen, and the people behind the counter made the thing themselves. This is where you fill a suitcase with souvenirs that mean something. Note that it closes on 25 December.

7 and 8. La Petite France, Benjamin-Zix and Saint-Thomas: the postcard

Two small markets tucked between the timber frames and canals of the most picturesque quarter in the city. Craft, street food and a setting that looks staged for a film.

Come in the evening rather than at midday. And while you are there, walk on to the Covered Bridges and the Barrage Vauban: it is dark, quiet, and the view back over the lit old town is the best in Strasbourg. Place Saint-Thomas is the calmer of the two and the easiest with small children.

9. Marché OFF, Place Grimmeissen: the alternative

Created in 2016, the OFF is the anti-Christmas market in the best sense: local makers, second hand goods, social enterprises, organic farming, plus concerts, workshops and talks that are usually free.

It runs the same hours as the official markets, 11.30am to 9pm, closing at 6pm on 24 December. If you have had enough of the rest, this is where you breathe.

Our suggested route

Two hours is enough for an honest overview if you do not get lost. Our order, running roughly north to south, follows the light and takes the crowd against the grain, because the tour groups do the reverse.

1. Place Broglie, arriving at the République tram stop, at opening time.
2. Place du Temple Neuf, two minutes on foot.
3. Place Kléber and the Great Tree, three minutes.
4. Cathedral square, five minutes, with a detour inside the cathedral itself.
5. Palais Rohan terrace for lunch, two minutes.
6. Square Louise Weiss for the shopping, seven minutes.
7. La Petite France to finish after dark, five minutes.

The Marché OFF on Place Grimmeissen sits on the way between Louise Weiss and La Petite France if you want to add it.

Start around 3pm and the switch to lights, around 4.30pm, lands in the middle of the route rather than at the end of it.

Beyond the Grande Île

December spreads across the whole city: designer markets in outlying quarters, neighbourhood association markets, and a scattering of one-off events. They change every year and they are worth the detour if you are staying several days.

Further reading

Opening times for every site are in dates and hours, rooms are in where to stay, and the complete guide pulls it all together.

Sources

Official Strasbourg Capitale de Noël site and city of Strasbourg for the list of markets and the number of chalets, DNA and Rue89 Strasbourg for the counts and the OFF programme, plus our own walk-throughs. The layout has been reproduced unchanged for several editions.