Christmas markets in Alsace: our guide from the Thur valley

December turns Alsace into a constellation of markets, and the Thur valley is an excellent base to enjoy them: Thann is a quarter of an hour away, Mulhouse 35 minutes, Colmar under an hour, and the wine-route villages follow one after the other. Here is our guide to winter 2026: the dates confirmed by the tourism offices, what makes each market worth the drive, and what happens in the valley itself.

The 2026 dates, market by market

The dates below are the ones published by the tourism offices for 2026. Online listings tend to recycle last year's dates; when in doubt, trust the town's official site.

• Mulhouse, the Etofféeries: 20 November to 27 December

• Thann: 20 November to 24 December

• Colmar: 23 November to 29 December

• Riquewihr: opens 27 November, then daily until 20 December

• Eguisheim: 27 November to 23 December, then 27 to 30 December

• Kaysersberg: the four Advent weekends, 27 to 29 November, 4 to 6, 11 to 13 and 18 to 20 December

• Ribeauvillé, medieval market: 5 and 6, then 12 and 13 December

• Strasbourg: the 2026 dates were not yet published as we wrote; the Christkindelsmärik traditionally opens in the last week of November and closes on 24 December

Under an hour away: Thann, Mulhouse and Colmar

Thann first, a quarter of an hour away: its chalets line the place Joffre and the foot of the Saint-Thiébaut collegiate church, in a decor of decorated firs, free entry. The tourism office gathers the whole district under one banner, the Portes de Noël, with over a hundred events between Thann and Cernay across the season.

Mulhouse next, 35 minutes away: about 90 chalets around the Saint-Étienne temple on the place de la Réunion. Its signature is unique in France: since 1998 the city has commissioned a new Christmas fabric from a designer every year. It dresses the chalets and the facades, a nod to the city's textile past, and is sold by the metre during the market.

Colmar, under an hour away: six markets across the old town, each with its own character, from the family-minded Petite Venise to the gourmet market and its chefs' cabins by the cathedral. December weekends clog the approaches quickly; aim for a weekday if you can.

The wine route and Strasbourg: for the big days out

Around fifty minutes away, Eguisheim sets its market in concentric medieval lanes and Riquewihr holds its own inside the ramparts. Allow an hour for Kaysersberg, which only runs its craft market on the Advent weekends, some thirty chalets in the Cour de l'Arsenal, and one of the most authentic in the vineyard. Ribeauvillé plays a different tune: a medieval market on two weekends only. Guebwiller, 40 minutes away, stages its Noël bleu, illuminations and makers' stalls, from late November to late December.

Strasbourg, the capital of Christmas, deserves a full day: allow 1h30 to 1h45 by road depending on traffic, more on December Saturdays. Here too, weekdays change everything.

And in the Thur valley itself?

The winter highlight is ten minutes from our house: Noël au Jardin at the Parc de Wesserling, 28 November to 30 December 2026. A storytelling walk of about an hour after dark through the illuminated gardens of the former textile manufacture: costumed actors, fairy-tale sets, and a finish at the farm with a hot drink. Booking is essential; tickets go on sale in the autumn and the slots go fast.

The valley's villages hold their own markets too, one weekend each in early December: Noël à Saint-Amarin with some thirty exhibitors around the CAP hall, the Bredalamark in Oderen with its bredele chalets, or Wildenstein at the very top of the valley. One-evening or one-weekend markets; the valley tourism office's agenda has the final word.

Where to stay for the markets

To string the markets together without a two-hour drive home every evening, our chalet in Saint-Amarin in the Vosges sleeps up to 15 in the heart of the Thur valley: 7 bedrooms, a heated indoor pool and a full spa to recover from the mulled wine. The house is part of our houses to rent for Christmas and New Year, each with a fireplace or a wood stove.