The Christmas market beside Notre-Dame runs from Thursday 26 November to Sunday 27 December 2026, open 10:00–20:00 Monday to Thursday and Sunday, and 10:00–21:00 on Friday and Saturday, with free entry; the much larger market at La Défense runs from 12 November to 31 December 2026, open every day and free. Those are the two Paris Christmas markets with official 2026 information so far.
Paris is not a Christmas-market city in the way Strasbourg or Colmar are. There is no single historic market in a central square; instead there are a handful of seasonal markets of very different sizes, some run by the city's partners and some by private organisers, and which ones return changes from year to year. This guide covers the ones confirmed for 2026, the ones that ran in recent winters but had not announced 2026 dates when this was written (October 2026), the department-store windows and the Galeries Lafayette dome, and how to fit them together.
Which Paris Christmas markets are on in 2026?
As of 13 October 2026:
- Notre-Dame (Square René Viviani): confirmed, 26 November to 27 December 2026.
- La Défense: 12 November to 31 December 2026; hours below.
- Tuileries winter fair: held in recent winters; 2026 dates not yet confirmed by an official source.
- Saint-Germain-des-Prés and Montmartre (Place des Abbesses): small neighbourhood markets in recent years; no 2026 announcement found.
The City of Paris publishes Christmas events on paris.fr as they are confirmed, and that is the best place to check before you go.
Notre-Dame: the market in Square René Viviani
The most central market, and the one with the best view, is in Square René Viviani on the Left Bank, directly across the river from Notre-Dame. The city lists it from Thursday 26 November to Sunday 27 December 2026, free to enter, with about 40 selected exhibitors, French makers and artisans selling crafts, decorations and food. The organiser is L'Art et la Seine.
Opening hours for 2026:
- Monday to Thursday and Sunday: 10:00–20:00
- Friday and Saturday: 10:00–21:00
Christmas market stalls at night with Notre-Dame lit up behind them, December 2016. Image: Ninaceline63, CC BY-SA 4.0, via Wikimedia Commons.
It is a small market, so plan on an hour rather than an afternoon, but it combines well with the cathedral, which reopened in December 2024 after the restoration that followed the 2019 fire. Entry to the cathedral is free; expect queues on December weekends. The square is next to the Quai de Montebello, a short walk from Saint-Michel–Notre-Dame station (RER B and C).
La Défense: the largest market in the Paris area
The biggest Christmas market in the Paris region is not in Paris proper but on the Parvis de La Défense, the vast pedestrian esplanade of the business district just west of the city, at the foot of the Grande Arche. In 2025 it had more than 300 chalets, many of them selling regional food from across France.
For 2026, the organisers list the traditional market from 12 November to 31 December 2026, and the part called Le Sommet until 3 January 2027. It is open every day, entry is free, and there are security checks at the entrances. The 2026 hours for the traditional market, which change on some holidays, are:
- Monday to Thursday: 11:00–21:00
- Friday: 11:00–23:00
- Saturday: 10:00–23:00
- Sunday: 11:00–21:30
- 24 and 31 December: 11:00–18:00
- 25 December: 15:00–23:00
Chalets of the La Défense Christmas market on the Parvis, with the towers of the business district behind, December 2021. Image: Thomon, CC BY-SA 4.0, via Wikimedia Commons.
The late Friday and Saturday hours make La Défense the best market for an evening visit, and the size means it can absorb crowds better than the small central markets. The Parvis is directly above La Défense station, on metro line 1 and RER A; line 1 also runs straight through central Paris, so it is easy to reach from the Louvre, Concorde or the Champs-Élysées.
A regional food stall at the La Défense market in 2021. Image: Thomon, CC BY-SA 4.0, via Wikimedia Commons.
The Tuileries winter fair
In recent winters the Jardin des Tuileries, the formal garden between the Louvre and Place de la Concorde, has hosted a large Christmas fair that is as much funfair as market: food stalls, chalets and fairground rides. It is the most central of the big seasonal events and the easiest to combine with a walk along the Seine.
We could not find the 2026 dates on an official source in October 2026, so check before you go. The nearest metro stations are Tuileries and Concorde (line 1).
The Jardin des Tuileries in winter, after snow in January 2013. Image: Pline, CC BY-SA 3.0, via Wikimedia Commons.
Is there a Christmas market in Saint-Germain-des-Prés?
In recent years a small Christmas market has been set up near the church of Saint-Germain-des-Prés, one of the oldest churches in Paris, in the heart of the 6th arrondissement. It is a neighbourhood market rather than a destination in itself, but it fits naturally into a walk through the Left Bank, past the cafés and bookshops of the boulevard Saint-Germain.
No 2026 dates had been announced when this guide was written. If it does not return, the church itself is worth a visit for its painted nave and choir.
The painted choir of the church of Saint-Germain-des-Prés. Image: Diego Delso, CC BY-SA 4.0, via Wikimedia Commons.
Montmartre and Place des Abbesses
Montmartre has also had a small Christmas market in recent winters on Place des Abbesses, the square around the Abbesses metro station with its original Art Nouveau entrance by Hector Guimard. Again, 2026 dates had not been published at the time of writing.
Montmartre is worth the trip in December even without a market. From Abbesses it is a short climb through the streets of the old village to the Sacré-Cœur, and the view over Paris from the steps is at its clearest on a cold, dry day. Go late in the afternoon to see the city lights come on.
The Guimard entrance of Abbesses metro station, on the square that has hosted Montmartre's Christmas market. Image: Vlad Shtelts (Stelz), CC BY-SA 3.0, via Wikimedia Commons.
Department-store windows and the Galeries Lafayette dome
For many Parisians, Christmas starts on Boulevard Haussmann, where the two big department stores, Galeries Lafayette Haussmann and Printemps Haussmann, decorate their street windows with animated displays aimed at children. Inside Galeries Lafayette, a giant Christmas tree goes up each year under the 1912 glass dome, the store's best-known feature.
Neither store had announced its 2026 unveiling date or design in mid-October; the windows are usually unveiled in November and stay up through the holidays. Seeing the windows costs nothing; the pavement in front gets very crowded at weekends and after school, so a weekday morning is the calmest time. The dome is visible from the ground floor of the main building, and the store's rooftop terrace gives a view over the Opéra Garnier.
The glass dome of Galeries Lafayette Haussmann, completed in 1912. Image: Pveverdingen, CC BY-SA 4.0, via Wikimedia Commons.
Ice skating
Several of the city's winter rinks open at the same time as the markets, and some markets add a small rink of their own. Rather than repeat it here, we cover where to skate, including the rink under the roof of the Grand Palais and the department-store rooftop rinks, in our guide to ice skating in Paris in winter.
What to eat, drink and buy
The food is much the same from one market to the next, and it is the main reason most Parisians go. Expect vin chaud (mulled wine, sometimes also a white version), hot chocolate, crêpes and waffles, roasted chestnuts, and melted-cheese dishes such as raclette and tartiflette from the Alps. The bigger markets, La Défense in particular, have stalls of regional produce from across France: charcuterie and cheese, foie gras from the south-west, nougat, gingerbread and calissons.
For presents, look for the stalls run by the makers themselves (the Notre-Dame market selects its exhibitors on that basis): ceramics, wooden toys, candles, jewellery and Christmas decorations. Food gifts travel better than most crafts, and vacuum-packed charcuterie and hard cheeses keep for the journey home.
Tips for visiting Paris Christmas markets
- Check before you go. Several Paris markets are run by private organisers and announce their dates late. paris.fr and the organisers' own pages are the reliable sources.
- Combine them by metro line 1. La Défense, Concorde, Tuileries and the Louvre are all on line 1, so one ticket covers the west-to-centre route.
- Expect bag checks at the larger markets, and travel light.
- Go on a weekday. Weekend afternoons in December are the busiest time at every market.
- Watch the last days. Markets still open on 24 December usually close early, and most are shut on Christmas Day.
A neighbourhood Christmas market outside the 15th arrondissement town hall in 2016; several arrondissements hold small markets of their own. Image: Guilhem Vellut from Paris, France, CC BY 2.0, via Wikimedia Commons.
If the weather turns
December in Paris is usually grey and damp rather than snowy. On a wet day, start with the indoor options: the Galeries Lafayette dome and the covered passages of the 2nd and 9th arrondissements, the museums (many stay open late one evening a week), and Notre-Dame. Save the open-air markets for the evening, when the lights make the rain less noticeable.
Christmas markets beyond Paris
If you want a traditional market of the Rhineland kind, the best are in the north-east. Reims, around 45 minutes from Paris Gare de l'Est by TGV, has about 150 chalets on its Hautes Promenades plus a big wheel and a light show on the cathedral; see our Reims Christmas market guide. Further east, the markets of Strasbourg and Colmar are the best known in France.
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