Brussels Winter Wonders
Plaisirs d'Hiver50°51′ N 4°21′ EBrusselsfrom Nov 27Seasonal
Brussels Winter Wonders (Plaisirs d'Hiver in French, Winterpret in Dutch) runs from 27 November 2026 to 3 January 2027, open 12:00–22:00 daily, and it suits anyone who wants a big city market with an ice rink and a Ferris wheel within reach of a Eurostar. Its 238 chalets spread over eight squares of the lower town, so plan on a long walk between the Bourse and Place Sainte-Catherine.
Photo Guillaume Richer · Wikimedia Commons · CC BY-SA 2.0 and others, credited in the gallery
Brussels Winter Wonders runs November 27, 2026 to January 3, 2027 · confirmed by the organizer (source)
Advent SundaysGaudete, 13 DecemberChristmas Eve
Dates and hours
- November 27, 2026 to January 3, 2027Confirmedsourcechecked Oct 10, 2026
- November 28, 2025 to January 4, 2026Confirmedsourcechecked Oct 10, 2026
Hours · Mon–Sun 12:00–22:00
- Dec 24, 2026 · 12:00–18:00 (Early closing on Christmas Eve; no Grand-Place show.)
- Dec 31, 2026 · 12:00–18:00 (Early closing on New Year's Eve; no Grand-Place show.)
- Jan 3, 2027 · 12:00–18:00 (Closing day; no Grand-Place show.)
Access and crowds
- Toilets
- Ramped public toilets at Place Fontainas, the Halles Saint-Géry, Gare Centrale and the De Brouckère and Bourse metro stations. Inclusive toilets with showers stand opposite the Falstaff tavern and on the ground floor of Belgian Beer World in the Bourse.
- Getting around
- The organizer has adapted floors and cable crossings with AMT Concept and publishes a reduced-mobility map. A baby corner for changing and warming bottles was listed in 2025.
- Busiest
- Winter Wonders drew more than 4 million visits in 2024 according to French Wikipedia, so expect Friday and Saturday evenings to be thick with people on the Vismet and around the Bourse.
Winter Wonders spreads north and west from the Bourse through the lower town. In 2025 food and gift chalets lined the Vismet, where the fish market used to stand, and the Ferris wheel turned at its far end. The Dominican hotel ran an oyster-and-Champagne chalet on Place de la Monnaie, and Place De Brouckère held the ice rink and a curling lane under covered terraces. The organizer keeps the same squares for 2026 and promises programme details from November.
Families should head for the Tour Noire behind Sainte-Catherine church. In 2025 it held a children's village with workshops and visits from Saint Nicholas and Father Christmas, and choirs sang there at weekends. The carousel on Place Sainte-Catherine took children up to 11 for €3 a ride that year.
The Grand-Place sits a few streets uphill with its own Christmas tree and an evening light show, which this site covers on a separate page. Both fit into one evening. Start at the Grand-Place for the first show, then walk down past the Bourse to eat your way along the Vismet.
Worth knowing
- The market shuts at 18:00 on 24 December, 31 December and 3 January 2027, and the Grand-Place show takes those nights off.
- Public toilets with ramps sit at Place Fontainas, the Halles Saint-Géry, Gare Centrale and the De Brouckère and Bourse metro stations, according to the organizer.
- The interactive map at map.plaisirsdhiver.be filters chalets by type, and 33 of them carried the artisan quality label in 2025.
Quick answers about Brussels Winter Wonders
When is the Brussels Christmas market in 2026?
Brussels Winter Wonders runs from Friday 27 November 2026 to Sunday 3 January 2027, according to the organizer, Brussels Major Events. It opens 12:00–22:00 daily and closes at 18:00 on 24 December, 31 December and 3 January.
Is Winter Wonders the same as Plaisirs d'Hiver?
Yes. Plaisirs d'Hiver is the French name of the Brussels Christmas market at winterpret.be, and the organizer uses Winterpret in Dutch and Winter Wonders in English.
Is there an ice rink at the Brussels Christmas market?
Yes. In 2025 the rink stood on Place De Brouckère and cost €12 for anyone over 16 and €6 for under-16s, skates included. The organizer has not yet published the 2026 rink details.
Is Brussels Winter Wonders accessible for wheelchair users?
Partly. The organizer says it has adapted floors and cable crossings, publishes a reduced-mobility map, and lists toilets with ramps along the route. It gives no step-free figure for the whole route, so check the map before you go.
When does Brussels Winter Wonders open in 2026?
Brussels Winter Wonders opens on November 27, 2026 and closes on January 3, 2027. Those dates are confirmed by the organizer.
In the journal and guides
Read more about Brussels Winter Wonders
Guide · 12 min read
What's open in Europe on Christmas Eve?
Seventy-nine markets open on 24 December 2026, and most of them close by 18:30, so do your last shopping before dark.
Guide · 23 min read
When do Europe's Christmas markets open and close in 2026?
Vienna and Copenhagen open first, on 6 November 2026, and Cologne's Heumarkt keeps its stalls up until 10 January 2027. Every row below names who published the date.
Guide · 12 min read
Which Christmas markets are open after Christmas?
Prague, Salzburg, Dresden and Cologne keep their markets going through the week after Christmas, and Colmar runs to 29 December.
Guide · 9 min read
Which Christmas markets in Europe are open on Christmas Day?
Vienna and Colmar give you the most choice on 25 December 2026, and Tivoli reopens for the day with fireworks at 20:45.