Stuttgart Christmas Market
Stuttgarter Weihnachtsmarkt48°47′ N 9°11′ EStuttgartfrom Nov 25Seasonal
Stuttgart suits anyone who wants a big city market that still feels Swabian, with about 250 stalls under decorated roofs and concerts in a Renaissance courtyard. The trade-off is the crowd, because millions come through in four weeks and weekend evenings move at a shuffle.
Photo Baden de · Wikimedia Commons · CC BY 3.0 and others, credited in the gallery
Stuttgart Christmas Market runs November 25, 2026 to December 23, 2026 · confirmed by the organizer (source)
Advent SundaysGaudete, 13 DecemberChristmas Eve
Dates and hours
- November 25, 2026 to December 23, 2026Confirmedsourcechecked Oct 10, 2026
- November 26, 2025 to December 23, 2025Announcedsourcechecked Oct 10, 2026
Hours · Mon–Thu 11:00–21:00; Fri–Sat 11:00–22:00; Sun 11:00–21:00
- Nov 25, 2026 · 21:00 (Opening day. The ceremony takes place in the Renaissance courtyard of the Altes Schloss. In 2025 the stalls opened at 17:00 that day, and the 2026 start time is not published yet.)
Access and crowds
- Step-free
- Yes, Stuttgart Christmas Market has a step-free route
- Toilets
- Accessible toilets stand on Stiftstraße, on Karlsplatz, on Schlossplatz by the Stadtbahn stops and in front of the Alte Kanzlei, on Pierre-Pflimlin-Platz and by the Kunstmuseum steps. A Toilette für alle with an adult changing bench and hoist sits behind the Rathaus at Eichstraße 7, entered from Nadlerstraße 19, and the attendants hold its key.
- Getting around
- The organizer says wheelchair users can reach the market from almost every side and that nearly all paths are asphalted. Blue-badge parking is on Bolzstraße, Dorotheenstraße, Eberhardstraße, Nadlerstraße and Breite Straße, and a wheelchair taxi rank waits on Dorotheenstraße.
- Busiest
- The organizer counts 3.5 to 4 million visits a season, and Friday and Saturday evenings on Schillerplatz and Marktplatz pack tight from about 17:00.
- Quieter
- Weekday lunchtimes are the calm window, and the 13:15 organ half-hour in the Stiftskirche gives you a reason to come early.
The stalls run from the Neues Schloss and Schlossplatz across Schillerplatz and Karlsplatz to the Marktplatz in front of the Rathaus. Look up as you walk, because the roofs carry the show: nativity figures, Father Christmases with long white beards and whole winter landscapes built out of wood and fake snow. On Marktplatz, find the Springerle stand for the anise biscuits and their carved moulds, and pick up a slice of Hutzelbrot, the dark Swabian fruit loaf.
Music sits at the centre of the Stuttgart program. The opening is held in the arcaded courtyard of the Altes Schloss, and a Christmas concert plays there on almost every evening of the run. Next door in the Stiftskirche, organists give a half-hour of Advent music at 13:15 from 30 November to 22 December, and on weekend evenings the tower brass play from 60 metres up.
Families head for the Kinder-Märchenland with its old carousels and a miniature steam locomotive that carries children in small wagons. The tourist board also mentions a living nativity with animals. Königstraße, Germany's longest pedestrian street, is lit with LED-wrapped trees for the whole 1.2 kilometres, so the walk up from the Hauptbahnhof already feels like part of the market.
Worth knowing
- Start on Schillerplatz around lunchtime, then drift to Marktplatz as the light goes; the roofs read best at dusk.
- Keep a few euros in coins for the mug deposit and return the mug at any Glühwein stand.
- The market shuts after 23 December, so plan Christmas Eve elsewhere or around a church service.
Quick answers about Stuttgart Christmas Market
When is the Stuttgart Christmas Market in 2026?
From Wednesday 25 November to Wednesday 23 December 2026, as the organizer's own site states. It is open 11:00 to 21:00 Sunday to Thursday and 11:00 to 22:00 on Friday and Saturday.
Is the Stuttgart market open on Christmas Eve?
No. The last day is 23 December.
Is the market wheelchair accessible?
Yes, the organizer says almost every entrance is step-free and nearly all paths are asphalted. Several accessible toilets stand around the squares, and a Toilette für alle sits behind the Rathaus.
In the journal and guides
Read more about Stuttgart Christmas Market
Guide · 9 min read
Are German Christmas markets open on Sunday?
Every Advent Sunday is a market day in Germany. The two Sundays before Advent are different, and on 22 November 2026 most markets that have already opened stay shut.
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 · 10 min read
When do Christmas markets open in Germany in 2026?
Totensonntag falls on 22 November in 2026. Most German markets open in the week after it, and the date of a city's market comes from a rule you can read ahead.
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.