Switzerland
Schweiz1 region
Switzerland suits a short, easy market trip by train, with compact old towns whose markets sit close to the main stations. The trade-off is cost. Food and rooms run dearer than across the border in Germany or Austria, so set a daily budget before you go. Pair Basel with Alsace or the Black Forest, or sleep in Zurich and take day trips to Lucerne and Einsiedeln.
Photo Daniel Kraft · Wikimedia Commons · CC BY-SA 3.0 and others, credited in the gallery
How Switzerland keeps Christmas
- Christkind (Christchindli)In German-speaking Switzerland the Christchindli brings the presents on Christmas Eve.
- SamichlausSamichlaus is the Swiss St Nicholas. He visits children around 6 December with his helper Schmutzli, who wears a brown monk's habit, and the traditional gifts are nuts and mandarins with a little gingerbread.
In Zurich the Samichlaus walks down Bahnhofstrasse with the city's youth band at 17:00 on Sunday 29 November 2026, and many families book a Samichlaus to call at home around the 6th. Küssnacht am Rigi holds its Klausjagen procession on the evening of 5 December. A local society turned the night walk into a festival in 1928.
Basel fills Barfüsserplatz and Münsterplatz from 26 November to 23 December 2026. Along the lake at Montreux the stalls stay up from 20 November until Christmas Eve, and Bern's Münsterplatz market opens on 28 November. Einsiedeln's market below the abbey runs for only ten days, from 27 November to 6 December.
On 24 December many shops and businesses open only until the afternoon. Christmas Day is a holiday in every canton and St Stephen's Day on 26 December in 21 of the 26, because the cantons set their own holidays. Einsiedeln Abbey celebrates Midnight Mass at 23:00 on Christmas Eve after a concert from 22:00. It is a Mass and worship first, so visitors who go should come for the service.
Market in Switzerland
Town in Switzerland
Light festival in Switzerland
Event in Switzerland
Quick answers about Switzerland
Which Swiss Christmas markets are open on Christmas Eve?
Montreux Noël opens from 11:00 to 17:00 on 24 December 2026, and Bern's Münsterplatz market from 10:00 to 16:00. Basel's markets have closed by then, on 23 December.
Is 26 December a holiday in Switzerland?
In most cantons, yes. Each canton sets its own public holidays, and 21 of the 26 keep St Stephen's Day on 26 December, so check the canton you are staying in before you count on shops opening.
When does Samichlaus come in Switzerland?
Around 6 December. Zurich's Samichlaus parade on Bahnhofstrasse is on Sunday 29 November 2026, and the Klausjagen procession in Küssnacht am Rigi is on the evening of 5 December.
Who brings the presents in Switzerland?
In Switzerland, Christkind or Samichlaus brings the presents. In German-speaking Switzerland the Christchindli brings the presents on Christmas Eve.
When do the Christmas markets run in Switzerland?
In Switzerland, most markets run from late November to 23 or 24 December 2026, starting with Montreux on 20 November, and Einsiedeln's short market ends early on 6 December.