12 Unique Christmas Markets in France - Unlike The Rest

Each year, new French Christmas markets open their doors. By the time November winds down, markets magically appear, like a curtain at a premiere.

Describing them all would be impossible, but here are a few that are... a bit different (along with a few that are simply wonderful). Not all have websites in English, however, so brush off your Google Translate!

If you think you know all the best French Christmas markets, France will surprise you.

You have the obvious variations – size, speciality and story focus – but there are several markets that stand out because they are the most unusual of their kind.

Take Strasbourg, for example: it is France's oldest Christmas market, or Lyon, which is the most artistic, with eye-popping multi-colored creations.

Yet others are famous for different reasons — amazing lighting, an offbeat theme or simple beauty and ambience.

Many also happen to be located in fantastic French cities, which you can enjoy at a time of year when the crush of summer tourists is over.

The one-of-a-kind Christmas markets France does best

These beautiful Christmas markets are not listed in order of preference, but geographically: I start in the northwestern corner of France, then work my way east in an arc to Paris, then down eastern France, ending up in the least wintry part of the country, Provence.

Many of these destinations, especially in Northern or Eastern France, can easily be visited on a day trip from Paris.

So let's start with...

1. Rouen: the iciest

Christmas should be cold, right? Rouen in Normandy certainly thinks so.

Each year, it goes over the top with Christmas decorations that re-create a cozy winter chill in honor of the season, which is one of the reasons this market is called La Givrée, the "icy". 

The iciness of Christmas should be counterbalanced by... warmth. This Christmas market goes overboard in that direction, with its hot wines and spicy foods.

The name, however, goes beyond ice. Because givrée in French also means... a little nuts. I'm not sure the city fathers had this in mind when they chose the name but to me, that's really what puts this market at the top of my list. Anything with this whimsical a name has got to be great fun. 

Not to mention the setting... at the foot of Notre-Dame Cathedral, painted so often by Monet!

Beyond the market, Rouen itself is worth a visit: 

• the historic center is architecturally stunning
• there are plenty of reminders of Joan of Arc (who died here)
• it is the capital of impressionism, and
• Rouen cathedral is magnificent.

Here's the market's official website.

2. Roubaix: the most sustainable

These days, there is much talk of sustainability and of eliminating waste, especially as our planet takes a beating from fires and floods and unusual climate events.

Sandwiched between the city of Lille and the Belgian border, the former textile center of Roubaix in the north of France may seem an unlikely candidate as France's premier zero waste pioneer.

Yet it is a badge Roubaix wears with pride, so much so that since 2014 it has hosted France's first sustainable Christmas market.

Here, all products are locally made, usually by hand, and often from recycled materials. Even the Christmas chalets are sustainable and are reused each year.

If you are keen to preserve the environment and dislike waste of any kind, this is the Christmas market for you. Not to mention how attractive it is...

3. Paris Christmas at the Tuileries: the most ghostly

It's a leap from the small town of Roubaix to Paris, the capital of France, but the Christmas spirit isn't any different.

There are many Paris Christmas markets, but the Tuileries, for many, is one of the most popular and best Christmas markets in Paris. 

It is held, as the name might indicate, in the Tuileries Gardens, just in front of the Louvre Museum, and replaces the Champs Elysées Christmas market.

What not many people know is that the Tuileries Gardens are home to a phantom, a little man dressed in red. According to the legend, this phantom is the soul of Jean the Butcher who worked near the Tuileries in the 16th century.

Jean the Butcher was assassinated on the orders of Queen Catherine de Medici because he knew too many crown secrets.

After his death, the ghost terrified occupants of the Tuileries Palace, always announcing a tragedy just before it took place.

The phantom of the Tuileries has been quiet since the palace was burned down in the late 19th century.

But the Tuileries Christmas Market is open until late at night, so does that mean we are going to wake him up again?

4. Reims: the most sacred

If Reims (sometimes spelled Rheims in English) is deemed the most sacred, it is because the market draws a circle around the cathedral, which is brightly lit for the occasion.

The cathedral, as you may know, is famous for being the place where the kings of France were traditionally consecrated. This is where Joan of Arc (known in France as Jeanne d'Arc) would bring Charles VII for his own coronation in 1429.

While the vin chaud, or hot mulled wine, will keep you warm this Christmas season, do remember that you are in the heart of Champagne region, and we know Champagne is best sampled cold. Very cold. You won't have any trouble finding some here.

Click through to the Reims Christmas Market official site.

5. Strasbourg: the oldest

Strasbourg Christmas market has a fascinating history. 

Not only is it one of the biggest Christmas markets in Europe, but it is France's oldest, dating back to 1570. Some records even show an earlier version of the market back in the late 12th century. 

It's no wonder Strasbourg is sometimes called the Capital of Christmas!

Celebrations began here when Strasbourg was part of Germany (where Christmas was celebrated more than in France). The festivities were mostly Catholic but Strasbourg eventually became a Reformation stronghold with a strong Protestant voice, making things a bit uneasy.

Initially held in honor of St Nicholas, who died on 6 December, the "saintly" side of the fair was abandoned and the date moved to three days before Christmas, still giving people time to buy provisions for the feast day. The event was renamed Christkindelsmarkt, or the Market of the Child Jesus, satisfying both Catholics and Protestants.

Many of the traditions stayed and today, Strasbourg is one of the few Christmas markets in the world to celebrate two different cultures, religions and heritages. 

Nowadays, France's largest Christmas market has over 300 stalls spread across the city in 10 different venues, selling traditional food, drinks and a lot of festive cheer.

There is also an ice rink, live music performances and plenty of cultural events, all of which you can check out here.

6. Colmar: the most magical

While Strasbourg's Christmas market is huge and crowded, Colmar's is a little more intimate, made of half a dozen little markets strung together across town.

Even without Christmas, Colmar's half-timbered houses are a draw but during the holiday season, the town is positively enchanting and people come from far and wide to visit.

The more than 1000 Christmas lights and the city's decor have won Colmar a prize from the Academy of Street Arts for its computer-aided fiber optics.

The entire town is decorated for Christmas and because the heart of Colmar is pedestrian, nothing comes between you and the Christmas brightness. It's like walking into a fluorescent constellation.

More information on the Colmar Christmas market

7. Mulhouse: the best dressed

 Continuing our travels across eastern France we come toMulhouse, which dresses up at Christmas.

The Indian cotton industry dates back to 1746 in this city, making Mulhouse one of Europe's textile capitals, abetted by a location at the crossroads of France, Germany and Switzerland.

To celebrate this industrial textile heritage, each year, a new and festive cloth is designed specifically for Christmas. You'll see it throughout the city, where it is used to drape everything from City Hall to Christmas trees to the market's Christmas chalets.

And if you're looking for unusual gift ideas, the cloth is also sold at the market.

Here's more information on the Mulhouse Christmas Market.

8. Montbéliard: the most eclectic

Montbéliard is not on every tourist route but given its long Germanic history (it became part of France during the Revolution in 1793), you won't be surprised to find a Christkindlmarkt, or German Christmas market, here.

It's full of surprises, though.

Les Enfants de la Lumière, or children of the light, is a unique choral group of 150 children who perform their songs while wearing crowns of candles on their head – but don't worry, these are battery-operated, no flames are involved. (The tradition comes from Sweden, in honor of St Lucie, patron saint of light.)

Also, Santa Claus has competition here and must share the spotlight with Aunt Airie, the good fairy of Montbéliard. Airie may have been the youngest daughter of a Gaul druid, or perhaps the reincarnation of a 15th-century countess who lived in the local chateau... 

Either way you're bound to run into her (or most likely her descendant) as she weaves through the wooden chalets of the Christmas market on her donkey, handing out candies to children.

Here is the official website for the Montbéliard Christmas market.

9. Evian: the most fairy-like

While Montbéliard is about history, the Evian Christmas market is about storytelling at its best.

If I could find an adjective for "driftwood", I'd use it, as in the "most driftwoody" market, but that doesn't really work...

Evian-les-Bains has outdone itself by using what it has at hand: driftwood collected from its shores along Lake Geneva. It has created a Christmas village made of wood and filled it with fairy-tale creatures – elves, genies, sirens and witches – all from driftwood. In French, driftwood is "bois flotté", so the mythical creatures are called "flottins".

This is no traditional Christmas market with stands but the village is right in the heart of town, so businesses all decorate their shop windows with driftwood to get into the flottin spirit.

Some 350 tons of driftwood are used to make 650 sculptures and at night, everything magically lights up, the brilliance enhanced by torchlights and fireworks. This original idea came from a super-creative local theater troupe, the Theâtre de la Toupine.

And here's more information on the village itself.

10. Lyon: the best light show

We're talking about Christmas markets, but in Lyon, the REAL treat is an event that takes place during the market but which is separate from it: the Fête des Lumières, the Festival of Lights.

We all love a good light show but this one is more like a spectacular fairy tale, located throughout the city. It is a sophisticated spectacle  that will keep your eyes glued to building façades, whatever the chill in the air.

I don't think I've seen anything else like it, with each illumination a true work of art. In fact, the designers of each "act" become known in their own right. (I know that anything by Muriel Chaulet, pictured above, will astonish me.)

As for the Christmas market, you'll find it on the Place Carnot but there's a second market, very much worth seeing, on the hills of Croix Rousse, where Lyon's artisans show off their skills.

Here's more on the Festival of Lights and the Lyon Christmas Market.

11. Foire aux Santons in Aix-en-Provence: the most Provençal

Southern France may not seem like a typical winter wonderland, but the Santons of Provence are a local tradition dating back to the 18th century.

The tiny terracotta figurines, or santons, were originally created to play out miniature nativity scenes when traditional ones were outlawed during the French Revolution.

Today, these nativity figurines are a much-loved part of Christmas festivities in the South of France and you can find markets entirely dedicated to both the santons and the artists that create them, with one of the best markets located in Aix-en-Provence.

The foire aux santons (santons fair) started here in 1934 and still takes place from late November to the end of December every year.

You'll find it in the centre of Aix-en-Provence, running alongside the annual Christmas market, which starts at the Place de la Rotonde and spreads down the city's central boulevard, Cours Mirabeau.

Here you'll find santonniers selling their creations, often displayed reenacting everything from traditional nativity scenes to full-blown village life including fishmongers, bakers and farmers.

Any market in Aix-en-Provence is a joy but the santons fair is an excellent way to both appreciate this unique cultural aspect of Provence, and to pick up some very special treasures to take home with you.

12. Bordeaux Christmas market, banking on social issues

Our final stop is at the annual Christmas market in Bordeaux, which prides itself on being environmentally conscious and socially aware.

The entire market is accessible, and the city encourages everyone to use public or soft transportation. All containers are recyclable or reusable, food is sourced locally, and plenty of charitable associations are allowed to take part.

Of course none of this hampers the festive spirit that takes hold of the city this time of year! And while you're here, take the time to visit the city, one of the prettiest in France.

Find out more about the market here.

FAQ Christmas markets in France

Before you go...

Christmas is a wonderful time in France, whether you celebrate the holiday or not.

The cheer, the lights, everything conspires to brighten things up. If you're curious about Christmas in France, find out what French people eat for Christmas! It may not be what you think...

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Bonjour! I’m Leyla! I was born in Paris and now live in the bucolic mountain foothills of Eastern France between Lyon and Annecy. 

I'm rediscovering my own back yard after years of living abroad in Canada, Spain and Switzerland as a journalist and a diplomat － and I'm loving every minute.

Passionate about history and culture, I’ve created Offbeat France to seek out my country’s mysteries and legends, less-traveled destinations, along with plenty of food stops and many castles － I am French, after all!

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