Christmas Markets in France

Our angle: the nativity

There are a thousand ways to describe a Christmas market: the atmosphere, the wooden chalets, the mulled wine. We focus on just one thing, the nativity. Where can you see a nativity worth the trip in December? A church crèche, an exhibit, a living nativity, or a whole village with nativities lining its streets.

The result is a short list, where small towns get as much attention as big cities. The best market and the best nativity aren’t always in the same place, and that’s fine. It just gives you two good reasons to get out in December.

1570, and the story that goes with it

Strasbourg’s Christmas market, the Christkindelsmärik, is the oldest in France, and it’s almost always presented as the oldest still running in Europe. The City of Strasbourg and the University of Strasbourg both give the same date, 1570, and the same phrase: a market dedicated to the Christ Child.

Neither one says why, and the why is the best part, because it ties straight into the history of the nativity scene.

The same kind of story runs on the German side, with the same gray areas and the same charm: that’s the whole subject of the page on Christmas markets around the world. And the question of who brings the gifts, the saint or the Child, is exactly the one the Reformation raised everywhere: it’s covered in the churches and the nativity scene. (It’s also why Americans have a Santa Claus at all: Saint Nicholas came back to the New World through the Dutch, under a new name.)

Here’s a related fact, and this one is fully documented: the first written mention of a Christmas tree comes from Alsace. A town ledger from Sélestat dated December 21, 1521, records a payment to forest wardens hired to guard the fir trees. More mentions follow in 1546, 1555, 1557 and 1600. That’s half a century before the Strasbourg market, in black and white.

Alsace, where the nativity leaves the churches

Alsace is where you’ll see the most nativities in December, and not just in churches. Since 2010, the Nativity Trail, run by the association Les Noëlies, has connected about fifty stops across Northern, Central and Southern Alsace. It’s designed to take you off the beaten path: villages, chapels and nativities made by local residents.

If you’re there for the nativities more than the market, three stops stand out. In Colmar, the mechanical nativity in the church of Sainte-Marie dates from 1935: about thirty carved figures that all originally moved, restored in 1993. In Obernai, the church of Saints-Pierre-et-Paul hosts a big nativity exhibit every year, featuring a different country each season. In Kaysersberg, there’s a nativity on the church square, and the Arsenal tells the story of Alsatian Christmas: Saint Nicholas, the Christkindel and Hans Trapp, the same three figures whose roles changed in 1570.

Hans Trapp, by the way, was a real person. The City of Strasbourg links him to Hans von Trotha, a 15th-century robber knight from the Wissembourg area who died in 1503. Alsace’s Christmas bogeyman is history turned into legend.

Provence: buy your santons in the fall

You might picture santons at every Provençal Christmas market. In fact, santons have their own season, and it starts well before Christmas.

Santon fairs start in September, and most are held in the fall. The Arles fair, at the Sainte-Anne chapel, is in late October. The two biggest, the Marseille santon fair (founded in 1803 and held every year since 1897) and the santon and ceramics market in Aubagne, open in mid-November and run through the holidays.

The reason is simple: you buy your santons before you set up the nativity, not after. So the santon season starts in the fall, ahead of the December markets. All the dates are in our santon fair calendar.

December in Provence is about family and church traditions: the cacho-fiò (the blessing of the Yule log), the gros souper with its thirteen desserts, the pastrage at Midnight Mass, and a nativity that stays up until Candlemas. The details are on the Provence page.

Where to see a nativity in December

Each town’s name links to its source. Dates checked on October 4, 2026: Confirmed means the organizer or the tourist office has posted 2026 dates; Usual means we give the period from past years because 2026 dates aren’t out yet. Call before you go.

Christmas market or santon fair?

They’re two different things, and knowing which one you want can save you a lot of driving.

The Christmas market

A seasonal municipal event, in December, on public property. The Strasbourg market regulations say so in their own vocabulary: a temporary, revocable occupation of public property, governed by the French law of January 3, 1969, on itinerant trades. Everything is sold there, sometimes santons.

The santon fair

A trade fair, often organized by the santon makers themselves rather than by the city (Marseille’s is run by the Union of Santon Makers of Provence). It’s held when people buy santons, that is, in the fall, and not necessarily in December.

In short: to buy santons, go to a fair, and use the calendar. To see a nativity, go in December, and use the table above.

Frequently asked questions