Itineraries
Christmas Markets by Train: Strasbourg, Colmar and Basel in Four Days
October 12, 2026 · 8 min read
Strasbourg, Colmar and Basel sit on one railway line along the Rhine, and direct regional trains connect all three: Strasbourg to Colmar takes about 30 minutes, Colmar to Basel about 45, and a through train from Strasbourg to Basel about 1 hour 17 minutes. Their Christmas markets overlap for almost four weeks in 2026. Strasbourg opens on Friday 27 November, Colmar runs from Monday 23 November to 29 December, and Basel from Thursday 26 November to 23 December. Any date between 27 November and 23 December 2026 catches all three.
That makes this one of the easiest Christmas-market trips in Europe without a car. Four days is enough: two for Strasbourg, the largest of the three, one for Colmar and the wine villages around it, and one for Basel across the Swiss border. Each city has a detailed guide in the network, linked below, with every market square, opening hours and transport stop.
Route at a glance
| Days | City | 2026 market dates | Main squares | Train from previous stop | Best for |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1–2 | Strasbourg | 27 Nov to about 24 Dec (closing date not yet published) | Place Broglie, Place de la Cathédrale, Place Kléber, Petite France | Start here | Scale and history: eight sites, held since 1570 |
| 3 | Colmar | 23 Nov to 29 Dec (some parts to 3 Jan 2027) | Place des Dominicains, Ancienne Douane, Petite Venise | About 30 minutes, direct | Postcard old town, children's market, wine villages |
| 4 | Basel | 26 Nov to 23 Dec | Barfüsserplatz, Münsterplatz | 45 minutes, direct | A compact market under the Minster in one evening |
Train times are from the published timetable for a Saturday in December 2026, with at least one direct train an hour on each leg.
Day 1: Strasbourg, the cathedral and Place Kléber
Strasbourg (opens in a new tab) calls itself the "Capitale de Noël", and its market, the Christkindelsmärik, has been held around the cathedral since 1570. In 2026 it is spread over eight sites on the Grande Île, the island old town ringed by the River Ill, and draws around two million visitors a season. Stalls open daily from 11:30 to 21:00, from 14:00 on the opening day, and close at 18:00 on 24 December. Entry is free. Our Strasbourg Christmas market guide (opens in a new tab) covers every site.
The station is about ten minutes' walk from the Grande Île. Start at Place de la Cathédrale and Place du Château, where rows of huts lead up to the cathedral's red-sandstone spire and the carved Maison Kammerzell. This is the most photographed part of the market and the most crowded after dark, so come in the late morning, when the stalls open.
Then walk to Place Kléber, the main square, for the Grand Sapin: a real fir, usually around 30 metres tall, decorated in white and silver, with a market at its foot. Finish the evening at Place Broglie, the long square between the Opera and the city hall, which carries the historic name and is the largest single cluster of stalls.
The island is a pedestrian zone during market hours, with bag checks at the bridges, so allow a few extra minutes.
Day 2: Strasbourg's smaller markets and Petite France
The second day is for the parts of the Strasbourg market (opens in a new tab) most day-trippers miss. La Petite France, the old tanners' and millers' quarter where the Ill splits into canals, has its own market on Place Benjamin Zix and Place Saint-Thomas, smaller and calmer than the cathedral squares.
Work back through the others: the food market called Quai des Délices beside the Palais Rohan, the small Alsatian producers of Les Irréductibles on Square Louise Weiss, the Carré d'Or on Place du Temple Neuf, and the marché OFF, the solidarity and second-hand market on Place Grimmeissen. All are within a 15-minute walk of each other. A second night also gives you a quieter look at the lit streets once the day-trippers have left.
Day 3: Colmar and the wine villages
Direct trains to Colmar (opens in a new tab) run through the day and take 28 to 35 minutes; the station is about 15 minutes on foot from the old town. Colmar's six markets run from Monday 23 November to Tuesday 29 December 2026, open 11:00 to 19:00 Monday to Thursday and 10:00 to 20:00 Friday to Sunday, closing at 17:00 on Christmas Eve. The gourmet market, the Ferris wheel and the fair on Place Rapp stay open until 3 January 2027. Our Colmar Christmas markets guide (opens in a new tab) has each one in detail.
All six are free and five minutes' walk apart:
- Place des Dominicains, about sixty chalets under the Gothic church, for tree decorations;
- Place de l'Ancienne Douane, around the fountain in front of the Koïfhus, the old customs house, which holds an indoor market of about twenty Alsatian craftspeople;
- Place Jeanne d'Arc, for food and drink: foie gras, wine, fruit brandies and bredalas, the Alsatian Christmas biscuits;
- Petite Venise, the children's market on Place des Six Montagnes Noires, beside the canal houses;
- Rue de la Montagne Verte, the gourmet market, with nine chefs in nine cabins.
With a free afternoon, add a wine village. Eguisheim (opens in a new tab), just south of Colmar, is open daily from 27 November to 30 December except 24 to 26 December. Riquewihr (opens in a new tab) runs daily from 27 November to 20 December. Kaysersberg (opens in a new tab) opens on Advent weekends only, Friday to Sunday, from 27 November to 20 December. Christmas shuttles from Colmar serve the villages from Friday to Sunday over the same period; check the fare with the Colmar tourist office.
Stay the night in Colmar, or take an evening train back to Strasbourg. December weekend evening trains fill up, so leave time.
Day 4: Basel
Direct trains from Colmar to Basel SBB take 45 minutes and run about once an hour. The Basel Christmas market (opens in a new tab) runs from Thursday 26 November to 23 December 2026, daily from 11:00 to 20:30, on two squares in the old town. On the last day Barfüsserplatz closes at 20:00 and Münsterplatz at 18:00.
Trains from France arrive in the French part of the station, Basel SNCF, on platforms 30 to 35 at the western end of the building; walk through to the main hall for the trams, and Barfüsserplatz is a few minutes away.
Start at Barfüsserplatz, the larger and busier square, around the Barfüsserkirche, now part of the Historical Museum. Then walk uphill to Münsterplatz, the calmer of the two, where the stalls stand in front of the red sandstone Minster and the trees are hung with glowing snow globes. Come in the late afternoon, as the light fades. Families should look for the Märliwald, a children's area on Münsterplatz with candle dipping and a puppet theatre.
Across the Rhine, Claraplatz has the market's food and drink stands, and the Adväntsgass on Rheingasse is an evening gathering in a street closed to traffic. Pick up a box of Läckerli, the city's spiced honey biscuit, before you leave. For more of the city and the region around it, see the Swiss guide's Basel region page (opens in a new tab). Switzerland uses Swiss francs; carry some cash in case a stall doesn't take cards.
Days 1–4: practical planning
Trains. All three legs are on the regional TER line between Strasbourg (opens in a new tab), Colmar, Mulhouse (opens in a new tab) and Basel, and the direct trains stop at each, so there is no change. Buy tickets from station machines or in the SNCF Connect app before you board. Some faster TGV services also run between Strasbourg and Colmar.
Where to stay. Either move with the route, two nights in Strasbourg, one in Colmar and one in Basel, which puts you in each old town after dark; or keep one base in Strasbourg or Colmar and do Basel as a day trip, about 1 hour 17 minutes from Strasbourg by direct train. Colmar is the better base for the wine villages, Strasbourg for restaurants and evenings out.
Crowds. Expect the biggest crowds at weekends. If you can, put Strasbourg on weekdays and keep the weekend for Colmar, whose markets stay open later from Friday to Sunday. In Basel, the end of the working day and Saturday afternoons are busiest.
Dates to check. Strasbourg had not published its 2026 closing date when this was written; in recent years it has closed on Christmas Eve. Check noel.strasbourg.eu, noel-colmar.com and Basel's market page before you book.
Which one if you only have one day
- Want the biggest, most historic market? Strasbourg: the cathedral squares in the late morning, Place Kléber after dark.
- Want the prettiest town and the easiest day? Colmar: everything within five minutes' walk, open until 29 December.
- Want a short, calm evening with a Swiss detour? Basel: two squares, one walk uphill, done in an evening.