Diesen Text gibt es hier auch in DeutschThe 2024 Christmas Market in Wroclaw
One of the most popular events of Wroclaw is certainly the Christmas Market. The fairytale atmosphere attracts not only a lot of foreign visitors from Germany, Czechia and Ukraine. Also Polish people from all over the country love it and start their pilgrimage to Wroclaw in late November.
In this post, we will provide you an overview of the Christmas Market, including opening hours, the areas where it takes place, which local food you should try, where you will be able to buy nice souvenirs, where to stay and of course a lot of other important and useful insights.
The Christmas Market is open since 29th November and this post is fully updated with all relevant information for 2024. Enjoy!
When will the Christmas Market open in 2024?
The Christmas Market 2024 in Wroclaw is open from 29th November 2024 to 7th January 2025.
The opening hours are:
- On regular days from 10-21h
- On 24th + 25th Dec and 1st Jan closed
- On 26th December from 13-21h
- On 31st December the shops will close on 17h and gastronomy at 2am
We personally recommend you to visit the Christmas Market during weekdays as on the weekend it is super crowded! During the week it is much more fun.
If you plan to visit Wroclaw during the Christmas Market, we recommend you to book a stay that is refundable in case something unforeseen will happen, so you will be on the safe side.
Will there be the big New Year’s Party in Wroclaw again?
Well, the big New Year’s Party which used to happen every year at the Market Square, did not take place anymore since 2019 and won’t happen again in 2024. The city had cost of around 2.3 Million PLN the last time, but now has other more important areas to spend that budget on…
However if you are looking for inspiration on what to do for New Year‘s Eve in Wroclaw – here we have plenty of ideas.
Impressions from the Wroclaw Christmas Market
We went to visit the Christmas Market last year during the opening weekend in November and share some impressions for you here! Come on, and the picture with the dog is cuter than every other picture could be, so we simply had to include it…
The English Edition of our alternative travel guide to Wroclaw!
After the success of the German edition, we have decided to create our alternative guidebook in English as well…
The good news is that it is available now online and in all book stores!
Join our journey through 100 extraordinary places in Wroclaw and discover the city from a new perspective with us!
Where will the Christmas Market take place?
The Christmas Market in Wroclaw will be taking place in four main areas:
- The Market Square (Rynek)
- The Salt Square (Plac Solny)
- Świdnicka Street
- Oławska Street
Believe us, it will be hard to miss it and all four areas are connected with each other. And needless to say that a lot of small businesses have their own special Christmas events, offers and products.
You cannot escape Christmas, don’t even try! 😉
What food and drinks should I try at the Wroclaw Christmas Market?
Of course you will have plenty of opportunities to try the local and regional cuisine.
We strongly recommend to try Oscypek. That is a special smoked cheese from the polish mountains you won’t find anywhere else than in Poland. It comes with cranberries and is super delicious! You see it on the picture.
You prefer the classics? No worries, you will be able to find plenty of sausages, bigos, skewers, potato pancakes and more typical dishes from Poland.
Or should it be international? Churros, Fries, Langos, Sweet chestnuts, Crêpes, Chimney Cake and much more will be waiting for you.
Did we mention the mulled wine already? How could we not! There will be many, many different flavours to try, so you better plan some more time! And do not miss the tasty honey based alcohol!
How are the prices in 2024 and how did they change?
We just updated this section with the insights of the price levels in 2024.
Actually, the cost for a mulled wine used to be quite stable at 15 PLN from 2021 to 2023, however now in 2024 the price for a mulled wine has been increased to 20 PLN.
The deposit for the mug is still 20 PLN, also exactly the same like all the last years and no changes here.
Be aware that the official stalls for the mulled wine only accept cash, it seems easier to handle with the deposit – but you can return them at any stall.
In terms of food just to give you a little indication as well, this year we saw fries depending on the portion size between 15 and 24 PLN, a currywurst was 25 PLN, grilled mushrooms for only 16 PLN or a waffle with Nutella for 23 PLN (used to be 20 PLN last year in 2023).
If you are on a budget…
… but you still want to enjoy as much mulled wine as possible? Then we have a secret hint which actually is not secret:
If you don’t fancy the special mugs in shoe design, you can get the mulled wine from 13 PLN (2024 update – last year you got 200ml from 10 PLN even…) from most bars around the Market Square as you can see in the picture… Look for “Grzane Wino”, that is the Polish name for it.
Officially the bars are not allowed to refill your shoe mugs, but nobody will care if you pour the wine yourself from the paper mug into the shoe mug.
Follow us for more life hacks ;))
Another comment on the food stalls last year
We are a very honest city blog, so let us also tell you this. Last year we noticed that the quality of the larger food stalls declined quite a bit in our perception, and the prices were not always really in line with what you would get for it.
There are three or four larger grill stalls that sell exactly the same food and one company (not local, but from far away, as you can see from the receipt) now seems to have monopoly here.
That’s why we decided to give you a few local ideas for cheap and good snacks:
- Pan Precel – with a wide choice of pretzels, three locations not far from the market square
- IBO Falafel – amazing Falafel and fries with it (under renovations currently though)
- Also the Chimney Cake Bakery (Oławska 4) does a consistent good job at reasonable prices
- For Pączki, kind of donuts, try Cukiernia Łomżanka
- Frytki Sos in the Four Denomination District just 5 min from the city center for amazing fries
- Vroclinki for great chocolate in many variations
- E.Wedel just at the Market Square for hot chocolate
- Zapiekarnik Wrocław in Ruska 49 for amazing Zapiekanka – a Polish hybrid of baguette and pizza
- Pan.Pot or Wonton for some Asian soups to heat up
Many of them we also have featured as part of the recommendations for street food snacks in Wroclaw – be sure to check that out.
We just want to make sure you have the best possible experience!
What to do at the Christmas Market?
If you have not been in Wroclaw at all or want to explore more of it, we always recommend the free walking tours which have to be booked in advance here.
For kids there is a fairly tale forest where you can watch for example Pinocchio like in the picture here. But also some carousels, a roller coaster and some more fun attractions are waiting for you. Lots of opportunities to make pictures with dwarfs, mushrooms, christmas trees and other stuff 🙂
If you are more on the romantic side, try a ride on the horse carriage here.
And of course always worth to check are the guided tours which we recommend here (including free self-guided tours via our blog).
In case this is your first time in Wroclaw, we have to recommend you our blog post about the best things to do in Wroclaw! There you find a quite extensive collection of our top recommendations 🙂
Hidden Gems: Illumination Parks in Wroclaw
We have two recommendations for real hidden gems, related to the Christmas Market in Wroclaw as well. If you like lasershows and illuminations, or are coming with kids, these are for you. Also in case you want to move a bit more off the crowds, these spots are quite off the beaten track for regular visitors.
The first option is the Lumina Park at the Castle Topacz (Zamek Topacz), around 15-20 minutes by car south of Wroclaw. You will find trains, castles, animals and lots of other objects beautifully illuminated. Even a real travel around the world is waiting here to be taken… Here is their official page.
The second recommendation is the Botanical Garden just next to the Cathedral Island. During winter time it is beautifully illuminated and there are laser shows and projections – great stuff! We have unfortunately received feedback that this event will not be happening in 2024, but keeping fingers crossed for 2025 again.
As replacement for the missing Botanical Garden shows in 2023, the Wroclaw Zoo had a “Garden of Lights” featuring animals from the African continent…
The Garden of Lights at the Wroclaw Zoo
We have managed to visit the Garden of Lights last year and have to say that it is really nicely made! You walk through a small part of the Wroclaw Zoo during the evening and while doing so, you can admire the light installations from “Wild Africa”.
Some interactive elements like a Quiz are well thought of, and especially kids are having a lot of fun here. For 2024 it has been announced already that the theme will be “Wild Asia” and the exhibition will be open from 25th October 2024 to 2nd March 2025.
Where to buy souvenirs in Wroclaw?
Good question! You need to be aware that the Christmas Market is probably one of the most expensive places to buy souvenirs and some of the items you might find less expensive in other parts of the city.
The sellers need to pay a lot (really, a lot!) for their licence to sell on the market. You will pay for that as well…
We recommend to check out the Old Butcher’s Stalls (“Stare Jatki”) where you find local galleries which operate all year round from there. Well, on the picture they look closed because we got up early to make some pictures 😉
Also the Polish Poster Gallery is a great place to buy post cards and poster.
What about a risky investment?
If you like to invest and you look for some insider information… In 2019 the special mulled wine mugs (in shoe-form, with special edition every year) were traded very successfully. Many people did not return them despite the deposit and were able to sell them online for more than 100 PLN.
As the stalls were running out of them already very early, they had to take some leftover mugs from previous years. Quite grotesque and funny at the same time to drink from 2017 mugs in 2019 🙂
Since last year, there are even huge mugs where two people can step inside and take pictures. And it seems, that at least for now, there are still enough available to take back home… This year the deposit is 20 PLN.
The last years edition had a really beautiful purple color, we like it a lot! Look for yourself on the picture. Can’t wait for 2024 to come – it will be a green color this year, and we will update the picture still this weekend!
Where to stay during the Christmas Market?
Well, the question is if you want to stay directly in the middle of the city when it is hard to move around. We recommend to stay just north of the old town in vibrant Nadodrze or in the Four Denomination District.
You will find specific recommendations in our accommodation guide to Wroclaw where we compare hotels, hostels, apartments and camping.
If you prefer to have your own space in an apartment, you will be able to find our specific recommendations here. In this post we made a pre-selection of amazingly located apartments for couples, groups, budget travellers and luxury stays.
If you decided to stay in a hotel, we have our pre-selection here with some luxury hotels, budget hotels, wellness hotels, romantic hotels and many more: Here are our personal hotel recommendations for Wroclaw.
UPDATE from December 2024:
As last year we had some capacity issues with accomodation, we will keep you updated on the booking situation in Wroclaw here. For now there are enough rooms end of 2024 available, but some hotels always jump to crazy prices of more than 5000 PLN per night!
We know that many hotels are fully booked every weekend during the Christmas Market. So better book ahead to be on the safe side – currently there are enough regular priced hotels available. Click here to see which places to stay are actually still available on Booking.com.
And here we have an overview map of Hotels in Wroclaw for you where it is easy to find central and nice locations close to the Christmas Market:
Where to find more information about the Christmas Market in Wroclaw?
We recommend you the official page of the Wroclaw Christmas Market here. There you will find the latest updates and event schedules too.
If you are interested in a guided tour of the city, also in winter the electric golf carts operate and bring you to the best places in the city – with heating 🙂
Here you can find the available schedules and latest online fares.
What about New Year’s Eve in Wroclaw?
We have received a lot of mails and messages on social media on how to celebrate New Year’s Eve in Wroclaw.
Actually so many, that we felt it is worth to write a little blog post just with that topic, to give some inspiration on what to do, and it is finally available now 🙂
We hope that you will enjoy the Christmas Market in Wroclaw as much as we do! Don’t forget to check out our post about the best FREE things to do and see in Wroclaw!
You want to plan your trip to Wroclaw? Don’t miss out on our planning guides with the best places to stay, the best ways to travel to Wroclaw by car, train, bus and a lot of further useful information!
Do you have some comments on this article? Help us and also help other visitors by leaving your feedback in the comment section below!
23 Comments
Amanda Welch
Is. Cash or card bear ?
Ewa & Mirko
You will need cash (at least all the past years) for the mulled wine and deposit, but pretty much all other stalls do accept cards.
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claire
Do you use euros?
Ewa & Mirko
No, we have Polish złoty as currency in Poland.
annie
what time will the christmas marked open the 24.october
Ewa & Mirko
Hello, it will open on 24 November at 12:00.
Gabriella
Do you know if Christmas market in Wroclaw will be open during the New Year’s Day?
Ewa & Mirko
Hi there, you can find the opening hours on top of this post, including information on the closed days, these are 24th/25th December and 1st January.
Laura
Do you know when the Christmas Market in Wroclaw starts in 2023? We would like to visit it and book the hotel early.
Mirko
Hi Laura, the dates have not been officially published, but based on the past years, we can be 90% sure that it will be the 17 November as start date.
Stevie McPheators
I visited Wroclaw with my son in Auhust for the speedway and enjoyed the city so much I’m visiting again late November with my wife for the Xmas Market
CHRIS S
Hi My wife an i were thinking of spending christmas in Wroclaw and understand the importance of wigilia for families but was wondering if there were any restaurants/hotel retaurants open on the 24th ??
Mirko
Hi there, hotels are open but restaurants probably just a very few, it will be very quiet on the 24th…
Donnie Ashcraft
We visited the 2021 Christmas Market and was unable to find a souvenir Christmas market mug or two. Do you know where we can purchase some?
Ewa & Mirko
Hi Donnie,
There were no special mugs in 2021 and older ones got reused but instead of returning them, you just keep them and don’t get the deposit back, this is how most people do it. The other option is to order online from the Christmas Market but they only ship within Poland.
Pat Connolly
Hi
my wife has just returned from wroclaw and she loved the Christmas Market. unfortunately the ceramic mug she got broke in her luggage so I was wondering is it possible to get one shipped to Ireland ?. I’ll gladly pay the cost of postage and shipping if it could be here for Christmas. or if anyone is going to the market from Ireland if you could pick one up for me, I’ll pay for the postage when you get home.
Mirko
We still have two at home as the queue to return them was too long, will send you a mail…
Chuck Pelshaw
Wroclaw is a beautiful city…. I hope to see it this year during the Christmas season! It looks amazing in the pictures
Glynis Perkin
Dear Mirko,
Thanks for your response regarding purchasing mugs in the UK. I’m happy to pay shipping costs and it doesn’t matter when they arrive! Thanks for your response and the newsletter which I enjoy.
Best wishes,
Glynis
Glynis Perkin
Is it possible to purchase the Christmas hot wine mugs from the UK and have them posted to the UK ?
Mirko
Hey! It looks like the official shop only supports a delivery in Poland and as well Polish payment options. The shop is also designed in a quite strange way and you need to purchase packaging twice and then pay shipping on top. Two mugs are around 60 PLN. If you really, really want them, send us a message via contact form and we try to manage somehow, but also shipping to the UK might be expensive then (plus Brexit and customs risk if delivery is late)…
Ceci
Can’t wait! This website always has such wonderful information about Wroclaw and events, especially for foreigners 🙂
Keep up the good work! 🙂