Published 4 October 2026 | Updated 4 October 2026 by Kate Acaster
We priced a weekend at eight of the best Christmas markets in Europe, Friday 4 to Sunday 6 December 2026. Zagreb was cheapest at £159 each for a return flight from London, half a hotel room for two nights and four mulled wines. Strasbourg was dearest at £475, and the hotel made most of the difference.
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How we priced it
- DatesFriday 4 to Sunday 6 December 2026, two nights
- FlightsCheapest non-stop return from a London airport on Google Flights, seat only
- HotelCheapest room at a named 3-star or chain hotel on Expedia, split between two
- DrinksFour mulled wines each, at the latest reported market price
- CurrencyEuropean Central Bank rates for 2 October 2026
- CheckedFlights and hotels on 4 October 2026
Fares and room rates change daily.
Market food and drink prices for 2026 aren’t published yet. We used the most recent figure a named newspaper or broadcaster reported for each market, and we say which year it comes from.
The best Christmas markets in Europe, ranked by weekend cost
The table shows the cost per person for two people sharing a room. Seven of the eight cheapest non-stop fares were Ryanair from Stansted.
| City | Return flight | Half the hotel | Four mulled wines | Total each |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1. Zagreb | £75 | £70.50 | £13.61 | £159 |
| 2. Budapest | £53 | £142.50 | £13.82 | £209 |
| 3. Kraków | £97 | £111.50 | £27.20 | £236 |
| 4. Berlin | £116 | £116 | £17.01 | £249 |
| 5. Nuremberg | £106 | £142.50 | £15.31 | £264 |
| 6. Prague | £92 | £163.50 | £13.90 | £269 |
| 7. Vienna | £129 | £175 | £21.26 | £325 |
| 8. Strasbourg | £149 | £308.50 | £17.01 | £475 |
"Don’t look at the fare until you’ve priced the room. Per person, our eight hotels were £238 apart for the weekend and the flights only £96, so no fare saving could have rescued Strasbourg’s £617 ibis. The fare still counts at the margins, though: Budapest’s £53 Ryanair seat is what lifted a mid-table room to second place."
Kate Acaster, Chief Editor, Flight Tribe
Latest Christmas market deals
1. Zagreb: £159 for the weekend
Advent in Zagreb was the cheapest weekend we priced, and the cheapest room did most of the work. The market runs from Saturday 28 November 2026 to 7 January 2027, tportal reported, citing the city's tender for stallholders.
- Flight: £75 return from Stansted, Ryanair operated by Lauda Europe.
- Hotel: Hotel Central, which Expedia lists as a 3-star, at £141 for two nights, the cheapest room in any of the eight cities.
- Mulled wine: €4 a glass on average last December, according to tportal.
- Food: fritule, small fried doughnuts, at €5 to €11, and a sausage or a goulash at €5.50 to €9.
2. Budapest: £209 for the weekend
Budapest had the cheapest flight of the eight, but its room cost double Zagreb’s. Its two big markets both open on 13 November 2026: Vörösmarty Classic Xmas runs to New Year’s Eve, and Advent Bazilika, in front of St Stephen’s Basilica, to 1 January 2027.
- Flight: £53 return, Ryanair from Stansted.
- Mulled wine: 1,500 forints for a 3dl cup at the Basilica last November, against 1,900 forints on Vörösmarty tér, Economx found. We used the Basilica price.
- Hotel: ibis Budapest Centrum at £285 for two nights.
- Food: a cheese and sour cream lángos at 3,200 forints on Vörösmarty tér, about £7.37.
Here the fare, not the room, did the work. Our Budapest budget guide covers transport and sights.
3. Kraków: £236 for the weekend
Kraków’s market fills the Main Market Square, Rynek Główny, and its drinks are the dearest on this list. This year it runs from 27 November 2026 to 6 January 2027, according to the organiser's offer to stallholders. Radio Kraków counted 105 stalls last year.
- Flight: £97 return, Ryanair from Stansted.
- Mulled wine: 35 złoty for a small cup last year, about £6.80, Radio Kraków found.
- Food: a zapiekanka, the Polish toasted open baguette, at 30 złoty, from the same report.
ibis Krakow Stare Miasto cost £223 for two nights on Expedia, the second-cheapest room we found. Our Kraków budget guide has the rest of the city’s costs.
4. Berlin: £249 for the weekend
Berlin has dozens of markets, so we priced the one in front of Charlottenburg Palace, which the city’s berlin.de listing gives as 23 November to 27 December 2026. Gendarmenmarkt, in the city centre, runs from 23 November to 31 December 2026 and charged €2 to get in last year. visitBerlin said entry was free from noon to 2pm on weekdays, which on our dates means Friday lunchtime.
- Flight: £116 return, Ryanair from Stansted.
- Hotel: Motel One Berlin-Ku'Damm at £232 for two nights.
- Mulled wine: €5 at Charlottenburg last December, Euronews found.
- Food: a Handbrot, bread baked round a filling of mushroom cream and cheese, at €8.
5. Nuremberg: £264 for the weekend
The Christkindlesmarkt opens on Friday 27 November 2026 at 5.30pm and runs to Christmas Eve, the city of Nuremberg says. It’s open 10am to 9pm, and only until 2pm on 24 December.
- Flight: £106 return, Ryanair from Stansted.
- Hotel: Motel One Nürnberg-Plärrer at £285 for two nights.
- Mulled wine: about €4.50 last season, inFranken reported.
- Food: Drei im Weggla, three small Nuremberg sausages in a roll, at €4.50 to €5 depending on the stall.
The mug costs extra. Nordbayern reported a €5 deposit last season. You get it back when you return the mug.
6. Prague: £269 for the weekend
Prague’s Old Town Square market runs from 28 November 2026 to 6 January 2027, 10am to 10pm, according to the organiser, Trhy Praha. Our Prague budget guide prices the rest of a stay.
- Flight: £92 return, Ryanair from Stansted.
- Hotel: Motel One Prague-Florentinum at £327 for two nights.
- Mulled wine: svařák at 100 koruna on Old Town and Wenceslas squares last December, Novinky found.
- Food: a sausage at 160 koruna, and trdelník from 100.
7. Vienna: £325 for the weekend
The Wiener Christkindlmarkt in front of City Hall opens on 13 November and runs to 26 December 2026, 10am to 10pm, closing at 6.30pm on Christmas Eve, the market's own site says. Only Budapest opens as early, on the same day.
- Flight: £129 return, Ryanair from Stansted.
- Hotel: The Cloud One Wien-Staatsoper, part of the Motel One Group, at £350 for two nights.
- Mulled wine: €6.25 on average in December 2024, the latest figure we found, from Vienna.at. Punch started at €5, and the mug deposit was €5 that year.
We couldn’t find a reported food price for this market. Our Vienna budget guide has cheaper ways to eat in the city.
8. Strasbourg: £475 for the weekend
Strasbourg was the dearest weekend by a distance, and the hotel is why. Eurostar lists the market from 26 November to 24 December 2026, the same pattern as last year, though the city’s Christmas site still said dates were to be confirmed on 4 October.
- Flight: £149 return, easyJet from Gatwick, the dearest fare of the eight.
- Hotel: Hôtel ibis Strasbourg Centre Petite France at £617 for two nights, more than four times the Zagreb room.
- Mulled wine: we found no recent price for Strasbourg itself. Euronews put it at €4 to €5 a glass at French Christmas markets last December, and we used €5.
The same Euronews report put chips or a pretzel at about €5 at French markets. Our Strasbourg budget guide covers the city outside December.
Christmas market dates for 2026
All eight now have 2026 dates. Strasbourg’s come from Eurostar, as the city hadn’t confirmed them on its own site by 4 October.
| City | Market | Dates |
|---|---|---|
| Vienna | Wiener Christkindlmarkt, Rathausplatz | 13 November to 26 December 2026 |
| Budapest | Vörösmarty tér and St Stephen’s Basilica | 13 November 2026 to 31 December (Vörösmarty tér) and 1 January 2027 (Basilica) |
| Berlin | Charlottenburg Palace | 23 November to 27 December 2026 |
| Kraków | Main Market Square | 27 November 2026 to 6 January 2027 |
| Strasbourg | Christkindelsmärik | 26 November to 24 December 2026 (Eurostar; the city has yet to confirm) |
| Nuremberg | Christkindlesmarkt, Hauptmarkt | 27 November to 24 December 2026 |
| Prague | Old Town Square | 28 November 2026 to 6 January 2027 |
| Zagreb | Advent in Zagreb | 28 November 2026 to 7 January 2027 |
How to spend less on a Christmas market trip
The hotel makes the biggest difference.
| Do this | Why it works |
|---|---|
| Price the room before the flight | Per person, our rooms ran from £70.50 in Zagreb to £308.50 in Strasbourg, and return fares from £53 to £149. |
| Pack for the under-seat bag | Our fares are seat only, and Google Flights showed most of them without overhead locker space, so a cabin bag costs extra. Our Ryanair baggage guide explains what’s free. |
| Return the mug | Nuremberg charged a €5 deposit last season and Vienna €5 in 2024, refunded when you hand the mug back. |
| Pick the cheaper stall in Budapest | Mulled wine was 1,500 forints at the Basilica and 1,900 forints on Vörösmarty tér last November. |
| Time Gendarmenmarkt for lunch | Gendarmenmarkt charged €2 entry last year, but was free from noon to 2pm on weekdays. |
If you’d rather swap mulled wine for sunshine, our guide to where’s hot in December covers the warm options from the UK.
Frequently asked questions
Which is the cheapest Christmas market in Europe for a weekend from the UK?
Zagreb, of the eight we priced: £159 each for a return flight from London, half a hotel room for two nights and four mulled wines. Budapest came second at £209.
Which Christmas market was the most expensive?
Strasbourg, at £475 each for the same weekend. The ibis we priced there cost £617 for two nights, more than four times our Zagreb room.
When do Europe’s Christmas markets open in 2026?
Vienna and Budapest open first, on 13 November 2026, then Berlin’s Charlottenburg market on 23 November, Strasbourg on 26 November, Kraków and Nuremberg on 27 November, and Prague and Zagreb on 28 November. Strasbourg’s dates come from Eurostar, as the city had yet to confirm them on 4 October.
How much is mulled wine at Christmas markets?
At the latest reported prices it ran from about £3.40 a glass in Zagreb to £6.80 for a small cup in Kraków. Budapest was about £3.45 and Prague about £3.47.
Do you pay a deposit for the mug?
At some markets, yes. Nuremberg charged €5 last season and Vienna €5 in 2024, refunded when you return the mug.
Do the flight prices include luggage?
No. They’re the cheapest seat-only non-stop returns from London on Google Flights for 4 to 6 December 2026, and most showed no overhead locker space.
More city budget guides
Kate Acaster is Chief Editor at Flight Tribe. She writes about practical travel planning, budget airlines, baggage rules, city breaks, beach holidays and good hotels that do not cost daft money.
Kate has travelled through Europe, South America and beyond, usually with a notebook, a half-formed plan and a strong opinion on airport snacks. At Flight Tribe, her work focuses on helping UK travellers understand what is included, what costs extra, and whether a trip is worth booking at the price shown.
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Kate checks the details that can change the value of a trip, including cabin-bag rules, airline fees, hotel location, seasonality, travel dates and booking conditions. She is especially interested in offers that look useful on the surface but need a proper reader-first check before they are worth recommending.
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