Prague Christmas Markets 2026: Dates, Stalls and a Walking Route
Last updated: September 2026
Intro
The two big Prague Christmas markets, Old Town Square and Wenceslas Square, open on Saturday 28 November 2026 and run to 6 January 2027, daily 10:00 to 22:00 (different hours on 24 to 26 December, below). The tree on Old Town Square is lit the same day. Three smaller markets open earlier, and 24 December is their last day. That is what the organisers have published, checked in September 2026. Prague's city tourist board says its own Christmas pages will not be updated until late November, so the tree-lighting time and the stage programme are still to come.
Disclosure: Ciceru earns a commission if you book luggage storage through our Radical Storage link, and you get 10% off. It does not change what we recommend.
Nobody strings the markets into a walk, so this guide does: one route, in an order that finishes at the tree. For the daytime sights, the Prague self-guided walking tour with Ciceru is €5, 2 hours, 3 km and 10 stops, with a story and a quiz question at each stop and a free 500 MB global eSIM. Comparing cities? The Christmas markets Europe 2026 calendar lines them up.
⚡ Quick answer
- Old Town Square and Wenceslas Square: 28 November 2026 to 6 January 2027, daily 10:00 to 22:00, shorter on 24 December
- Náměstí Míru: 20 November to 24 December, daily 10:00 to 20:00
- Náměstí Republiky: 25 November to 24 December, daily 10:00 to 20:00
- Tylovo náměstí: 26 November to 24 December
- Tree lighting: 28 November 2026 on Old Town Square, time not yet published
- Best order for a walk: top of Wenceslas Square, down to Náměstí Republiky, then Old Town Square last, about 2.3 km
- Price reality: mulled wine was CZK 100 (about €4) at the big two in 2025, and CZK 75 at Náměstí Míru
📅 Dates and opening hours for 2026
All of these come from the organisers or the Czech and Prague tourist boards, not from last year's guides.
The big two (Taiko, the organiser)
📍 Old Town Square and Wenceslas Square: 28 November 2026 to 6 January 2027, 10:00 to 22:00. 🕐 Christmas Eve: 10:00 to 14:00. 25 and 26 December: 12:00 to 22:00 (from the Czech Tourism listing, so check before you go). 🌲 The tree: the organiser's own schedule has the public tree search closing on 15 September, the winner announced on 1 November, felling on 21 November, installation on 23 and 24 November and the lighting on 28 November. So no one knows yet where this year's tree comes from. ✨ Czech Tourism's listing says the tree runs a light animation in the evening, from 16:30 to 21:30. Check the time before you build your evening around it.
The earlier three (České vánoční trhy, the organiser)
📍 Náměstí Míru: 20 November to 24 December, 10:00 to 20:00. 📍 Náměstí Republiky: 25 November to 24 December, 10:00 to 20:00. 📍 Tylovo náměstí: 26 November to 24 December. No hours are published.
Two things older guides get wrong. First, arriving between 21 and 27 November does not get you Old Town Square: only the neighbourhood markets are open then. Second, only the big two run after 24 December, so 25 December to 6 January means a short walk, not a route. Anděl, Kampa and náměstí Jiřího z Poděbrad appear in some listings, but no 2026 dates were published for them at the time of writing, so check first.
🏆 The markets, ranked honestly
1. Old Town Square. The one you came for. The tree, the Astronomical Clock and the Týn church behind the stalls are the whole point, and the listing counts 82 vendors with a Czech craft focus. It is also the most crowded and the most expensive place to buy a drink. Go once, in the evening, and eat elsewhere.
2. Náměstí Míru. The best value, and it opens the season on 20 November. It sits in front of St Ludmila's Church in Vinohrady, and in 2025 press comparisons it had the cheapest mulled wine and langoš of the main squares. Closes at 20:00, so it is an early-evening stop.
3. Wenceslas Square. More of a boulevard than a square, with the market spread along its length. It shares Old Town Square's dates and hours, and it is your second option after 24 December. Prices matched Old Town Square in 2025.
4. Náměstí Republiky. Wooden huts beside the Powder Tower, listed as dozens of stalls. Useful because it sits on the route between the big two, not a reason to travel across town.
5. Tylovo náměstí. A neighbourhood market. Hours and stall numbers are not published, so treat it as a bonus if you are passing.
🚶 A two-hour route between them
Distances are from OpenStreetMap walking routes and are approximate. Times assume a slow, browsing pace. They assume all the markets are open, so they work from 28 November to 24 December.
- Start at the top of Wenceslas Square, by the statue and the National Museum. Metro A to Muzeum. The main station is about 770 m away, roughly 10 minutes on foot.
- Walk down the square to Můstek: about 660 m, 9 minutes. It is downhill, which is why this direction wins.
- Follow Na Příkopě to Náměstí Republiky: about 880 m, 12 minutes.
- Walk Celetná to Old Town Square: about 730 m, 10 minutes. You pass the Powder Tower on the way.
- Finish at the tree. Total: about 2.3 km and 30 minutes of actual walking. With 20 to 25 minutes at each market and a drink, it fills two hours.
The longer version: begin at Náměstí Míru, about 1 km (13 minutes) from the top of Wenceslas Square, or one stop on Metro A from Muzeum. That makes about 3.3 km and 45 minutes of walking. Start around 14:30 and you reach Old Town Square as the light goes.
Timing: aim to reach Old Town Square around 17:00, when the tree is properly lit. Mornings are quieter, but the tree only earns its place after dark.
🍽️ What to eat and what to skip
These are 2025 prices from Czech press reports (18 and 20 December 2025). The organisers do not publish stall prices, and 2026 may be higher.
- Eat: svařák (mulled wine), CZK 100 for 0.2 litres at the big two, about €4. CZK 75 at Náměstí Míru.
- Eat: klobása (grilled sausage), about CZK 160 (about €6.50). The most filling thing you can buy for the money.
- Try: medovina (mead), about CZK 100 (about €4), and roasted apples, about CZK 70 (about €3), the cheapest hot snack reported.
- Skip: langoš. Reported at CZK 200 to 240 (about €8 to €10) at the big two, roughly what a weekday lunch menu costs. Náměstí Míru had it from CZK 120.
- Skip: trdelník. About CZK 100 (about €4), or CZK 150 with Nutella. It is a Hungarian-style pastry sold to visitors, and what to eat in Prague explains why.
- Skip: gingerbread at CZK 230 to 250 a piece, reported on Old Town Square in 2025.
A proper dinner is cheaper away from the square. The weekday lunch menu (polední menu) runs CZK 117 to 189 in the centre, about €4.70 to €7.60, checked September 2026.
💶 Prices, cash and card
Entry to every market is free. You pay for food, drink and souvenirs only.
Koruna, not euros. Pay in CZK at every stall and terminal. If a terminal offers to charge you in euros, decline it. Prague on a Budget explains the currency-conversion trap.
Cards. No organiser publishes which stalls take cards, so carry some koruna and do not rely on a card alone. Our guide to whether European Christmas markets take cards covers the wider picture.
Cup deposits. Not published for 2026. Press reported a CZK 50 mug deposit at Náměstí Míru in 2023, and none at the main squares in 2025, where the organiser describes recyclable cups. Ask at the stall before you pay.
How much to budget. Two mulled wines and one sausage at the big two came to about CZK 360 (about €15) at 2025 prices. Euro figures are approximate, at about CZK 24.5 to the euro.
🧳 Getting there and left luggage
Můstek, on Metro A and B, is the hub: about 9 minutes on foot from Old Town Square (about 650 m) and at the bottom of Wenceslas Square. Muzeum and Náměstí Míru are on Metro A, in that order. Airport transfers, tickets and fines are in getting around Prague.
Bags matter here, because the route is a walk in the cold. Options, consistent with that guide:
- 🚉 Main station lockers: the cheapest if you arrive or leave by train. About CZK 60 (€2.50) a day for a standard locker, from local listings, and the operator does not publish the tariff. The station is about 770 m from the top of Wenceslas Square.
- 🧳 Radical Storage: about 45 locations in Prague, from €3.90 a bag a day, with a €10,000 guarantee. Its Prague page lists spots near Old Town Square, so it wins if you have checked out of a hotel and want to walk the route with free hands. 10% off through our link.
🧭 Where a self-guided walk fits
The markets are an evening job, and the sights are a daytime one. The Ciceru walk starts at the Church of Our Lady before Týn, on the edge of Old Town Square, so you can finish the market route at the tree and start the walk from the same spot the next morning. It is €5, about two hours and 3 km, a story and a quiz question at each of its 10 stops, and it comes with a free 500 MB global eSIM.
❓ FAQ
When do the Prague Christmas markets start in 2026?
Náměstí Míru opens on 20 November, Náměstí Republiky on 25 November and Tylovo náměstí on 26 November. Old Town Square and Wenceslas Square open on 28 November 2026.
When is the Prague Christmas tree lit in 2026?
On Saturday 28 November 2026, on Old Town Square. The organiser has not published the time yet, so check trhypraha.cz in late November.
Are the Prague Christmas markets open on Christmas Day?
Old Town Square and Wenceslas Square are: 10:00 to 14:00 on 24 December, and 12:00 to 22:00 on 25 and 26 December. For Míru, Republiky and Tylovo, 24 December is the last day.
Is it free to enter the Prague Christmas markets?
Yes. Entry is free and you pay only for what you buy.
✅ Before you go
Go early if you want space, walk the route downhill from Wenceslas Square, eat the sausage, skip the trdelník and pay in koruna. Recheck trhypraha.cz and prague.eu in late November for the tree time. If you are still choosing between cities, Vienna or Prague for Christmas markets compares them.
Start with Prague Explained, and when you want the sights in daylight, the Ciceru self-guided walk runs 10 stops for €5.
