Hidden Scotland
Sign in
Wooden chalets of the Christmas market in East Princes Street Gardens, hung with greenery and signs.
Edinburgh

Edinburgh’s Christmas Market

Edinburgh's Christmas market in East Princes Street Gardens, from 14 November 2026 to 3 January 2027, free to enter, with the big wheel above it.

Welcome

From mid-November the eastern half of Princes Street Gardens fills with wooden chalets hung with lights and greenery, and the smell of mulled wine drifts up to Princes Street.

Edinburgh's Christmas market has grown into one of the best known in Europe, set in the valley below the Old Town with the castle on its rock above.

The stalls sell one-of-a-kind gifts, carved wooden figures and glittering decorations, and between them are counters of mulled wine, hot chocolate and hot food. Over it all turn the LNER Big Wheel and the Around the World Starflyer, eighty metres high, both with views across the whole city at night.

For 2026 the market runs from 14 November to 3 January, open every day from ten until ten, with shorter hours over Christmas and New Year and a day off on Christmas Day. It is free to walk in, and Waverley station is right next door.

Round the cornerNumber OneThe fine dining restaurant of the Balmoral hotel at the east end of Princes Street, with a seven-course tasting menu, in the Michelin Guide.1 min by roadSee itBar stools face shelves of spirits lit above a patterned tiled floor
Before you go

The market is free to enter, and open every day from ten until ten, with shorter hours over Christmas and New Year and on 17 November.

Times can change, so check the festival's pages before a special trip.

Where
East Princes Street Gardens, beside Waverley and the Scott Monument.
2026-27
14 November 2026 to 3 January 2027, 10am to 10pm.
Different hours
17 Nov from 4pm; 24 Dec to 8pm; 25 Dec closed; 26 Dec noon to 8pm; 31 Dec to 5pm; 1 Jan noon to 8pm; 3 Jan to 6pm.
Rides
The LNER Big Wheel and the 80-metre Around the World Starflyer.

Opening hours

Monday
10am–10pm
Tuesday
10am–10pm
Wednesday
10am–10pm
Thursday
10am–10pm
Friday
10am–10pm
Saturday
10am–10pm
Sunday
10am–10pm
Where it is

In East Princes Street Gardens, between Princes Street and Waverley station.

Close byPrinces Street and the galleries on the Mound.
  1. Red gallery walls hung with gilt-framed paintings above set dinner tables and a marble statueScottish National GalleryScotland's national gallery of art, on the Mound by Princes Street.Under a mile1 min by road
  2. Edinburgh Castle rises above trees and lawns of Princes Street GardensPrinces StreetThe city's main shopping street, with the castle above the gardens.Under a mile1 min by road
  3. City Art CentreCity Art CentreThe city's own gallery of Scottish art, six floors on Market Street.Under a mile2 min by road
  4. Cockburn StreetCockburn StreetA curving Victorian street of turreted tenements up to the Royal Mile.Under a mile2 min by road
  5. Corinthian columns wrapped in fairy lights with a red-bowed wreath at the entranceThe DomeAn Edinburgh institution since 1996, behind a Graeco-Roman portico on George Street.Under a mile3 min by road
Directions
Bar stools face shelves of spirits lit above a patterned tiled floorRestaurantsNumber OneA step away
The dining room of the Scottish Cafe & Restaurant at the National Gallery.CafeThe Scottish CafeA step away
Lowdown Coffee café sign above a basement entrance behind iron railingsCafeLowdown CoffeeA step away
Black frontage of Noto restaurant at 47a, with Michelin 2021 plaqueRestaurantsNoto0.2 miles
Burr & Co shopfront with wooden entrance and potted topiary treesCafeBurr & Co0.2 miles
Cheese board with brie, cured meats, grapes, pecans, chutney and gherkinsBarsThistle Street Bar0.2 miles
Blank white sign reading "tipo" hangs beneath a decorative building corniceRestaurantsTipo0.2 miles
The counter at Papii, pastries on the counter.AttractionsPapii0.2 miles
Set table beside a brick fireplace with clock and mirror aboveRestaurantsWhiski Rooms0.2 miles
Stay nearby

Places to stay near the market, and when each is next free.

A man walks past Bucken Booths entrance flanked by black lamp postsOld Town Chambers
  • To stay
  • In Edinburgh
  • Under a mile from the market
Check datesA round table and chairs stand before tall curtained windows looking onto stone buildings, a sofa and mounted television to the right.Moment George IV Bridge
  • Sleeps 2
  • In Edinburgh
  • Under a mile from the market
Check datesWest End Muse
  • Sleeps 4
  • In Edinburgh
  • Under a mile from the market
Check datesA turreted sandstone building with conical spires catches the evening light above rooftops, a large pine tree standing beside it.The Scott Hotel
  • A hotel
  • In Edinburgh
  • A mile from the market
Check datesPlaces to stayEvery stay in EdinburghAll our places to stay nearby, to search by date and by who is coming.See them all
Hidden Scotland, the magazine

Scotland, in print.

Every photograph commissioned, every word written by somebody who went. Printed twice a year, made in Scotland.

Get Issue 13Read it here
Find out more

For further reading, before you go.