Plaza Mayor is the place for Nativity figures, toys and joke gifts. The Comunidad de Madrid holds its craft fair along Paseo de Recoletos. At Plaza de España, La Navideña puts a market of handmade products next to an ice rink and a food area.
What the Plaza Mayor Christmas market is like
The official list of what the Plaza Mayor stalls sell is short: figures for the Nativity scene, musical instruments, toys and joke items. The city calls it the traditional Christmas market. Entry is free, so you can walk the stalls without buying anything.
Food isn’t on that list. Come to Plaza Mayor for a figure for the belén or a joke gift, then go elsewhere for something to eat.
Where to find handmade crafts and Christmas food
The Feria Mercado de Artesanía, the Comunidad de Madrid’s own craft fair, lines Paseo de Recoletos. In Plaza de España, in the Princesa area, La Navideña sets a market of handmade products beside an ice rink and a food area. Families who want to skate and eat can do both in one stop.
When the Christmas lights and the year-end race happen
The markets are part of a longer Christmas season across the city. Madrid’s Christmas lights come on with an opening show in Plaza de Cibeles and stay up through the holidays. The season also has the San Silvestre Vallecana, a race across Madrid from Estadio Bernabéu to Estadio de Vallecas.
Where to get something warm after the market
For something warm after the market, we have two picks: a calm chocolatería near Sol for churros and hot chocolate, and a tiny takeaway on a side street off the square for a hot squid sandwich. That covers both sweet and savoury at the end of an evening at the market.
Chocolatería 1902 fries churros to order a few steps from Sol. It pours both milk and dark chocolate for dipping, which is unusual in Madrid. Order the dark chocolate. There’s usually a table free without a wait.
Chocolatería 1902
Hours: Mon–Thu 07:00–23:00 · Fri–Sat 07:00–00:00 · Sun 07:00–23:00
Address: C. de San Martín, 2, Centro, 28013 Madrid
La Ideal fries squid to order and tucks it into a soft roll. Even when the bigger calamares bars have a line, there’s barely a queue here. Take the bocadillo de calamares away with a squeeze of lemon and eat it standing under the arcades of the square.
La Ideal
Hours: Mon–Tue 09:30–23:00 · Wed closed · Thu–Sun 09:30–23:00
Address: C. de Botoneras, 4, Centro, 28012 Madrid
