We cover five Christmas markets here: the Christkindlmarkt on Marienplatz, the medieval Adventsspektakel on Wittelsbacherplatz, the Weihnachtsdorf in the Residenz courtyard, Pink Christmas on Stephansplatz and the Tollwood Winter Festival on the Theresienwiese. Each keeps its own calendar and hours. Entry is free at the medieval market and the Residenz village. Marienplatz is the central one, with the train stopping right at the stalls; Wittelsbacherplatz is the medieval one; the Residenz village sits in a palace courtyard; and Pink Christmas is the queer market and an evening option.
The Christmas market on Marienplatz
The Münchner Christkindlmarkt sets up its stalls on Marienplatz itself, so getting there by public transport needs no planning. The U-Bahn and the S-Bahn both stop directly at the market, which means stepping off the train and into the stalls without a walk across the city first.
For something warm afterwards, Schmalznudel - Café Frischhut is an old town market corner that fries the same four pastries and nothing else. Its namesake pastry is a ring of yeast dough cooked in hot lard, crisp at the rim and tender in the centre, and the counter serves the neighbourhood regulars in the morning before everyone else arrives around lunch. Eat it standing, within minutes of it leaving the fryer. Bring cash: it’s cash only, and it is closed on Sundays.
Schmalznudel - Café Frischhut
Hours: Mon–Sat 09:00–18:00 · Sun closed
Address: Prälat-Zistl-Straße 8, 80331 München-Altstadt-Lehel, Germany
The medieval market and the Residenz village
Both markets are free to enter. The Adventsspektakel on Wittelsbacherplatz is Munich’s medieval Christmas market, and Rocca Riviera, a restaurant for a proper sit-down dinner, is on the same square. The Weihnachtsdorf is a Christmas village inside the Kaiserhof, a courtyard of the Residenz, entered from Residenzstraße at Odeonsplatz.
After the stalls, the kitchen at Rocca Riviera cooks the northern Mediterranean coast with an Italian tilt: plenty of fish and olive oil, with grilled vegetables alongside. The crowd dresses well without being formal.
Rocca Riviera
Hours: Mon–Fri 12:00–14:30, 18:00–00:00 · Sat 18:00–00:00 · Sun closed
Address: Wittelsbacherpl. 2, 80333 München-Maxvorstadt, Germany
Pink Christmas and Tollwood for the evening
Pink Christmas is Munich’s queer Christmas market, on Stephansplatz. Tollwood is a winter festival on the Theresienwiese with its own market, the Markt der Ideen, and walking onto the festival grounds and into the market is free. Tickets are only needed for the shows in the Grand Chapiteau and for the New Year’s Eve party.
Planning a day around the markets
Start with the markets on Marienplatz, Wittelsbacherplatz and in the Residenz courtyard, then a Schmalznudel at Café Frischhut or a dinner booked at Rocca Riviera. After dark, Pink Christmas on Stephansplatz is next, or the U-Bahn out to Tollwood on the Theresienwiese.
