Polish Christmas markets: quieter, cheaper and just as good

Everyone goes to the German ones. I go to Poland.

Personally I love the Polish Christmas markets. They're quieter, and the mulled wine (grzaniec, the Polish version of glühwein) is cheaper. You get the same stalls as everywhere else, the wooden huts, the lights and the big wheel, just without the crowds.

Where to go

Poznań was my most recent one, in November 2023: a proper market at night with a big wheel lit up behind it, then the Old Market Square with its row of brightly coloured townhouses round the corner. More on Poland

Wrocław has one of the biggest Christmas markets in Poland, spread across its huge main square, the Rynek. I've been to Wrocław as a weekend away, and it's on my best weekend breaks from London list.

Gdańsk puts its market on Targ Węglowy, just outside the old town gates. Another one I've done as a weekend away.

Kraków is the one most people have heard of, with its market on the Main Square. It's the busiest of the Polish ones.

How do the others compare?

I've done Christmas in a few other places too.

Prague is beautiful at Christmas. Wenceslas Square all lit up is quite something, but it's one of the busiest markets around. Here's my last weekend in Prague.

Wenceslas Square in Prague lit up for Christmas

Valletta in Malta does a Christmas market with a big wheel and lights, with the bonus of being a lot warmer than Poland in December.

A Ferris wheel at the Christmas market in Valletta, Malta

What to eat and drink

Grzaniec: Polish mulled wine, sometimes made with beer instead.
Pierogi: dumplings, fried or boiled, with every filling you can think of.
Oscypek: smoked mountain cheese, grilled and served with cranberry sauce.
Kiełbasa: grilled sausage, the standard Christmas market fuel.

Make a weekend of it

The Polish markets are perfect for a Friday-night flight and a Sunday-evening flight home. There are direct budget flights from the UK to all four cities, and everything is cheap once you're there. If you want to know how I fit trips like this round a full-time job, here's how. Check the market dates before you book. They usually open around the end of November and run up to Christmas, but each city sets its own.

Grab a cheap flight, wrap up warm and go and get a mulled wine. Na zdrowie!