Manchester’s world-famous and much-loved Christmas markets have once again transformed the city centre into a festive wonderland with hundreds of stalls. Open from November 7 at multiple locations across the city centre, visitors can enjoy Manchester Christmas Markets at full scale, with tons of food traders, gift stalls and pop-up bars back for the occasion.
Now in their 27th year and named one of the best in the UK, Manchester Christmas Markets will also continue to have their iconic wooden chalets which attract millions of visitors each year, dotted around multiple city centre locations. There are more than 200 stalls across ten sites, including a reopened section of Albert Square, which will host ‘A Taste of Christmas’: a festive ‘mini market’ selling food, drinks and crafts. The square is home to a huge Ferris wheel, giving breathtaking views of Manchester’s Town Hall.
data-instgrm-permalink="https://www.instagram.com/p/DO_KbACCCkO/?utm_source=ig_embed&utm_campaign=loading" data-instgrm-version="14" style=" background:#FFF; border:0; border-radius:3px; box-shadow:0 0 1px 0 rgba(0,0,0,0.5),0 1px 10px 0 rgba(0,0,0,0.15); margin: 1px; max-width:540px; min-width:326px; padding:0; width:99.375%; width:-webkit-calc(100% - 2px); width:calc(100% - 2px);">
Visitors can get wrapped up in the magical atmosphere as they browse local and international crafts, tuck into food ranging from swing grills to Dutch pancakes, and visit bars serving hot drinks in Manchester Christmas market’s iconic mugs.
When do the markets take place?
Manchester Christmas Markets 2025 will take place between November 7 and December 22. However, the market stalls at Cathedral Gardens have previously opened earlier (typically the same date as Skate Manchester‘s return) and will remain open alongside the ice rink and A Taste of Christmas on Albert Square throughout the Christmas period until 4 January 2026.
The stalls are open daily throughout the seven-week run – which includes seven weekends instead of the usual six. Craft stalls and stalls selling seasonal goods will be open each day from 10am-8pm, whilst food and drink stalls will be open from 11am-9pm each day.
Where will Manchester Christmas Markets take place?
Visitors can find stalls across the city at the following locations:
- Piccadilly Gardens
- Albert Square
- St Ann’s Square
- Exchange Square
- New Cathedral Street
- King Street
- Exchange Street
- Market Street
- The Corn Exchange
- Cathedral Gardens
Christmas finally returns to Albert Square: here’s what to expect
Complementing the city-wide festive markets that will again take over Manchester’s streets and squares as the city heads towards Christmas, Albert Square itself will be offering a Santa’s sackful of family-friendly attractions for visitors of all ages to enjoy. Dominating a twinkling seasonal skyline on Albert Square will be a huge 50-metre-high Ferris wheel giving a stunning view of the ongoing work to restore the city’s Alfred Waterhouse-designed Town Hall, and a vintage carrousel for children of all ages, along with other Christmas fairground-style attractions.
With its own Christmas mini-market – a select handful of wooden chalets selling must-have Christmas crafts and gifts – plus a mix of independent food and drink outlets offering a tasty selection of food and drink on-the-go, along with under-cover seating areas, as well as festive lights, Christmas-themed light-up and walk-through installations, Albert Square promises to add even more Christmas magic to Manchester this year.
How to get to Manchester Christmas Markets
Transport for Greater Manchester (TfGM) has urged people to use public transport wherever possible to travel in and out of the city centre for the Manchester Christmas Markets. But the markets are just the start of the festive period, with the city centre seeing events galore over the seven weeks that the markets are on, including Black Friday and Christmas shopping, sports matches and work Christmas parties on the horizon.
The nearest train stations are Manchester Piccadilly, Victoria and Deansgate Castlefield. The closest tram stops to Manchester Christmas Markets are Victoria, Market Street, Piccadilly Gardens, Piccadilly, Exchange Square, St Peter’s Square and Deansgate Castlefield. There is also the free city centre bus which you can hop on and off of.
How to get a Manchester Christmas Markets mug
The Manchester Christmas Markets mugs are a tradition in itself with Manchester City Council revealing a new design every year. Depicting a busy, highly patterned, and brightly coloured toy town Manchester, this year’s iconic mugs are full of festive fun and give a real sense of the bustling city centre and Christmas markets in Manchester – both by day and by night.
Manchester’s special edition Christmas mugs can either be bought outright by Christmas shoppers or ‘rented’ when they purchase a hot drink at one of the Christmas Market stalls. Customers will be asked to pay a deposit of £3.50 for their mug when they purchase a hot drink and can then either choose to return their mug to the stall afterwards to get their deposit back, or keep the mug and take it home with them as a souvenir of their visit to the markets.
Which traders will be at Manchester Christmas Markets?
Manchester City Council announced a long list of traders, with a total of 274 stalls dotted across the Christmas Markets locations, including 26 at Albert Square, of which 15 are food and drink operators. Visitors can expect well-known names in Manchester like El Gato Negro, Yard & Coop, Porky Pig, The Great North Pie Company, The Salford Rum Company, Mr Murrays Scotch Eggs, The Flat Baker, Oi Dumplings and Rita’s Reign. Check out the full list of traders and their locations here.