
1.12.2023 – 7.01.2024
Tallinn Christmas Market
Tallinn Christmas Market
Stalls and the stage of the fabulous Tallinn Christmas Market will open on the Town Hall Square again!
The Christmas Market will be held from 25.11.2022 to 08.01.2023
Opening hours: daily from 10:00 to 20:00
Hot drinks can be purchased until 22:00 (on Fridays and Saturdays until 23:00)
In the oldest square of our capital, you can once again find a piece of the Christmas fairy tale – stalls and the stage of the Tallinn Christmas Market will open here. Residents and guests of the capital love to visit them during the winter holidays. This year, the Christmas Market will be open longer in the evenings, so that the townspeople will definitely have time to taste Christmas dishes and hot drinks. Another surprise for the visitors to the fair is the new design of the stage, which will offer a rich cultural program on weekends.
According to a tradition that dates back more than 580 years, a Christmas tree will be installed in the center of the Town Hall Square – the height of the main Christmas tree of the country this year is 15 meters. This beauty has grown in Mustjõe village of Anija parish. The tree will be decorated with golden balls and Christmas lights that shine with cold and warm light.
Trading at the Christmas Market will begin on November 25 – the fair will be solemnly opened at 18:00, when the lights will also be lit on the Christmas tree and the Tempus fugit light show will begin (light effects will be projected on the wall of the town hall). The 10-minute audio-visual and choreographic show will only take place a few times, running on three consecutive nights (Friday to Sunday) including the first Sunday of Advent, November 27, when the first Advent candle is lit at 16:00.
On the first Sunday of Advent, Santa Claus will arrive at the fair – in his house on the Town Hall Square, he will wait for the kids ready to read a poem until the last day of the Tallinn Christmas Market. Letters with requests for gifts can be dropped into the mailbox of Santa Claus on the wall of his house. This year, children will be able to ride carousels at the fair again – there will be three of them!
The stalls at the Christmas Market will offer traditional Christmas food, from stewed sauerkraut and the familiar black pudding to more sophisticated dishes like duck legs or venison entrecote. Vegetarians are not deprived of attention this year either – they will also find a lot of delicious dishes.
What is Christmas without sweet treats? For the first time, the House of Sweets will be opened at the Christmas Market – you can easily find it by smell, as large cinnamon and cardamom buns will be baked in it. Buns are prepared here according to the recipe of the Krõbe Kakuke home bakery, which took part in the TV show “The Best Baker of Estonia”. You can also buy éclairs, macarons, and biscuits from the Suhkruingel confectionery.
As always, the Christmas Market will feature a huge range of gingerbreads, some of which can safely be called works of art! At the fair it will be possible to buy not only ready-made gingerbreads, but also original dough for spicy cookies, for example, with Bailey’s or Vana Tallinn liqueur.
You will be able to fight frost with hot drinks – with and without the addition of alcohol. Every year, the range of natural glöggs that can be tasted at the Tallinn Christmas Market is becoming wider. This time, visitors to the fair will find, for example, such a novelty as glögg with red orange and chili, which will be served in the organic food house. In the same house, those wishing to warm up are also welcome to taste the traditional blueberry-blackcurrant glögg, traditionally popular among visitors to the Christmas Market.
Numerous varieties of coffee will also be presented here. For the first time, you will be able to buy coffee in four unique flavours from the Estonian coffee brand Oakohv – connoisseurs will be able to ask for a drink to be prepared on site or buy coffee to go to brew it at home.
Those who feel that drinks do not ward off the cold well enough can buy sheep wool and sheepskin products from small Estonian manufacturers – mittens, hats, slippers, boots, blankets for baby carriages and much more. This is also a great gift idea for your loved ones!
Hidden among the stalls is a small house of crafts, where you can craft under the strict guidance of artisans and learn from them the basic working techniques.
The program for this year’s Christmas Market stage is prepared by the Hopner House and includes performances by folk dancers and folk music performers from all over Estonia. The program partners are the Estonian Folklore Council, the Estonian Choral Association, and the Estonian Folk Music and Folk Dance Association. On weekend evenings (from early Friday evening to Sunday evening), the stage will host performances of various performers every full hour, including such famous bands as Leigarid, Sõleke and Lüü-Türr. The festive atmosphere will not bypass the visitors of the Christmas Market in any way – a conga line will curl around the Christmas tree, and everyone can join it to have fun!
With the help of the Estonian Union of National Minorities, Livonians, Udmurts, Ukrainians, Jews, Chuvashs and Poles will acquaint visitors with their national cultures on the stage of the Christmas Market. On Saint Lucy Day, December 13, at 17:00, a concert organized by the Swedish Embassy will begin.
The closing ceremony of the Christmas Market will take place on 8 January.
Come to the Tallinn Christmas Market and become part of the New Year’s fairy tale!
Culutural Program
25 November
17:40 Street Brass Band
18:00 Christmas Market opening and LIGHT SHOW Tempus Fugit
19:00 LIGHT SHOW Tempus Fugit
20:00 LIGHT SHOW Tempus Fugit
26 November
12:00 Singing studio Lõoke and Tallinn Hobby Centre Kullo’s singing studio Sinilill
13:00 Association of Estonian Poles “Polonia” ensemble LAIKONIK
14:00 Folk dance group Piipreilid and Saaremaa Simmanitantsu Klubi and garmon band Meite Moodi
15:00 Children’s and youth groups of dance ensemble Lee
16:00 Folk dance group Piipreilid and Saaremaa Simmanitantsu Klubi and garmon band Meite Moodi
17:00 Mixed choir of Saue
18:00 LIGHT SHOW Tempus Fugit
18:20 Estonian Dance Agency girls’ groups
19:00 LIGHT SHOW Tempus Fugit
19:20 Estonian Dance Agency girls’ groups
20:00 LIGHT SHOW Tempus Fugit
27 November
12:00 Viljandi Hobby School girls’ group Upser
13:00 Chuvash culture association ensemble Palan
14:00 Viljandi Hobby School girls’ group Upser
15:00 Folk art association Leigarid
16:00 Lighting the first advent candle. Speeches by the Mayor of Tallinn Mihhail Kõlvart and provost Jaan Tammsalu. Songs by the choirs of the Tallinn congregation of the Estonian Evangelical Lutheran Church and the Tallinn Chamber Choir
16:30 LIGHT SHOW Tempus Fugit
17:00 A swinging start to the advent period with the dancers of the dance and culture club Modus
18:00 LIGHT SHOW Tempus Fugit
18:20 Get into a Christmas mood with the garmon stars of the dance and culture club Modus
19:00 LIGHT SHOW Tempus Fugit
19:20 PRITSU BRASS
2 December
16:00 Tabasalu Music School’s zither players
17:00 Caucasian dance collective Terek
19:00 Estonian Tax and Customs Board’s mixed choir Peale Viit
3 December
12:00 Dance ensemble Tuisuline
13:00 Singing studio Lõoke and Tallinn Hobby Centre Kullo’s singing studio Sinilill
14:00 Pühalepa Naistekoda women’s folk dance group from Hiiu County
15:00 Folk dancers of Saku Municipality
16:00 Folk dance group Tantsusarvikud
17:00 Dance group Sõleke
17:30 Dance association As-Sa women’s groups Harku Harakad and Hele
18:00 Women’s groups Pillerpäkad and Kabalabajalad from Järva County
19:00 Dance ensemble Leesikad from the French Lyceum of Tallinn
4 December
12:00 Märjamaa mixed group Hopsani
13:00 Leanne, Kristin and Lisette on bagpipes
14:00 Folk dance group Pööreline
15:00 Latvian Folk Culture Association in Estonia, folk ensemble Revele
16:00 Dance group Sõleke
17:00 Songs and dances by the folk music students and professors of EAMT
9 December
17:00 Laulasmaa School’s dance and musical instrument group
18:00 Tallinn Students Summer Brigade mixed youth group Õmmikad
19:00 Ensemble Lüü-Türr
10 December
12:00 Hobby studio ÕHIN
13:00 Tõrva Culture Centre’s folk music ensemble Kirime
14:00 Ukrainian folk ensemble Žurba
15:00 Airing of folk costumes and Seto leelo choir Siidisõsarõ
16:00 Airing of folk costumes and Seto leelo choir Siidisõsarõ
17:00 Folk dance association Pääsuke
18:00 Dance ensemble Leesikad and group dance around the Christmas tree
19:00 Dance ensemble Leesikad and group dance around the Christmas tree
11 December
12:00 Christmas mummers – Junior Chamber
13:00 Latvian Folk Culture Association in Estonia, folk ensemble Revele
14:00 Hanila Song and Dance Society
15:00 Folk Music School of Nõmme
16:00 Folk art association Leigarid
13 December
17:00 Saint Lucy’s Day concert by the students of GAGS. In cooperation with the Embassy of Sweden
16 December
16:00 Ukrainian Sunday school Nadija
17:00 Children’s choir of the children’s singing studio Bel Canto
18:00 Tallinna Raekoor
19:00 The Jewish Community of Estonia and soloist Timur Fišel on guitar
17 December
12:00 Historic dance group Saltatore Revaliensis
13:00 Medieval music concert: Polina Tšerkassova, Johanna-Maria Jaama and Kadi Maria Vooglaid
14:00 Historic dance group Fioretto
15:00 Medieval music concert: Polina Tšerkassova, Johanna-Maria Jaama and Kadi Maria Vooglaid
16:00 Historic dance group Fioretto
17:00 Medieval music concert: Polina Tšerkassova, Johanna-Maria Jaama and Kadi Maria Vooglaid
18:00 Students of the Estonian Dance Agency’s dance school
19:00 Students of the Estonian Dance Agency’s dance school
18 December
12:00 Mixed and women’s group Kuu from Pärnu
13:00 Udmurt Association’s ensemble Ošmes
14:00 Mixed and women’s group Kuu from Pärnu
15:00 Udmurt Association’s ensemble Ošmes
16:00 TLU ensemble VoxNova
17:00 TLU ensemble VoxNova
18:00 Dance association Viisuveeretajad
19:00 Dance group Tulilinnud of Tallinn Secondary School No. 32
23 December
16:00 Folk dance group Ingliska
17:00 Jewish Duo Ma-s-ka and ensemble Tervendavad Helid
18:00 Romani Dance Group Shatritsa
6 January
17:00 Women’s group of the folk dance group Kullaketrajad
19:00 Folk art association Leigarid
7 January
12:00 Tandsotahvaja` ni laululaaditaja` – musical play by the Seto theatre Veerna Vorkats
13:00 Seto women’s folk dance group Poloda piigad with mixed folk dance group Hõbehall
14:00 Seto Christmas (Talsipühad) in Tallinn with culture club SETOLOOD.
15:00 Mixed group Helgerid from Põlva County
16:00 Folk dance association Kirmas from Pärnu County
18:00 Mixed group Laagri Leegid
19:00 Orthodox Christmas celebration
8 January
12:00 Folk dance ensemble Lepalind
14:00 Folk dance groups Haspel and Turba Tantsupisik
15:00 US infantry orchestra
16:00 Mixed group Joondu
17:00 Dance ensemble Savijalakesed
19:00 Dance ensemble Savijalakesed
Changes may occur in the program
The program is made by Hopner House