Dresden Striezelmarkt | Dresden Christmas Market

DRESDEN STRIEZELMARKT IS THE LARGEST OF THE CITY’S CHRISTMAS MARKETS:

Striezelmarkt Arch

There are many Christmas markets in Dresden (including a Medieval Christmas Market), but the largest of them all is the Dresden Striezelmarkt on the Altmarkt. The Dresden Striezelmarkt is also Germany’s oldest Christmas Market. This year (2024) marks the 590th anniversary of this historical Christmas market.

Amazing view from our hotel room

Dresden Stollen

Dresden Striezelmarkt takes its name from the striezel or stollen which Dresden is famous for. One of the main events of this month-long Christmas market is the Dresden Stollen Festival. No visit to a Dresden Christmas Market is complete without tasting some of its famous stollen. We happen to like this Christmas cake and Dresden is where we stock up on stollen supplies – read our Buying stollen in Dresden.

Stollen at the Dresden Striezelmarkt

The Striezelmarkt takes place in the Old Market Square in the heart of Dresden, and each year more than 2.5 million visitors come to enjoy this Christmas event. The market also claims to have the world’s largest Ergebirge Christmas pyramid which made its way into the Guinness Book of Records in 1999.

Ergebirge Christmas pyramid

Plenty to see and do

There’s plenty to see and enjoy at the Dresden Striezelmarkt and it takes more than one visit to cover the entire market. If you have children in tow, there are some fun rides for kids such as the two-storey carousel. Kids can enjoy rides on their favourite animal, be it a tiger, horse or dragon. From the top of the ferris wheel is a good place to enjoy views of the Christmas market .

Dresden Striezelmarkt by night

The Striezelmarkt is romantic and atmospheric by night, however a day-time visit gives quite an different and interesting experience. This is when you can see the incredible efforts put in by stallholders to decorate their stalls. The decorations reflect the specialities of the stalls. Some of the elaborate decorations include bakers at work, a vineyard scene, nativity scene and Santa having a bath! We rather like the colourful elves enjoying food and drinks on the roof of a food stand.

Stall decorations at the Dresden Striezelmarkt

Christmas Market Treats

Dresden’s bustling Striezelmarkt has all the ingredients of a traditional German Christmas market. With the aroma of gingerbread cookies, roasted almonds, deep-fried dumplings and mulled wine wafting through the crisp winter air, hunger pangs can strike quite quickly. But don’t worry, nobody goes hungry here as there are plenty of traditional hearty snacks like roast beef, bratwurst and knobibrot available.

Food Stall at the Dresden Striezelmarkt

Christmas Shopping

The Dresden Christmas market is the place where locals come to stock up on festive foods, as well as to do some of Christmas shopping. Amongst the many market stalls are the popular Christmas woodcraft from the Erz Mountains. This is where the colourful nutcrackers and German incense smokers (Räuchermann) are produced. You can also buy beautiful hand-made tinsels, winter accessories, hand-made candles and more.

Hand-made candles at the Dresden Striezelmarkt

Christmas Market Events

There is a spread of activities at the Dresden Christmas Market to keep visitors entertained. Over the month-long Striezelmarkt there are usually over 100 events, the details of which will be available avery soon. Some of the highlight events include:

Opening Ceremony and Ecumenical Service (Nov 27)
Dresden Advent Calendar Festival (Nov. 30)
Dresden Stollen Festival – the highlight event of the Dresdner Striezelmarkt (Dec 7)
Dresdner Pfefferkuchenfest or Gingerbread Festival which includes the coronation of the new Gingerbread Princess (Dec 8)
Pyramid Festival (Dec 14)
Day of Christmas Crafts (Dec 15)
Festival of the Choirs (Dec 21)
Dresden Striezel Children’s Festival (Dec 22)
Dresden Striezelmarkt Close (Dec. 24)

One of the star attractions of Dresden is the Dresden Zwinger Palace. You can enjoy a range of Christmas concerts here. And if you’re looking to enjoy a special Christmas concert, the internationally acclaimed Vienna Boys’ Choir is performing at the Kulturpalast.

Other Dresden Christmas Markets

The Striezelmarkt is the largest Dresden Christmas Market, but you can also find Christmas markets at the following locations:

Traditional Christmas market at the Frauenkirche
Advent at the Neumarkt
Stallhof Advent Festival at the Dresden Royal Palace
Romantic Christmas Market at the corner of the Taschenbergpalais
Finn Village on the Postplatz

Where to Stay

If you like the idea of staying in the midst of the Striezelmarkt, the NH Dresden Altmarkt puts you right at the step of the Christmas markets. There are many other excellent hotels in the heart of Dresden Old Town (Altstadt) including: