Manchester Christmas Markets 2025 – dates, locations, and essential information

The Manchester Christmas Markets 2025 are upon us, bringing festive cheer, seasonal shopping and winter warmer food and drink to the city centre.

The massive annual event attracts tens of thousands of visitors to the city, with the streets filled with wooden sheds and glittering lights.

Alongside all the food, drink and shopping that the event brings, there’s an ice rink over at Cathedral Gardens and a brand-new big wheel with views of the Manchester Town Hall.

The light installations will also be returning to St Peter’s Square this year.

The Manchester Christmas Markets will return to Albert Square for its 2025 instalment, for the first time in six years.

There’ll be more than 200 stalls to explore across the city centre selling everything from traditional bratwurst and gluhwein to more local and viral treats from familiar independent businesses.

Read on for your essential information for the 2025 Manchester Christmas Markets.

Manchester Christmas Markets 2025 dates

This year’s Manchester Christmas Markets will take place from Friday 7 November to Monday 22 December 2025.

Manchester’s Christmas Markets will open at ten locations across the city on Friday 7 November and close on Monday 22 December, except for A Taste of Christmas on Albert Square and the stalls at Cathedral Gardens which will remain open throughout the Christmas period until 4 January 2026.

Christmas in Manchester will also see the Skate Manchester Ice Rink in Cathedral Gardens open for Christmas skaters from Friday 7 November until Sunday 4 January, and the magical Manchester Christmas Parade which will take place on Sunday 7 December.

Manchester Christmas Markets 2025 locations

• Albert Square
• Piccadilly Gardens
• Market Street
• Cathedral Gardens
• St Ann’s Square
• Exchange Street
• New Cathedral Street
• Exchange Square
• King Street
• The Corn Exchange

Albert Square

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The Manchester Christmas Markets will finally return to their home at Albert Square this winter, but it’ll look a little different to in previous years.

‘A Taste of Christmas’ will include a 50-metre-high Ferris wheel, as well as a bespoke market with twinkling lights and covered seating.

There’ll be traditional food and drink like a German swing grill, German beers, waffles and pancakes, as well as loaded hash browns from Wrap Up, and stalls selling a range of crafts, including jewellery, clothing and handmade decorations. 

Piccadilly Gardens

Piccadilly Gardens will again be the main hub of the Manchester Christmas Markets, transforming into the Winter Gardens.

There’ll be global flavours from the traders here, like Greek gyros, British comfort food, Brazilian street food and Korean hot dogs.

And Crimble Crumbles will be back again with their famous fruit crumble desserts, served with lashings of custard.

There’ll be covered seating areas, as well as karaoke huts from Bar Hutte.

Market Street

Manchester’s bustling main shopping street will be filled with more than 40 different stalls selling bespoke crafts, gifts and produce, like crowd favourites of freshly baked coconut macaroons and cheese truckles.

Cathedral Gardens

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The beautiful Cathedral Gardens is home to Skate Manchester again, a huge ice rink where you can whizz around beneath a towering Christmas tree.

This is the most family-friendly corner of the Manchester Christmas Markets, with plenty of activities to entertain little ones all the way into the New Year.

This part of the markets also stays open until 4 January 2026, and there’s a hub of authentic food and drink.

St Ann’s Square

St Ann’s Square is the original home of the Manchester Christmas Markets, and it still keeps that traditional atmosphere alive and well.

There’ll be music from singers and community choirs, and an undercover bar where you can fill up on German beers and gluhwein.

Exchange Street

Last year’s viral melted chocolate taps will be back this year on Exchange Street, free-poured over strawberries, brownies, or straight into miniature chocolate cups.

There’ll also be new loaded hash browns, and stalls selling lovely festive gifts too.

New Cathedral Street

Nothing signals the start of the Manchester Christmas Markets quite like the arrival of the giant sausage statue on New Cathedral Street, which will be back for 2025 at the iconic Witch House.

As well as those traditional German bratwurst and beers, you can buy rum, leather goods and other keepsakes all the way down the row of huts.

There’ll also be steak frites, burittos from Mango Rays, and craft drinks at Bar 3.

Exchange Square

Exchange Square is one of the largest sites in the city, home to the legendary The Mill Exchange bar with a whole host of homemade mulled wine flavours.

This is also where you’ll find the always-popular Porky Pig and their Yorkshire pudding wraps, as well as loads and loads of other food and drink.

And as for the shopping, expect everything from soaps to Turkish delight.

King Street

This is always one of the cosiest and most traditional corners of the Manchester Christmas Markets, a row of wooden huts tucked in between the high-end shops and restaurants of King Street.

There are two new bars this year offering an upmarket drinking experience, plus food stalls selling chicken and waffles, mac and cheese, Greek gyros and plenty more.

And this is the home of picky bits, with an Italian deli selling gourmet meats and cheeses.

The Corn Exchange

Last but not least will be a huddle of craft stalls between the Corn Exchange and Shambles Square, where you can purchase pork pies, artisan cheeses, and handmade truffles.

Manchester Christmas Markets 2025 opening and closing times

Albert Square

• 7 November to 23 December: 10am to 9pm  
• 24 December (Christmas Eve): 10am to 5pm  
• 25 December (Christmas Day): closed  
• 26 to 30 December: 10am to 6pm
• 31 December (New Year’s Eve): 10–12.30am 
• 1 to 4 January: 10am to 6pm 

Cathedral Gardens

• 24 October to 6 November: 10am to 8pm  
• 7 November to 23 December: 10am to 9pm  
• 24 December (Christmas Eve): 10am to 5pm  
• 25 December (Christmas Day): closed  
• 26 December to 4 January: 10am to 5pm 

Other locations

• Piccadilly Gardens – 10am to 9pm daily from 7 November to 22 December
• Market Street – 10am to 9pm every day except Sundays, when the market will close at 6pm
• St Ann’s Square – every day between 10am and 9pm
• Exchange Street – 10am to 9pm daily
• New Cathedral Street – 10am to 8pm daily
• Exchange Square – daily from 10am to 9pm
• King Street – every day 10am to 9pm
• Corn Exchange – open daily from 10am to 8pm

Manchester Christmas Markets mug design and price

Festive, collectible, colourful mugs are a huge staple of the Manchester Christmas Markets – and the designs for 2025 are a true Mancunian affair, capturing several festive landmarks in the style of a colourful toy town.

That includes illustrations of the iconic windmill bar, a huge Christmas tree, and a neat row of Christmas Markets huts, complete with traders and (of course) a gigantic bratwurst statue.

The Manchester Christmas Markets mugs deposit remains at £3.50 for 2025, which you can sacrifice to take your mug home as a keepsake or have refunded when you return your mug to the bar.

The mugs will be available at all 10 market locations from opening day on Friday 7 November, while stocks last (and they have sold out in the previous three years).

Travel advice and how to get to the Manchester Christmas Markets

The city centre gets busy during November and December, so people are urged to use public transport wherever possible to travel in and out of the city centre for the Manchester Christmas Markets.

There are plenty of other events running alongside the festivities, from huge football matches to gigs at the AO Arena to Black Friday sales.

The Bee Network app will help you to plan your journey.

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