On Friday, November 13, the wooden huts on Main Street will still be empty. The Sun Inn Courtyard will be quiet at 5:30 p.m. The tree at Payrow Plaza will not be lit yet. Across the river, under the blast furnaces, Christkindlmarkt will be into its first evening of its 34th season.
That gap is the shape of Christmas City in 2026. The season opens in four stages between November 13 and December 1. The South Side gets a full week's head start on Main Street. Most of what changed at Christkindlmarkt this year sits outside the market's own tents.
The Calendar, in the Order It Opens
- November 13: Christkindlmarkt opens at PNC Plaza, SteelStacks, 645 E. First St. It runs in six blocks through December 20.
- November 20: Christmas City Village opens in the Main and Broad Streets and Sun Inn Courtyard area. It runs Fridays through Sundays until December 20, from 11 a.m. to 7 p.m., and admission is free.
- November 27: The city lights its tree at Payrow Plaza on the day after Thanksgiving. Gates open at 4 p.m. and performances start at 4:30.
- December 1: The Live Advent Calendar starts its nightly 5:30 p.m. programs in the Sun Inn Courtyard, 564 Main St. They run through December 23.
Each stage adds to the ones before it. By the first weekend of December, the market, the village and the nightly Advent programs all run on the same days. The sections below follow the same order.
Wave One: What Christkindlmarkt Changed, and What It Didn't
The six market blocks are November 13–15, November 20–22, November 27–29, December 3–6, December 10–13 and December 17–20. Hours are the same as 2025: 10 a.m. to 6 p.m. on Thursdays and Sundays, and 10 a.m. to 8 p.m. on Fridays and Saturdays.
The price has gone up.
| Admission | 2025 advance | 2025 day-of | 2026 all-in |
|---|---|---|---|
| Thursday and Friday | $12 | $13 | $14 |
| Saturday and Sunday | $14.50 | $15.50 | $16.50 |
Children five and under get in free, and so do ArtsQuest Silver-level members and above. Bronze members pay $13 on weekdays and $15.50 on weekends. Free admission from 5 to 8 p.m. on Fridays is back. Admission is still cashless, and so are ArtsQuest's food, drink and merchandise sales, as they were in 2025. If you go on a Friday evening, the $14 weekday price drops to zero.
The vendor mix has shifted. ArtsQuest's 2026 announcement lists more than 200 artisans, crafters and retailers from 18 states and Scotland. Last year it was more than 170 from 14 states. The same announcement names seven food vendors, down from more than a dozen listed in 2025. So there's more to shop and fewer places to eat inside the gates. German ornament maker Käthe Wohlfahrt is back for its 23rd straight year.
Opening night brings a speed dating event at 6 p.m. on November 13. Volks Haus in Winter Wonderland hosts a beer tasting at 4 p.m. on November 21. Cocktail tastings, breakfasts with St. Nick, a Bluey and Bingo event and hot glass demonstrations are spread across the rest of the season.
The New Additions Sit Outside the Market
Most of this year's changes are about getting around and resting between stops. ArtsQuest doubled its reservable private heated igloos from four to eight. It also added a bag check service inside the Bethlehem Visitor Center, so you can drop off purchases and keep walking.
The biggest move is the Holiday Pop-Up Artist Market, which started last year. It expands to the new ArtsQuest Creative Factory at 25 W. Third St. from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. on December 5 and 6. It then returns to Winter Wonderland from 10 a.m. to 6 p.m. on December 20. ArtsQuest Chief Operating Officer Curt Mosel said in the ArtsQuest release reported by The Morning Call that the plan was "expanding some of our most popular attractions and introducing new conveniences to make the experience even more enjoyable."
The Creative Factory is opening in phases. LVPNews reported in October that the building is still under construction. A public art dedication is set for 2 p.m. on November 7, an open-mic series in the Bergstein Theater starts November 10, and the official dedication is planned for January 19, 2027. ArtsQuest also lists a ticketed Comedy to Break the Stigma show at the Bergstein on November 14. With the formal dedication still ahead in January, the December pop-up lands before the building's official opening.
Wave Two: Main Street Starts a Week Later
Historic Downtown has its own calendar. Christmas City Village opens November 20 with wooden vendor huts around the Sun Inn Courtyard. It runs on Fridays, Saturdays and Sundays only, the same days Christkindlmarkt is open in its first three weeks. From December, the market adds Thursdays and the village does not.
The Downtown Bethlehem Association schedules its two holiday cocktail trails around that opening. The Red/Green trail is November 14, the day after Christkindlmarkt opens. The Silver/Gold trail is November 21, the day after the village opens. Both run from noon to 5 p.m. Passports cost $45, and you register at Hyatt Place Bethlehem.
Historic Bethlehem Museums & Sites is adding something new as well. The Blacksmith Shop is getting a holiday makeover: warm lighting inside and out, illuminated trees and greens, a vintage carriage photo backdrop, an artisan shop with demonstrators, fire pit gathering areas, and selected colonial trades demonstrations and children's activities. The Christmas City Stroll still leaves from the 1810 Goundie Welcome Center behind a lantern. This year it adds a wireless audio system so the guide is easier to hear on a crowded sidewalk.
Waves Three and Four: Two Fixed Dates
The tree lighting on Friday, November 27, falls during Christkindlmarkt's third block, with free cookies and hot chocolate at Payrow Plaza.
Four days later, the Live Advent Calendar begins. Historic Bethlehem calls it the only live Advent calendar of its kind in the country. Every night from December 1 to 23, a downtown shop, restaurant or community group presents a 10- to 15-minute program in the Sun Inn Courtyard, and it's free. The lineup posted so far includes:
- December 5: Bethlehem Parking Authority with Bitty & Beau's Coffee Shop
- December 6: The Bach Choir of Bethlehem
- December 8 and 22: Edge Restaurant
- December 12: Central Moravian Church
- December 14: Manga Lane
- December 15: Franklin Hill Vineyards
- December 17: McCarthy's Red Stag Pub & Whiskey Bar
- December 21: Donegal Square
December 23 is still listed as TBA. Before you plan a night around one participant, check the organizer's event page.
December 5 Carries the Most Overlap
Lay the waves side by side and one date has more going on than any other: Saturday, December 5.
Christkindlmarkt is in its fourth block that day, open until 8 p.m. The pop-up artist market runs at the Creative Factory on West Third Street from 10 to 4. The SouthSide Arts District's Naughty or Nice Cocktails & Cookies Crawl runs from 1 to 5 p.m. along the Third and Fourth Street business area. Tickets are $35, and the crawl repeats on December 12. Christmas City Village is open on Main Street, and the 5:30 Advent program features Bitty & Beau's.
For a late stop on the South Side, Gully Kitchen opened July 25 at 203 E. Third St., The Brown and White reported. It serves Indian street food in bowls, burritos, quesadillas, sandwiches and burgers, and stays open until 3 a.m. Thursday through Saturday.
Getting Between the Two Sides
If you plan to visit both districts in one day, plan your parking and the river crossing ahead of time. ArtsQuest says the SteelStacks lots next to the market have free parking, first come, first served. Accessible parking is limited, and there's a drop-off and pickup point on First Street in front of Willkommen Haus. Bethlehem Parking Authority garages offer special all-day rates during the market. Polk Street Garage is the closest, and Riverport and South New Street garages are also options. The Parking Authority hasn't posted its 2026 holiday rates yet. Its event parking page is where they'll appear.
You can cross the river without moving your car. LANTA's EBS line stops at Walnut Street Garage downtown and at Southside Station by Polk Street Garage. Buses come every 15 minutes or better. A ride is $2, and a day pass is $4. One day pass covers a full Saturday that starts at SteelStacks and ends in the Sun Inn Courtyard at 5:30.
If you'd like to talk about how the North Side and South Side fit into your own plans, Bernadette Rabel would be glad to hear from you. Let's Connect.
