Plan a magical family getaway to Lille Christmas Market 2025. Easy from the UK by Eurostar or Le Shuttle, plus festive day trips to Ypres and Ghent!
Looking for a charming Christmas market escape just a short hop from the UK? The Lille Christmas Market in northern France offers the perfect festive break for families. With its twinkling lights, traditional wooden chalets, and mouth-watering seasonal treats, Lille is an enchanting destination that’s easy to reach—whether by train, plane, or car.
Discover the Charm of Lille’s Christmas Market
Running from 20 November to 29 December 2025, the Lille Christmas Market takes place in Place Rihour, right in the heart of the city. Around 90 wooden stalls offer festive goodies—from handcrafted gifts and Christmas decorations to waffles, mulled wine, and roasted chestnuts.
A short walk away, Grand Place hosts a magnificent Ferris wheel and a giant Christmas tree, making it perfect for festive photos and family fun. A ride on the wheel at night offers breath-taking views over the sparkling city.
We visited Lille just before Christmas 2024 and absolutely loved it. As a family with young children, we appreciated how walkable and compact the city centre was. The market felt safe, manageable, and full of festive charm.
Our kids loved the hot chocolate and churros, and we enjoyed sipping on vin chaud while soaking up the atmosphere. The Ferris wheel was a highlight—it gave us all a magical bird’s-eye view of the festivities.
Now, Lille’s Christmas market isn’t one of the massive ones, so it’s a bit more low-key—which we liked. That said, the market area itself does get pretty packed, as it’s tucked into a fairly small space. Honestly, we enjoyed just wandering around the rest of the city centre more—it’s beautifully lit and feels really festive without being shoulder-to-shoulder crowded. But I’ve got to say, the mulled wine at the market hit the spot, and the kids were all about the hot chocolate and churros.
The Ferris wheel was a real highlight—such a fun way to see the city all lit up. We kept things simple with food: pastries in the morning from a nearby bakery (because obviously), lunch out and then dinners back at the apartment. That setup just works best for us when we’re travelling with the kids. We didn’t really come across any standout, super kid-friendly dinner spots, though I’m sure they’re out there—we just didn’t find them this time.
We stayed right in the centre, which turned out to be the best decision. I’ve mentioned this in other posts, but staying central—especially in winter and with kids—is a total game changer. It makes it easy to pop out for a bit, then head back to warm up. We found a great apartment that had loads of space, parking, and was right in the middle of everything.
It was a bit of a mad dash after school to get packed and on the road, but honestly, I’ll never say no to a trip to France. Lille had a totally different vibe from the Tallinn Christmas Market as it’s a much bigger city, but that’s part of the fun—each place brings its own kind of magic
Kitchen Family Travels 