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The Riga Christmas Market runs on Doma laukums, known in English as Dome Square, next to Riga Cathedral in the heart of Old Riga. Doma laukums is a different square from RÄtslaukums (Town Hall Square), a few streets away, where a separate marker commemorates Riga’s own claim to the world’s first decorated Christmas tree. Riga’s tourism board, LiveRiga, confirms the 2026-2027 market runs from Friday, 27 November 2026 to Sunday, 3 January 2027.
When does the Riga Christmas Market run in 2026?
The Riga Christmas Market opens on Friday, 27 November 2026 and closes on Sunday, 3 January 2027, according to liveriga.com. Regular hours run 11am to 9pm Monday to Thursday, 10am to 10pm Friday and Saturday, and 10am to 9pm on Sundays. Riga extends the hours over the holidays themselves: 10am to 8pm on 24 December, 10am to 9pm on 25 December, 10am to 10pm on 26 December, 10am to 2am on New Year’s Eve, and noon to 8pm on 1 January.
Where is the Riga Christmas Market?
The Riga Christmas Market sits on Doma laukums, Old Riga’s central square in front of Riga Cathedral. Doma laukums is not the same square as RÄtslaukums, Riga’s Town Hall Square, which sits a short walk away near the House of the Blackheads. The two squares are easy to confuse, since older write-ups of the market have placed it in Town Hall Square rather than Dome Square. Entry to the market is free, and it’s a level, short walk from most Old Riga hotels. For more of the city beyond the market square, see our guide to things to do in Riga.
Riga’s claim to the first Christmas tree
Riga claims the world’s first documented, decorated Christmas tree, a claim the city marks with a stone plaque at RÄtslaukums rather than at the Christmas market itself. The plaque, installed in 2010 near the House of the Blackheads, reads “The First New Year’s Tree in Riga in 1510” in eight languages, based on 16th-century guild records describing merchants who decorated a tree-shaped wooden structure with dried flowers, fruit and straw ornaments before burning it. Tallinn, Estonia’s capital, disputes the claim and points to its own Brotherhood of Blackheads tree, raised in Tallinn’s Town Hall Square in 1441. Historians on both sides say the surviving records are too thin to settle the question, so Riga’s 1510 date should be read as the city’s own claim rather than an established fact.
History of the Riga Christmas Market
Riga’s Christmas-market tradition traces back to the city’s membership in the Hanseatic League, the medieval trading network that carried German Christmas-market customs across the Baltic. The current Dome Square market has run continuously since around 2000, with the City of Riga awarding the right to organise each year’s edition through a public tender rather than running it directly. Latvia‘s Christmas traditions extend well beyond Doma laukums if you have time to explore further afield during your stay.
What can you eat at the Riga Christmas Market?
Grey peas with bacon, a hearty pea stew topped with crispy bacon, is Latvia’s classic winter dish and the market’s most typical food-stall order. The other Latvian foods worth trying are listed below.
- Smoked fish. Smoked trout, carp or sturgeon are sliced fresh at market stalls and traditionally eaten on Latvia’s dense, dark rye bread.
- Roast pork with sauerkraut. Roast pork with sauerkraut pairs slow-roasted pork with the country’s staple fermented cabbage, often carved from a spinning rotisserie.
- Potato pancakes. Potato pancakes, called kartupeļu pankūkas, are usually topped with sauerkraut, bacon or smoked fish.
- Black bread. Black bread is Latvia’s dense rye loaf, sold by the slice with simple toppings like ham, cheese or herring.
What can you drink at the Riga Christmas Market?
GlĆ¼hwein, hot spiced red wine infused with orange, cinnamon and cloves, is the standard warming drink at the Riga Christmas Market, usually served in a keepsake mug. Riga Black Balsam, a bitter herbal liqueur made from a blend that includes valerian and oak bark, is Latvia’s other signature market drink, often mixed with hot water or tea to soften the bitterness. Hot chocolate and egg liqueur, a creamy vodka-and-egg-yolk drink similar to eggnog, round out the market’s usual drinks list.
What can you buy at the Riga Christmas Market?
Amber jewellery is Latvia’s most recognisable craft export, and the market’s jewellery stalls sell necklaces, earrings and rings made from Baltic amber, some with visible insect inclusions. Baltic linen, prized for its softness and durability, appears at several stalls as tablecloths, towels and clothing. Handmade soaps, beeswax candles and branded mulled-wine mugs round out the market’s typical souvenir stalls.
What’s near the Riga Christmas Market?
The House of the Blackheads, a 14th-century guild hall with Dutch and Flemish detailing, sits a short walk from Doma laukums toward RÄtslaukums. The Three Brothers, a row of medieval houses among the oldest surviving residential buildings in Riga, and the bronze Bremen Town Musicians statue are both within a few minutes’ walk of the market. Riga Cathedral itself, right on Doma laukums, holds services but also opens to visitors who want to see its pipe organ, one of the largest in Europe. Dresden’s Christmas market is a useful comparison if you’re weighing Riga against Germany’s older markets, since Dresden’s Striezelmarkt dates back to 1434, considerably older than Riga’s Hanseatic-era tradition.
How to get to the Riga Christmas Market
Riga International Airport (RIX), served by airBaltic and other European airlines, sits about 10 kilometres (6.2 mi) from Old Riga. A taxi from the airport to the Old Town takes around 20 to 30 minutes depending on traffic, and public bus route 22 also connects the airport to the city centre. Renting a car suits a trip that combines Riga with the wider Baltics, though Old Riga itself is compact and walkable once you arrive, so a car isn’t needed for the market itself. For train and coach connections around the Baltics and further into Europe, compare routes before you book.
Where to stay in Riga during the Christmas market
Grand Poet by Semarah and Rixwell Konventa SÄta Design Hotel both sit inside or beside Old Riga’s UNESCO-listed centre, within easy walking distance of Doma laukums. Wellton Riga Hotel & Spa adds a full spa and sports club a short walk further out, and Monika Centrum Hotel occupies a 19th-century Art Nouveau building on Elizabetes Street. Compare current rates and book a hotel in Riga before the market’s busiest weekends, or look at a Vrbo rental in Old Riga if you’d rather have a kitchen for the trip.
Where to eat near the Riga Christmas Market
Folkklubs Ala sits right on the market grounds and serves Latvian comfort food, such as beer-marinated pork ribs and smoked fish, with live folk music most evenings. Valtera Restorans, in a restored 19th-century building nearby, serves Latvian classics including duck breast and pan-seared salmon. Domini Canes puts a modern spin on Latvian cuisine with dishes like duck confit and crispy Riga sprats. Check current menus and hours before you go, since restaurant offerings change more often than the market does.
WonderfulWanderings Pro Tips
The 4 tips below come from LiveRiga’s own 2026-2027 listing and from the sources on either side of Riga’s first-Christmas-tree claim.
- Plan the trip around the holiday hours, not the standard ones. The market stays open through Christmas and into the new year: 10am to 8pm on 24 December, 10am to 9pm on 25 December, 10am to 10pm on 26 December, 10am to 2am on New Year’s Eve and noon to 8pm on 1 January, before closing for the season on 3 January 2027. The 2am finish makes Doma laukums a genuine option for New Year’s Eve rather than a daytime stop.
- Go to Doma laukums for the market and RÄtslaukums for the tree. They are two different squares a few streets apart, and older write-ups put the market in the wrong one. The stone plaque marking Riga’s first-tree claim was installed in 2010 near the House of the Blackheads on RÄtslaukums, not among the stalls.
- Ask for Black Balsam with hot water or in tea. Latvia’s bitter herbal liqueur, made with valerian and oak bark among other things, is served that way at the market rather than neat, which takes the edge off it and turns it into something you can drink outdoors for an hour.
- Treat the 1510 first-tree story as a claim, not a fact. Riga bases it on 16th-century guild records describing a decorated tree-shaped structure that was burned at the end of the celebration. Tallinn counters with its own Brotherhood of Blackheads tree of 1441, and historians on both sides say the surviving records are too thin to settle it either way.
About the author. This guide is written and maintained by the Wonderful Wanderings editorial team. Wonderful Wanderings was founded in 2012 by Sofie Couwenbergh, and the team covers Riga for independent travellers, including the hotels, restaurants and seasonal events worth booking, and updates this page whenever dates, locations or prices change.
