Zagreb, City of Zagreb, Croatia
Advent in Zagreb
A city-wide Advent festival through Zagreb's Upper and Lower Towns — running past Christmas to 7 January.
- Dates
- 28 Nov 2026 – 7 Jan 2027
- Opening hours
- Not yet published for 2026
- Admission
- Free entry
- Address
- Ban Jelačić Square, Strossmayer Promenade and Upper Town, Zagreb
Dates last checked 3 October 2026 · source · Always confirm with the organiser before travelling.
Advent in Zagreb isn’t a single market but a festival that spreads across the Croatian capital: stalls, lights, music and food stands on the main square, up in the Upper Town and along the promenades, plus smaller events in the city’s districts. It runs well past Christmas, into January.
Dates for 2026
Advent in Zagreb 2026 officially opens on Saturday 28 November 2026 and runs until Thursday 7 January 2027. Stallholders have a “warm-up” period from 25 to 27 November, before the official opening.
The dates come from the official call for exhibitors issued by the City of Zagreb, the Zagreb Tourist Board and the Public Institution Nature of the City of Zagreb, as reported by the Croatian news site tportal. The full programme and opening hours haven’t been published yet.
Where it happens
The call for exhibitors names the main locations:
- Ban Jelačić Square, the city’s main square
- Gajeva and Bogovićeva streets, just off the square
- both halves of the Strossmayer Promenade, the tree-lined walk along the edge of the Upper Town
- Plato Gradec, the terrace overlooking the Lower Town
There are also locations in districts including Trešnjevka, Novi Zagreb, Sesvete and Podsljeme.
Why people go
Zagreb’s Advent festival was voted Best Christmas Market in Europe in the European Best Destinations poll three years running, from 2016 to 2018. That brought it a wave of international visitors, and it’s still one of the most popular winter city breaks in central Europe. Expect it to be busy on weekend evenings.
Getting there
Ban Jelačić Square is the hub of the tram network. The Zagreb funicular, one of the shortest in the world, runs from Tomićeva street up to the Upper Town in about a minute. Franjo Tuđman Airport is around 17km from the centre, with a bus to the main bus station.
Make a day of it
Up in the Upper Town, see St Mark’s Church with its patterned tiled roof, the Stone Gate, and the Museum of Broken Relationships. Down below, Dolac market, just above the main square, is where Zagreb buys its fruit, vegetables and cheese every morning.
Whatever the forecast, you will be standing still outdoors in the cold for longer than you expect — see our guide to what to wear, and use What’s open? to see which markets are trading on the days you travel.