Questions about Christmas 2026

The 1st Advent is on 29 November 2026. The big Christmas markets open in late November or early December: Winter Wonders in Brussels runs from 27 November to 3 January according to its official site. On Evenitto the season runs from 20 November to 6 January 2027, Epiphany.

Christmas Eve is on Thursday 24 December and Christmas Day on Friday 25 December. New Year's Eve is on Thursday 31 December and New Year's Day on Friday 1 January. For Flemish schools the Christmas holiday runs from Monday 21 December to Sunday 3 January.

Sinterklaas is on 6 December, a Sunday. In the night of 5 to 6 December the Sint brings presents to the children who put out their shoe. Sinterklaas parties and shows are not part of the Christmas programme on Evenitto, but Christmas performances for children are.

Johann Sebastian Bach's Christmas Oratorio (Weihnachtsoratorium) is made of six cantatas for the feast days from Christmas to Epiphany. Usually only three are played in one evening, cantatas I to III, which is a good two hours of music.

The Nutcracker is a ballet by Pyotr Tchaikovsky after E.T.A. Hoffmann's story 'The Nutcracker and the Mouse King', first staged in 1892 in Saint Petersburg. In Advent ballet companies and touring productions dance it in theatres; sometimes there is a concert version or a narrated programme for children.

A Christmas performance for children is a story or show for children and families in the weeks before Christmas, in theatres and cultural centres. The recommended age is on the performance's page.

No. For Belgium Evenitto does not keep a calendar of the Christmas markets yet. Markets are here when they are announced with a date as an event. The dates and opening hours of the market in your city are with the city or the organiser.

Entry to most Christmas markets is free, and many churches, choirs and cities invite you to Advent concerts and sing-alongs for free or by donation. What Evenitto knows is on the Free page.

For Christmas concerts, The Nutcracker and Christmas shows it is worth it: popular dates in the weeks before Christmas often sell out early. Every event's page links to the ticket sale.