Christmas in Kutná Hora

When is the Kutná Hora Christmas market in 2026?

On three Saturdays, 5, 12 and 19 December 2026, on Palackého náměstí in the old town. Stalls open at 11 AM, and the music starts at 3 PM.

The town of Kutná Hora runs the markets, listed as the Kutná Hora musical Advent and markets on Kudy z nudy, CzechTourism's events site. Palackého náměstí is the main square of the upper town, a few minutes on foot from Barborská street and the cathedral. Unlike Prague, this is not a market that runs every day for six weeks. Come on one of the three Saturdays, or you will find a normal square.

The calendar below puts the market days next to the dates that change a December trip. The first Sunday of Advent is 29 November, and Christmas Eve falls on a Thursday this year.

What is on at the Kutná Hora Advent market?

Craft stalls, demonstrations of old trades, workshops for children, a historic carousel and a music programme, plus sausages, cheese, mulled wine and mead.

The stalls sell handmade goods rather than mass-produced decorations, and some craftspeople show how they work. Children get creative workshops and a ride on the old carousel. From 3 PM the stage takes over, which is also roughly when the light starts to go.

For food, look for svařené víno, the Czech mulled wine, and medovina, a warm honey mead. Grilled sausages and cheeses fill the gaps. Bring cash in CZK for the smaller stalls. The prices are friendlier than on Old Town Square in Prague, and the crowd is mostly local.

Is St Barbara's Cathedral open at Christmas?

Yes, except on 24 December. In November and December it opens 10 AM to 5 PM, and in January 10 AM to 4 PM.

The cathedral is a working church, and its Christmas Eve closure is the only gap in its December hours. Tickets cost 180 CZK for adults, 140 CZK reduced and 60 CZK for children from 6 years, and children under 6 go free. An audio guide or a printed guide lets you go at your own pace, and you can stay as long as you like.

At Sedlec, the information centre that sells ossuary tickets on site is also closed on 24 December. If your trip falls in Christmas week, book the timed ossuary slot online or take a tour that includes it. Large shops close at noon on 24 December and all day on 25 and 26 December by Czech law, though small shops and restaurants make their own choices.

What is St Barbara's Day in Kutná Hora?

The feast of St Barbara on 4 December, patron saint of miners and of the cathedral. In a town built on silver, it is her day.

St Barbara was a natural choice for Kutná Hora, whose wealth came entirely from its mines. Building on the cathedral began in 1388 and finished only in 1905, and it is dedicated to her. In 2026 her feast falls on a Friday, the day before the first market Saturday.

Czech families keep a small custom on the day. They cut a cherry branch, called a barborka, and put it in water at home. If it blossoms by Christmas, the year ahead should be a good one. Florists sell the branches in early December, and it makes a lovely, if fragile, souvenir.

Hotel pickup in a minivan for up to seven, with the ossuary, St Barbara and the Sedlec Cathedral paid and lunch if you choose it.

★ 5.0 · 8 hours 30 minutes · from $155

Explore the small-group Kutná Hora day → Tour details

Can you combine Kutná Hora with Prague's Christmas markets?

Easily. Day trips are back in Prague by late afternoon, and the markets on Old Town Square and Wenceslas Square stay open until 10 PM every day.

Prague's two big markets run from 28 November 2026 to 6 January 2027, open daily from 10 AM to 10 PM. Smaller ones on náměstí Míru and náměstí Republiky start earlier in November and close on 24 December. Leave Prague in the morning, see the ossuary and St Barbara in daylight, and you are back as the market lights come on.

On a market Saturday you can have both: the stalls in Kutná Hora at lunchtime and Old Town Square after dark. The tour by train starts and ends at Praha hlavní nádraží, a short metro ride or a 15-minute walk from Wenceslas Square. Tours with hotel pickup drop you at your door, which is handy with shopping bags.

Which Kutná Hora tour suits a December day?

The train tour for a guided day at a fair price, or the small-group day for pickup, three churches and a warm lunch.

The tour by train is the flagship: 6 hours, from $80, with the return train, the local bus, a guide and both entries paid. Rated 4.6 from more than 2,500 reviews, it is the safest bet for a first visit. The coach tour covers the same two sights from the Old Town for $65.

The small-group day has only 18 reviews, all of them 5 stars. In December its route includes the open-air folk museum. One guest who went in December 2025 wrote that the guide "picked everyone up in a very comfortable van" and that "we arrived early to avoid the crowds, giving our group what felt like a private experience". For a festive lunch with a small group, the day with Czech lunch includes a meal and a drink in a medieval tavern, from $209.

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