Gløgg Steam on Højbro Plads
It is the day after Christmas, and Copenhagen has not packed anything away. The wooden cabins on Højbro Plads are still lit, the air still smells of caramelised almonds and cardamom, and the crowds move slowly enough that you can hear the talking trees before you see them. Second Christmas Day — 26 December — falls inside the season for almost every market in the city, and it arrives without the December crush. Bundle up: temperatures hover around 0–5°C.
Start here, two minutes from Christiansborg's free observation tower, at the 2026 market themed on the Danish Realm — Denmark, Greenland and the Faroe Islands — with food, crafts and music from all three, and an interactive children's area where the trees narrate the Julius Klejne tale. It runs 14 November to 20 December 2026, so on the 26th you will find the square itself rather than the stalls. Plan your market days accordingly and treat the 26th as a day for what stays open.
What Is Still Running on 26 December
- Tivoli Gardens (Vesterbrogade 3, by Central Station) is the anchor of the day. Its Christmas season runs 13 November 2026 to 3 January 2027, so the 26th is squarely inside it — though the gardens close on 24 December, so the 26th is your first day back. Expect around 60 stalls, tens of thousands of ornaments, and the rides running. Hours are roughly 11:00–22:00 on weekdays and later Friday and Saturday. This is the only market in the city charging admission, from about 180 DKK and higher on busy weekends, with rides paid separately. You may bring your own food and non-alcoholic drinks.
- Nyhavn keeps its canal-side market among the 17th-century townhouses until 21 December, so on the 26th you come for the lights on the water and the facades rather than the stalls.
- Nytorv runs until 21 December, with large-scale 3D illuminated light displays projected onto the building façades after dark, alongside artisan goods, specialty spirits, coffee and handmade decorations.
- Gammeltorv, the smallest market, sits by Vor Frue Domkirke cathedral with each wooden cabin themed to a Hans Christian Andersen story and costumed Santa and Andersen characters wandering through. It closes around 20 December and takes only 20–30 minutes to see.
- Kongens Nytorv's "Winter Wonderland" centres on a roughly 1,300 m² public ice rink around the equestrian statue — the rink returned in 2024 after 16 years away. Market entry is free; skating runs about 70 DKK per hour including skate rental, with the rink open roughly 10:00–21:00 daily. Note that the stalls close on Mondays.
Eat Your Way Around the Squares
The seasonal menu is consistent across the city, and the prices are predictable. Order gløgg — mulled wine with cardamom, cinnamon and cloves, almonds and raisins — for 70–100 DKK, with alcohol-free versions available. Add æbleskiver, the pancake balls dusted with icing sugar and served with jam, at 60–80 DKK, and a paper cone of brændte mandler, caramelised almonds, for 50–70 DKK. Pebernødder, the small spiced cookies, run 40–60 DKK.
For something more substantial, look for rød pølse or flæskesteg — red hot dog or roast pork in a bun — at 50–150 DKK; the flæskesteg turns up mainly at Rådhuspladsen and Kongens Nytorv. At Kongens Nytorv the food leans toward small plates from nearby restaurants. At Nyhavn, gløgg and treats run 80–100 DKK, and the narrow path gets crowded on weekend evenings — the south side of the canal is quieter. At Højbro Plads, food runs 50–150 DKK. Budget roughly 500–700 DKK for a day of free markets, two or three gløgg, a snack and a light meal; around 1,100–1,400 DKK if you add Tivoli entry, drinks, a proper meal and a small souvenir.
Timing Your Days Around the 26th
The city's markets are small and spread across five or six central squares rather than gathered into one fairground, which is what makes them feel local rather than staged. The trade-off is that they keep different calendars. The best window for seeing all of them open at once is the first two weeks of December, when every market overlaps; by the 26th, several have already closed for the season. Weekday evenings after 17:00 are the quietest hours, and the ice rink at Kongens Nytorv is open daily from around 10:00 to 21:00. If your trip is built around 26 December specifically, make Tivoli your centrepiece and use the surrounding days for the squares that close on or around 20–21 December. Dates for Kongens Nytorv, Nyhavn, Gammeltorv and Nytorv follow their usual seasons rather than published 2026 dates, so check locally before you commit an evening to any one of them.
Build the Trip Around the 26th
Book Tivoli entry for the 26th and let the rest of the itinerary arrange itself around the squares within walking distance of each other — Højbro Plads and Christiansborg's observation tower, Nytorv two minutes from Gammeltorv, Nyhavn a short walk beyond. Go early in the day for the markets that close before Christmas, and save your evenings for the light displays on Nytorv and the rink at Kongens Nytorv. Copenhagen in late December is cold, dark by mid-afternoon, and entirely built for this — which is precisely why the day after Christmas works so well.