Annual Christmas market with around 60 traders, food vendors, music, entertainment, and festive attractions including the Big Wheel and Ice Cube at Christmas.
Leeds Christmas Market returns to City Square from 19 November to 23 December 2026, with around 60 traders and food vendors from across Yorkshire taking up the square. It's run by Fabler and Co, the team behind THOR'S Tipi, and they're working with Real Markets Yorkshire, whose special cabins hold a rotating selection of artisan traders. Around 200 Christmas trees line the square, and the traditional Christmas Tipis are back on Victoria Gardens.
The market itself is Bavarian-styled, and there are two new bar areas to sit in. Beyond the stalls, the rides are spread across the centre: the Big Wheel on Victoria Gardens, the Golden Gallopers carousel on Cookridge Street, and the 30-metre-high Starflyer on Millennium Square. For kids, there's a new Elf Hunt trail to follow around the site.
Ice Cube at Christmas is back too, as a 400 square metre covered rink on Millennium Square, tucked under a transparent marquee. It runs with daily skating sessions, and there are dedicated weekend Penguin Club sessions for under-nines. The rink stays open until 31 December, a week after the market closes.
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Councillor Salma Arif, Leeds City Council's executive member for economy, says the festive programme draws tens of thousands of people into the city centre each year, and it returns after the previous edition drew mixed reviews. The market runs from 19 November to 23 December at City Square, LS1 2HA, with the ice rink continuing until 31 December.
