How to Do Strasbourg's Christmas Market as a Day Trip from the UK

Strasbourg calls itself the capital of Christmas, and UK searches for its market are some of the biggest of the year. The problem is getting there. No airline flies from the UK to Strasbourg, so most people book a coach tour or a weekend.

You don't need either. Fly to Basel, go north by bus and train, and you're on Place Kléber by lunchtime. Here's exactly how.

Step 1: which flight?

The cheapest day we've found is Wednesday 16 December with easyJet from Gatwick. Out at 07:45, landing at EuroAirport Basel Mulhouse at 10:25. Back at 21:20, landing at Gatwick at 21:55. £52 return, checked on 13 October.

British Airways also flies from Heathrow on Tuesday 15 December for £120, out at 07:20 and back at 19:30. That gives you less time in Strasbourg, so Gatwick is the one to go for. Check the Gatwick price for 16 December.

Step 2: how do you get from the airport to Strasbourg?

EuroAirport isn't on the railway, so take the Distribus bus 11 from the airport to Saint-Louis station. It takes about ten minutes and runs two to four times an hour. From Saint-Louis, the TER train to Strasbourg takes about 1h15.

Allow around two hours door to door once you've landed, including getting through the airport and waiting for connections. Check the train times on the SNCF TER Grand Est site the night before, because they change through the day.

Step 3: how long do you get in Strasbourg?

Land at 10:25 and you should be in Strasbourg by about 12:30. For the 21:20 flight home you want to be back at the airport by about 20:00, so leave Strasbourg on a train around 18:00. That's roughly five and a half hours in the city, by our reckoning.

It's not a long day, but the market is compact and it gets dark around half four, so you'll see it in daylight and lit up.

Step 4: what should you see first?

• Place Kléber and the big Christmas tree, the centre of it all
• Place de la Cathédrale, the oldest part of the market
• Petite France, the old half-timbered quarter by the river, ten minutes' walk away
• Place Broglie, the longest run of stalls

The market opens on Friday 27 November and runs to 24 December. Listed hours are 11:30 to 21:00, but the city is still finalising its programme, so check noel.strasbourg.eu nearer the time. Expect bag checks on the bridges into the old town and give yourself a few extra minutes.

Step 5: what if you run short of time?

Do Basel instead, or as well. Basel's own Christmas market on Barfüsserplatz and Münsterplatz runs from 26 November to 23 December, 11:00 to 20:30, and it's 20 minutes from the airport. If the trains go wrong, you've still got a Christmas market day.

Everything on Basel's markets is on our Basel Christmas market page.