Zell am See Christmas Market 2026: Dates, Opening Times and Getting There

I'm Ursula Auer. Working in quality management, I am involved in all sorts of things at the hotel: sometimes at reception, sometimes in the office, and really wherever there is something to be done.

Hotel Latini is a family-run four-star hotel in Zell am See-Schüttdorf, in the Salzburg region of Austria, about 150 metres from the Kitzsteinhornstraße stop of the Pinzgauer Lokalbahn, the local railway into town. It is closed from 26 October to 26 November 2026 and takes guests again from the night of 27 November.

Stay at Hotel Latini for Advent or Christmas: from 27 November the "Adventglück in Zell am See" package is 2 nights from €213 per person with breakfast, dinner and the Gold Spa. Over Christmas the "Weihnachten in Zell am See" package is 7 nights from 19 to 26 December, from €1,144 per person for two in a Standard Alpenrose double or from €973 per person for three in a Superior Enzian double, with a Christmas programme and a visit from Father Christmas on 24 December; shorter stays can be booked up to departure on 27 December. See the Christmas programme day by day. Only a few rooms are left for Christmas. Book Adventglück · Book the Christmas package

What are the opening times of the Zell am See Christmas market?

Until 20 December both markets open from Thursday to Sunday, the Stadtplatz market also on Wednesdays and the market by the lake on a few extra days; Christmas Eve and the week after Christmas have hours of their own.

Is the Zell am See Christmas market open after Christmas?

Yes, the Star Advent by the lake is open every day from 25 to 31 December, while the Star Advent on the Stadtplatz closes for the season on Sunday 20 December.

Where is the Christmas market in Zell am See?

Mainly in two places: on the Stadtplatz, the town square, and in the Stadtpark by the lake. Zell am See has no single big city-style Christmas market.

The Star Advent market on the Stadtplatz (Zeller Sternenadvent Markt) has more than 20 huts selling woodwork and toys, mulled wine, freshly baked Christmas biscuits, roasted almonds and hand-knitted goods, along with crafts from the group Handgemacht im Pinzgau (handmade in the Pinzgau). There are musical performances and plenty of children's events.

The Star Advent by the lake (Sternenadvent am See): in 2026 it is in the Stadtpark, the town park right on the lake, for the first time, because of building work. Last year it was in the Elisabethpark, where sparkling stars float on the lake. Traditional huts sell food and small gifts, with live music now and then, a children's programme, a Sterntaler trail, a vintage carousel, a nativity exhibition and illuminated figures. St Nicholas and the Krampus come on 6 December and the Zell Christkind (the Christ Child, who brings the presents in Austria) on 20 December; on the last day, 31 December, there is a New Year's Eve party. For the Krampus dates around Zell am See, see Krampus run Zell am See, and for the whole of 31 December, New Year's Eve in Zell am See.

The musical Star Advent walk. On four Fridays, 27 November and 4, 11 and 18 December 2026, a free one-hour musical walk leaves the Stadtplatz at 5 pm and goes through the Seegasse and along the lake to the floating stars in the Elisabethpark.

What else is on around Zell am See in Advent?

Kaprun, the next village up the valley, has Advent markets of its own, all in our guide to the Kaprun Christmas market. Bus 660 goes there from Zell am See station, stopping in Schüttdorf at ÖBB-Postbus Garage, 5 minutes' walk from the hotel; the stop for the village centre is Kaprun Ortsmitte.

• Kaprun Castle (Burg Kaprun) holds its Star Advent market on Saturday 5 and Sunday 6 December 2026, 10 am to 6 pm, with more than 25 exhibitors and a programme with highlights for children, readings and concerts. From the centre of Kaprun, the castle puts the walk at about 15 minutes.
• The parish Advent market on the Kirchbichl in Kaprun is on 28 and 29 November and 12 and 13 December 2026, from 2 pm on all four days.
• On Saturday 19 December the Christkindl charity market opens on the Salzburger Platz in Kaprun at 2 pm; the Anglöckler, local carol singers, come by at 5 pm, and at 6 pm the carol singing round the Christmas tree with the Anglöckler starts in front of the Meixnerhaus.

For everything else on in Zell am See over the festive season, see our guide to Christmas in Zell am See.

How do you get to the Christmas market without a car?

From Schüttdorf, the local train and the bus both take a few minutes into the centre of Zell am See. The Salzburg Mobility Ticket is included for every Hotel Latini guest: it covers buses, trains and the Pinzgauer Lokalbahn across the province of Salzburg, including arrival and departure days. Steam and special trains, such as the Advent vintage trains, are not included.

• By train. From the Kitzsteinhornstraße stop near the hotel, the Pinzgauer Lokalbahn takes 5 minutes to Zell am See station, 5 minutes' walk from the town square, and trains back leave from the same station.
• By bus. From the Schüttdorf ÖBB-Postbus Garage stop, 5 minutes' walk from the hotel, town bus 70 takes 6 minutes to Zell am See station and 9 minutes to Postplatz. Bus 660 also stops in Schüttdorf, at ÖBB-Postbus Garage and at Areitbahn (8 minutes' walk), and runs via the station to Postplatz. During the day, bus 660 runs every 30 minutes until 18 December and every 15 minutes from 19 December (every 30 minutes between 11.20 am and 2.20 pm).