Brussels Christmas Market Holiday: BEST Christmas Trips For Families

Which city has the best Christmas market?

There’s definitely no ‘best’ Christmas market, as each family will enjoy slightly different things! But popular opinion always puts the Brussels Christmas markets in the top 10 list of great Christmas trips for families! (And of course, we agree!)

Some of the other memorable Christmas markets in Europe include Budapest, Hungary; Cologne, Germany; and Vienna, Austria. These top destinations are sure to create the most magical vacations for families at Christmas!

Are Christmas markets good for kids?

Kids of all ages can experience and enjoy the magic and festivities of Christmas markets. There are great food stalls, shopping stalls full of games and toys, amusement park rides and ferris wheels! There are often also craft stalls where kids can be hands-on in creating Christmas activities. Visiting a Christmas market can make vacations for families at Christmas time more fun and memorable! 

Is Brussels good for family holiday?

We were pleasantly surprised at how much each of our kids enjoyed our Brussels Christmas market holiday! Many Brussels activities can be enjoyed year round. Plus, there were a LOT of festive things to do in Brussels with kids for the holidays! (And many of the activities were affordable, which made it easy to plan our Belgium family travel on a budget!) You can read about our full 3 day Brussels itinerary here!

Where is the Christmas market in Belgium?

There are several Christmas markets in Belgium, but the best ones are located in Brussels and Bruges. 

The Brussels Christmas markets are spread throughout the city center, bringing the entire city to life in a beautifully festive way. There are many different things to do in Brussels with kids that are both holiday related and that are open year-round. This means you won’t get overwhelmed with too much Christmas on your Brussels vacation. (Is that even possible??)

Bruges is a historic, old-fashioned town, visiting feels like stepping into a Christmas movie! The Bruges Christmas market is much smaller compared to Brussels. It makes an amazing day trip for anyone visiting Brussels! There’s also an incredible Bruges Christmas walking tour that REALLY makes the season come alive. (And since it’s one flat fee for your whole group, it’s easy to fit it into your travel budget!) 

If possible, visiting both places can really make vacations for families at Christmas feel magical and special.

Does Brussels have good Christmas markets?

The Christmas market in Brussels is very large and diverse. Many buildings are decorated with holiday lights and there are several Christmas trees throughout the city. And, as I said earlier, there are many fun activities and shopping choices as well! From old fashioned toys and hand-crafted winter hats to craft making and artistry, there are unlimited fun things to do in Brussels at Christmas. This makes a Brussels Christmas market holiday the perfect choice for Christmas trips for families with kids of all ages. 

I think it was even easier for us to soak up all of the magic because we stayed right in the city center in a gloriously affordable 2 bedroom apartment we found on Booking.com, so we were right in the midst of all of the decorations, market stalls, and activities.

How big is the Christmas market in Brussels?

There are over 200 different stalls and activities spread throughout the city. In fact, the entire city center becomes a large Brussels Christmas market holiday area. In addition, the Grand Place (main plaza) adorns their historic buildings with many lights, trees, and festive activities. 

This makes Brussels the perfect place to enjoy any Christmas vacation with kids, as there is so much to see and do. I’ll discuss some of the festive Brussels family activities in more detail down below, so keep reading for more!

How long should Brussels vacations for families at Christmas be?

There is a LOT to do in Brussels at Christmas! In fact, we spent 3 days in Brussels and left feeling like we needed to come back again because there was still so much left to explore and enjoy! (But, again, we did non-holiday activities, too!)

Brussels is a magical place for spending Christmas vacation with kids of any age. So it might be best to consider how long you typically stay when traveling with kids. Some kids can start to get restless and homesick after a few days, whereas other kids might beg to stay longer!

From our experience and those of other families we’ve talked to, the best family vacations at Christmas tend to last 4-7 days. 

That said, there are plenty of fun places in Brussels to visit. So you don’t have to worry about running out of fun things to do in Brussels at Christmas.

The Best Brussels Christmas Market Holiday Activities:

Since we only had the opportunity to stay for 3 days, there were a LOT of amazing things we weren’t able to squeeze into our Brussels Christmas market holiday. Nevertheless, we certainly enjoyed a fun filled 3 days in Brussels!

It certainly went down in our book of BEST family vacations at Christmas. (And this is coming from a Florida family with LOTS of Disney and theme park trips over the holidays! You can read our backstory here.)

Here are some of the wonderful activities we were able to enjoy during our Brussels Christmas vacation with kids:

Old-Fashioned Animatronic Candy Shop Stalls in Brussels

One of the favorite stops on our Brussels Christmas markets vacation with kids was the candy stalls! Not only was the old-fashioned candy (and some new-fashioned candy, of course) colorful, but the stalls themselves were a treat!

There were LOTS of colorful holiday lights adorning the decorative stalls. But the best part was the moving animals and figurines decorated throughout the stall’s background and roof! Everything felt so magical and Christmas-y! 

Our kids were in love with these stalls! Don’t worry, you’re sure to stumble upon one during your own Brussels Christmas trips for families! They are sure to bring the holidays to life for your kids!

Crafts, Toys & Activity Stalls On Your Brussels Christmas Trips For Families

There were a LOT of different shopping stalls throughout the entire Brussels Christmas markets area. And while us adults may enjoy seeing the gorgeously hand-crafted scarves, hats and sweaters, our kids had different ideas. 

They were honed in on the different stalls filled with toys (old fashioned and new!), games, and activities! There was face painting, caricature drawing and even craft sets! There are a lot of different things to keep our kids entertained. 

Taking some time for shopping during Brussels vacations for families at Christmas is definitely a must. 

Brussels Christmas Market Holiday Food Stalls

Another fun reason Brussels is one of the best family vacations at Christmas is the food! I don’t know about you, but one of the fondest memories of fairs and festivals growing up was the food! 

The Brussels Christmas market food stalls are full of yummy goodness, sure to add great memories to your Christmas vacation with kids! (Not to mention the many colorful candy stalls!)

What do they eat at the Brussels Christmas market? 

You’ll find plenty of waffles and chocolate, of course, in addition to sausages and fries. Belgian fries are actually called Frites, and are a thicker cut for delicious goodness. The sausages come in a variety of types, with lots of choices for toppings. There are also usually crepes, candies, and a variety of drinks to choose from. 

The most popular drink in Brussels at Christmas market stalls is actually a mulled wine / apple cider called Vin Chaud. It’s served warm, so it feels great drinking it on a cold evening. And they don’t forget to offer plenty of famous Belgian beers! But don’t worry, there’s plenty of non-alcoholic choices for kids to drink too.

We only explored the Brussels Christmas market food stalls for one of our three evenings in Brussels. And the restaurants we visited for the other two dinners were all incredible as well! Brussels really topped the list of our fave Christmas trips for families thanks to the food alone. (Although our holiday trip to NYC with kids was also beyond amazing and had delicious food as well!)

The Brussels Christmas Markets Ferris Wheel

One of the most spectacular parts of exploring the Brussels Christmas market was the ferris wheel. Although the Brussels Ferris Wheel, aka Grand Roue, is open year round, it looks especially breathtaking in the Christmas season! 

They line the plaza with market stalls, and the ground is covered with a lovely red carpet. This makes a spectacular view from up top, really bringing the holiday colors to life!

Just beyond the plaza, you can see the buildings throughout the Brussels city center. The entire scene feels like one of the Christmas trips for families you’d see in a movie or tv show! It was truly beautiful, and one of my personal favorite moments from our trip to Brussels with kids!

Spectacular Lights & Decorations Around the Brussels Christmas Markets

That brings me to my next favorite part of the holidays– decorations! Some of the best family vacations at Christmas involve an outing to look at Christmas lights, right? Brussels really takes this part of the holiday season seriously. (Even the Mannekin Pis has a cute little garland around the statue!)

Not only are buildings decked out in the most festive lights and garlands, but there is an incredible Sound and Light Show at the Grand Place each evening during the holiday season! You can see the schedule for the show here on their official website, and it’s totally free to attend and enjoy! 

But perhaps the funnest piece of holiday decor that our kids enjoyed in Brussels was the hanging lights display they had in one of the smaller squares. (There’s LOTS of decor you can walk through throughout the city.) We stumbled upon it during the day, and our kids STILL thought it was the coolest thing to walk through! 

I think one of the most amazing parts of getting to travel with kids is seeing how magical things can be through their eyes! Everything is so full of wonder, and this can be even more true during the holiday season.

In fact, I love it so much, I created a fun Holiday Decor scavenger hunt game you can download for FREE and use right on your phone to really make any Christmas vacation more fun for the whole family! 

If Brussels is on your list of upcoming Christmas trips for families, you can easily plan an entire evening just wandering around the city center enjoying the lights, topping it off with the Sound and Light show in Grand Place.

There were LOTS of other activities you can enjoy in Brussels that we didn’t have time to explore as well! Brussels (and Belgium in general) vacations for families at Christmas are truly so wonderful, and we can’t wait to go back! 

Comment down below and let us know what YOUR favorite Christmas trips for families have been! And, if you have any tips or questions, please comment those too! 

Wishing you the most magical holiday season ahead, and catch you in the next post!