Skansen's Christmas market is the one that works best with small children: there is space, animals, fires and things to do beyond the stalls. The Stortorget Christmas market in Gamla stan is beautiful but cramped, and suits children from five, or a weekend morning before it fills up. The small markets in churches, schools and hembygdsgårdar (local heritage centres) are often the best for children under three. Allow an hour, whichever you choose.
The second Sunday of Advent, one o'clock, and you are standing at Slussen with a three-year-old in a pram and a five-year-old who wants hot chocolate. The plan was Gamla stan and Stortorget. In half an hour you will be standing in a crowd on cobblestones, the three-year-old can see nothing but backs and the five-year-old is cold. It can be done better, and it starts with choosing the market by the children's ages, not by which one looks prettiest in photos.
Which market suits which age?
| Market | Suits from | Pram | What your child does there |
|---|---|---|---|
| Local market in a church, school or hembygdsgård | Babies | Yes | Fishing game, raffle, gingerbread, slow pace |
| Skansen's Christmas market | 2 years | Yes, plenty of space | The animals, the fires, the dancing, the stalls as a bonus |
| Stortorget Christmas market | 5 years | Awkward, cramped and cobblestones | Look, smell, buy a bag of polkagrisar (peppermint candy sticks), move on |
Skansen: the one that works
Skansen's Christmas market has been running for over a hundred years and is the only big market we recommend to families with children under five. The reason is simple: Skansen is big. When your child tires of the stalls there are the animals, the fires, the houses and the slopes. You can go indoors to warm up, change a nappy and come out again. It is a day at Skansen with Christmas as a bonus, not a market you have to endure.
Come early in the day, ideally at opening, when it is quietest and your child is freshest. Check current dates and hours on Skansen's website, because the market is only held on certain days during Advent.
Stortorget: beautiful, but not for the littlest
The Stortorget Christmas market in Gamla stan is the one on every postcard, and it is lovely. But the square is small, the alleys are narrow, the ground is cobblestones and it is packed from lunchtime to evening every weekend in December. For a five-year-old who can walk on their own, hold a hand and choose a bag of polkagrisar, it is an experience. For a two-year-old in a pram it is half an hour of trouser legs and cold.
If you still want to go with small children: go on a weekday morning, take a baby carrier instead of a pram, plan twenty minutes on the square and the rest of the time somewhere calmer nearby. And have a plan for if you lose each other.
The small markets: often the best
Churches, hembygdsgårdar, preschools, schools and scout groups hold Christmas markets in November and December all over the Stockholm area. They are small, close, cheap and calm. There is often a fishing game, a raffle, lussebullar (saffron buns) and sometimes a tomte (Father Christmas) who is not too scary. For children under three it is just right: half an hour, a prize in the raffle, home again. Ask at the preschool, look at the noticeboard in your building's entrance or search the municipality's website.
Cold, pram and stamina
- Dress as for the forest. Wool next to the skin, padded overall, warm shoes, mittens, hat. Children in a pram get cold faster than children who walk, so put a blanket or footmuff in the pram.
- A flask of hot chocolate in the bag. It saves a queue and gives you a break.
- One hour. That is how long a preschooler finds it lovely. Leave before the tears.
- Something your child gets to choose. A bag of polkagrisar, a gingerbread biscuit, a raffle ticket. Decide beforehand that it is one thing, so you do not have to negotiate at every stall.
- Toilet before you go. At Stortorget there are none nearby that are easy to reach with children.
- Your phone number on your child's arm if you are going into a crowd.
Tomtar, lucia and what frightens
Many Christmas markets have a tomte, a lucia procession (the candlelit procession on 13 December) or someone in a mask, and what is cosy for a six-year-old can be frightening for a two-year-old. Never force a meeting with tomten. Let your child watch from a distance, in your arms, and move on if they do not want to. The same goes for fires, loud noises and crowds: a child who gets scared at a market does not want to go back next year. Just enough is better than memorable.
How to plan the day
- Choose the market by your youngest child, not by your own taste. The older one has fun at Skansen too.
- Go at opening and plan an hour, perhaps an hour and a half with a fika (coffee and a bun) break.
- Eat beforehand, so you are not queueing for a hot dog with a hungry child.
- Decide on one thing your child may buy and say so on the way there.
- Have a back-up plan for when your child tires: a warm place nearby, a bus home, a book in the bag.
Christmas spirit without a market
Everything children love about Christmas markets exists elsewhere too: the Christmas window displays in the streets, the tree on the square, baking gingerbread at home, candles in the windows and Christmas crafts for children at the kitchen table. A walk through the city centre on a dark December afternoon, with the lights on and a bun in hand, often gives a three-year-old more Christmas feeling than any market. And it is free.
How we do it with our families
Doaa has a family in Sundbyberg with a two-year-old and a four-year-old, and last year she took them to Skansen's Christmas market on a Friday morning while the parents worked. They arrived at opening, started with the animals while it was quiet, went to the stalls when the children were warm and content, and sat indoors with hot chocolate before heading home for the two-year-old's nap. The note said what the children had bought with their twenty kronor each and that the four-year-old had danced around the tree. The parents went to Stortorget on their own one evening the same week.
Our nannies are out and about with children in Stockholm every week: parks, libraries, swimming pools and playgrounds. Would you like someone to take the afternoons? Book a free first meeting with the nanny in your home.
Read more: Christmas holidays in Stockholm with children · Christmas crafts for children · Christmas with children · FAQ
Frequently asked questions
Which Christmas market is best with a two-year-old?
Skansen's, because there is space, animals and things to look at beyond the stalls, and because you can get away from the crowds. Stortorget is atmospheric but cramped, and a two-year-old in a pram mostly sees trouser legs. Check current dates on their websites, the markets are only held on certain days.
How long does a preschooler last at a Christmas market?
An hour, perhaps an hour and a half with a break for hot chocolate. It is cold, it is crowded and there is nothing to do except look. Leave while your child still thinks it is lovely, not when they are crying.
Can you bring a pram?
To Skansen, yes, with plenty of space. At Stortorget in Gamla stan it is cobblestones and crowds, and the pram becomes a burden. Take a baby carrier there, or choose a weekend morning before it fills up. Hang your bag on yourself, not on the pram, so it does not tip over in the crush.
What should we dress our child in?
As for a day in the forest in December: wool next to the skin, a padded overall, warm shoes with room for thick socks, mittens and a hat. Children sitting still in a pram get cold faster than children who walk. Bring a blanket for the pram and a flask.
Are there smaller Christmas markets that suit children?
Yes, churches, hembygdsgårdar (local heritage centres), schools and preschools hold Christmas markets in November and December, often with a raffle, a fishing game and gingerbread. They are small, cheap and calm, and they often suit the very youngest better than the big ones in the city centre. Ask at the preschool or look at the noticeboard in your building's entrance.