The Carmel Christkindlmarkt turns Carter Green into a German Christmas village from Nov. 21 through Dec. 24, 2026: 60 wooden huts, a 33-foot Glühwein pyramid, an ice rink in the middle of it all and a kids’ corner where the crafts are free. Admission and parking are free too, which is why it draws about 300,000 people a season and has won USA Today’s readers’ vote for the best holiday market in the country five times. It is the centerpiece of our holiday fun in Indianapolis guide for a reason.
The market is open Wednesdays through Sundays, with a few extra days the week of Christmas. Here is how to plan it with kids.
Carmel Christkindlmarkt 2026: Dates, Hours and What’s Free
- Dates: Saturday, Nov. 21, 2026, through Thursday, Dec. 24, 2026. Closed Mondays and Tuesdays except Dec. 21 and 22, 2026, and closed Thanksgiving and Christmas Day.
- Hours: Wednesdays and Thursdays 4 to 9 p.m.; Fridays and Saturdays noon to 9 p.m.; Sundays noon to 8 p.m.
- Extra hours: Wednesday, Nov. 25, 2026, noon to 9 p.m.; Monday through Wednesday, Dec. 21 to 23, 2026, noon to 9 p.m.; Christmas Eve noon to 4 p.m.
- Where: Carter Green, 10 Carter Green, Carmel, between the Palladium and the Tarkington
- Cost: Admission, parking, the shuttle, all of the entertainment and all of the kids’ activities are free. You pay for food, drinks, gifts and ice skating.
- Weather: Open rain or shine; the market closes only for sustained winds or gusts above 40 mph, temperatures that stay at 20 degrees or below, or a declared emergency. Closures post on its social pages.
What to Eat and Drink
Come hungry. The 32 food and drink huts are the heart of the market, and the lines tell you which ones to hit first.
- Raclette Chalet: melted Swiss-German cheese scraped straight onto bread. The Alpenlodge hut does the same thing over potatoes.
- Knödel & Champignons: dumplings with sautéed mushrooms in garlic cream sauce, plus frikadellen, a pan-fried meat patty.
- Das Pretzel Haus: Bavarian pretzels, giant pretzels and pretzel bites with dips.
- Schnitzel & Sauerkraut: the breaded pork cutlet, and Kartoffelspieß, a spiral-cut potato fried on a stick that kids treat as a trophy.
- Glühwein Pyramid: the 33-foot, 10-ton, 3,000-light pyramid was the first of its kind brought to the U.S. It pours seven flavors of mulled wine and Kinderpunsch, the warm kid-friendly punch, at $9 a mug, plus German beers at $7.
- The boot mug: Glühwein comes in the season’s collectible boot mug, a different design every year; this season’s is purple. It usually sells out in the market’s last week, so buy one early if you want it.
Shopping Worth Your Time
The 21 gift huts lean handmade and German: nutcrackers and incense smokers from the Erzgebirge, handmade glass ornaments from Lauscha, candle arches and Christmas pyramids, jewelry from the German designer Perlkönig, Black Forest cuckoo clocks from Hönes, Trenkle and Schneider at the Cuckoo Clocks hut, and papier-mâché Santas and ornaments from Ino Schaller. The souvenir hut sells the market’s own mugs, ornaments and snow globes.
Live Music and Special Events
The Winter Pavilion stage at the east end of the rink has live performances every day the market is open, from polka to brass to the Carmel Symphony’s quintet, with roaming performers between sets. The schedule includes Johnny Koenig on opening weekend, Duke Tumatoe (Nov. 28 and Dec. 4, 2026), the Mike Schneider Band (Dec. 12 and 13, 2026) and the Alex Meixner Band (Dec. 18 to 20, 2026). The Midwest Alphorns open the season Nov. 21 and 22, 2026, with six 12-foot Swiss alphorns.
- Wundernacht (Thursday, Nov. 19, 2026): the 21-and-over preview night. Sold out.
- Opening Ceremony (Saturday, Nov. 21, 2026, 11:30 a.m.) and the Tree Lighting (6 p.m.): the bell rings, the Christkind appears and Carter Green lights up.
- Sankt Martinstag Storytime (Wednesday, Nov. 25, 2026, 4 to 6 p.m.): the story of Saint Martin, told every 15 minutes in the Spielhaus with a picture book and parts for the kids.
- Sankt Nikolaustag (Saturday, Dec. 5, 2026, 5:30 to 7:30 p.m.): Sankt Nikolaus makes his grand entrance, and kids are encouraged to recite a poem or sing a song for him.
- German Sing-Along and Ornament Exchange (Wednesday, Dec. 9, 2026, 7:30 p.m.): bring a wrapped $5 to $10 ornament to trade. No German required.
- Glühwein Gallop 5K (Saturday, Dec. 12, 2026, 9 a.m.): all ages, costume contest, $33 through Nov. 2, 2026.
- Military Appreciation Day (Sunday, Dec. 20, 2026): ceremony at noon in the Winter Pavilion.
The Kinderplatz: What Kids Do Here
The children’s plaza off the main market is where a family visit stretches from one hour to three, and everything in it is free.
- Kinderecke (Kids Corner): a make-and-take craft every open day, plus cookie decorating on Wednesdays in December. Pick up a Kinder Club passport here, collect stamps at the huts and trade it for a small prize; older kids get a scavenger hunt.
- Spielhaus (Play House): the meet-and-greet cottage. Santa is in on Sundays from noon to 6 p.m. and Christmas Eve until 4, the Christkind and elves visit, Roz Puppets puts on shows, and princesses stop by on set dates (Anna and Elsa on Nov. 25, 2026, Belle on Dec. 21, 2026). Check the market schedule for the day you go.
- Werkstatt (Workshop): German artisans at work in real time. Toymaker students from Seiffen come Thanksgiving week, and glassblowers from Lauscha work Dec. 2 to 6, 2026.
- Kulturecke (Culture Corner): a small museum of Indiana’s German American history, built with the Indiana German Heritage Society and the Indiana Historical Society.
- Kugelbahn: a wooden marble run built through Carmel’s sister-city ties with Seiffen, Germany’s toy-making town. Santa’s red sleigh, also on the Kinderplatz, is the family photo spot.
Ice Skating at The Ice at Carter Green
The rink sits in the center of the market, so one parent can skate with the kids while the other holds the Glühwein. The season runs Nov. 21, 2026, through Jan. 31, 2027, a month past the market: Wednesdays and Thursdays 4 to 9 p.m., Fridays and Saturdays 11:30 a.m. to 9 p.m., Sundays 11:30 a.m. to 8 p.m., Christmas Eve 11:30 a.m. to 4 p.m., with extra openings Dec. 28 to 31, 2026, and no Wednesday sessions in January. It is closed most Mondays and Tuesdays for private rentals and on Thanksgiving and Christmas. Sessions are 90 minutes, every skater signs a waiver, and the market says tickets are not sold at the rink, so buy them online before you go. Lockers take cash only.
Skating is $11 for ages 11 and up and $9 for ages 10 and under, plus $4 for skate rental, and tickets are sold online by session at The Ice at Carter Green. For more rinks, see our guide to ice skating in Indianapolis.
Related Article: 9 Outdoor Christmas Markets and Christkindlmarkts in Indiana (2026)
Getting There and Getting Through It
- Parking is free in Carmel’s garages: Midtown North (145 Elm St.), Midtown South (580 Veterans Way), Civic Square (50 Red Truck Road), the Proscenium (1225 Veterans Way) and Sophia Square (31 1st Ave. NW).
- Ride instead: a free shuttle runs about every 15 minutes on Saturdays and Sundays during market hours from the former CNO Financial campus lot on College Drive, with drop-off on Third Avenue. The city’s free Carmel Holiday Trolley runs Fridays 5 to 9 p.m. and Saturdays 2 to 9 p.m. through Dec. 19, 2026. The Monon Greenway is lit from Carter Green to Main Street if you want to walk or bike in.
- Go early on a weekday. Wednesday and Thursday from 4 to 6 p.m. is the quietest window; weekend evenings are the busiest.
- Warm-ups: four heated barrel huts seat six with a 30-minute courtesy limit, and there is a nursing station at Hut 59.
- Money: vendors take cards and cash; there is an ATM near Hut 40 by the Tarkington entrance.
- Strollers and wheelchairs: the paths are brick pavers with curbs and cable covers, so bigger wheels help. Free transport wheelchairs are at the First Aid hut (Hut 37) with an ID.
- No dogs, except service animals.
The market is free, so it belongs on our list of free holiday festivals in Indianapolis, and it is a fixture of things to do this weekend in Indianapolis from Thanksgiving to Christmas Eve.
