Feeling festive this holiday season? Macon debuts enchanting Christmas market
The plaza in front of the Tubman Museum transformed into something out of a Hallmark movie as Macon’s first European-inspired Christmas market was set up Thursday evening, opening to the public Friday.
Visit Macon debuted “Marché de Noel,” a Christmas market stationed on Cherry Street Plaza at 370 Cherry St. The market will be another event tourists can enjoy once in downtown Macon during the holiday season, in addition to the Christmas Light Extravaganza, which lights up downtown every year.
“This market will allow the community to come together for a bit of shopping, drinking, socializing, and celebrating after a long year,” Marissa Rodgers, Visit Macon’s vice president and chief marketing officer, said in a news release. “And, this year is just the beginning!”
The Christmas market blends French, Bavarian and German culture and takes inspiration from a tradition that began in medieval Europe, with its first documented appearance in Vienna in 1296, according to Visit Macon’s news release.
It will be the first of many, with Rodgers indicating that they “will debut more and more traditions each year,” according to the news release.
A golden-haired fairy walks through the market
Vendors were stationed in wooden chalets, selling baked goods, vintage Christmas decor, gift baskets, flower arrangements, sandwiches with Alpine cheese scraped off a raclette, and more. While some businesses are local to Georgia, others came from outside the U.S. Bridget Sharon, manager of Winter Born Alpaca, sold scarves, beanies, and stuffed animals that used alpaca fur sourced from Ecuador and Peru — a one-of-a-kind product not typically found in Macon. The company is based in Calgary, Canada.
As customers walked through the cold breeze underneath the twinkling lights, a musician sang Christmas music on a stage at the end of the plaza. They carried hot chocolate and Gluhwein — a German mulled wine, also served hot — as they admired the vendors. A bar several feet in front of the stage served a variety of cocktails and other non-alcoholic beverages besides the mulled wine.
Traditionally included in Christmas markets all over the world, a golden-haired fairy known as the Christkind in German folklore will make an appearance on Dec. 10, Dec. 13, and Dec. 14. Much like Santa Claus, the Christkind is known for delivering Christmas gifts to children.
The market will be open from until Dec. 14. On Sundays, it will operate from noon to 8 p.m. From Monday through Thursday, it will be open from 4to 10 p.m. On Fridays and Saturdays, it will be open from noon to 10 p.m. Patrons can walk around for free and it will operate rain or shine.
This story was originally published December 5, 2025 at 12:19 PM.
