This is when Edinburgh Christmas Market will close in 2020

The Edinburgh Christmas Market has been a staple of Edinburgh festivities for many years, and this year was no different.

Have you been to the Christmas Market this year? (Photo: Shutterstock)

This is what you need to know as Christmas in Edinburgh begins to wind down, so you don’t miss out on the chance to visit the market one last time.

When does it close?

The market will officially close its doors on Saturday 4 January 2020, after opening on Saturday 16 November.

After its seven week run, that’ll be the last of the Christmas market we see until November 2020.

It has been open virtually every single day from 10am to 10pm.

Hogmanay opening times?

While the markets usual trading times are 10am to 10pm, these times have been revised slightly for Hogmanay and for New Year’s Day.

Today (31 December) the market will close at 6pm and on Wednesday 1 January, it will be open from 12pm to 8pm.

Christmas Market controversy

Councillors have ordered an internal investigation into the handling of the winter festival’s after anger erupted over the expansion of the Christmas market in East Princes Street Gardens without any planning permission being secured.

And concerns have been raised about why councillors were kept in the dark about the two-year extension to Underbelly’s contract until after it was signed off by senior officials.

But Edinburgh Evening News recently revealed that the council’s culture chief says it will not be able to cancel a legally-binding contract to allow Underbelly to stage the Christmas and New Year festivals for another two years.

Read Brian Ferguson’s full report on the controversy here.