Alt-Rixdorfer Christmas Market

Rixdorf – the Bohemian Village in Berlin

Rixdorf is now a district in the north of the Neukölln borough – but historically it was an independent village where Bohemian religious refugees were allowed to settle in 1737 under Frederick William I of Prussia. The Bohemian Village around Richardplatz remains an astonishingly intact village island in the middle of the big city: half-timbered houses, a historic village smithy, the Bethlehem Church (a Moravian Church), the Comenius Garden, and a village green that has never lost its function. This very green is the stage for the Alt-Rixdorfer Christmas Market.

Over 200 Stalls – Exclusively Non-Profit

What fundamentally distinguishes the Alt-Rixdorfer Christmas Market from all other Berlin Christmas markets is the stall allocation: all stalls are operated exclusively by non-profit associations, church communities, school support groups, scouts, and social initiatives. There are no commercial traders. This is part of the concept and guarantees a selection that you won't find at any other Berlin market: handmade nativity scenes, homemade cookies, knitted socks, painted cards, children's toys from workshops, international specialties from diaspora associations.

Petromax Lighting Instead of the Power Grid

Electricity is forbidden on the market grounds. Lighting is provided exclusively by gas lanterns and around 300 Petromax lamps – those pressurized gas lamps that emit the warm, slightly hissing light of old railway station and naval lamps. This is more than just romance: it's a consistent aesthetic statement that immerses the market in an unusual atmosphere and makes it one of the best stages for sensory perception in Berlin's pre-Christmas season.

Music, Pony Rides, Camels, and Carriages

Over 15 music groups perform alternately on the small market stage and move through the rows of stalls: church choirs, brass ensembles, singer-songwriters, international folklore. Pony rides for children are a permanent fixture. On the Sunday of the Christmas market – another hallmark – camels are presented: a nod to the Three Wise Men from the East. In addition, horse-drawn carriages from Berlin and Brandenburg display their historic wagons.

History and Sponsorship

The event is organized by the Stiftung Brüdergemeine in Rixdorf in cooperation with the association Bohemia Berlin e.V. The market dates back to the Bohemian tradition of the Moravian Church, which settled in Rixdorf in the 18th century. In 2025, it was held for the 51st time – its continuity thus stretches back almost half a century. In the state of Berlin, the Alt-Rixdorfer Christmas Market is considered the most atmospherically dense and conceptually rigorous Advent market – and precisely for this reason, the most beautiful.