Christmas Town Valkenburg (Kerststad Valkenburg) 2026 runs from 13 November 2026 to 3 January 2027. Its two famous underground markets, in the Gemeentegrot (Municipal Cave) and the Fluweelengrot (Velvet Cave), are open from 13 November to 30 December 2026, and the Christmas parade winds through the old town from 14 November. Entry to the caves is by timed ticket bought online in advance; tickets are issued by date and half-hour arrival slot, and a visit takes about an hour to an hour and a half per cave. In 2025 the event was voted Best Christmas Market in the Netherlands and its parade Best Christmas Parade in Europe.
Valkenburg aan de Geul is a small resort town in South Limburg, 15 km east of Maastricht, built over a honeycomb of old marl quarries. At Christmas the whole town turns into one event: markets under the hills, a nativity under the castle, light parades in the streets and a sand-sculpture show. It is ideal for families, for a day trip from Maastricht, Aachen or Liège, and for anyone who has done the outdoor markets and wants something different. It is also very busy: book the caves first and plan the rest around your slots.
Stalls and lights in the Gemeentegrot, the Municipal Cave market. Image: Superbass, CC BY-SA 4.0, via Wikimedia Commons.
The Gemeentegrot: Europe's largest underground Christmas market
The Gemeentegrot, the Municipal Cave, is a former marl quarry cut into the hillside at the edge of the town centre. The organisers bill its Christmas market as the largest underground Christmas market in Europe. Stalls line the cave galleries, selling decorations, ornaments, handmade gifts and seasonal food, among lit scenes and hundreds of lights. The cave also served as a hiding place during the Second World War and, later, as a fallout shelter.
The entrance to the Gemeentegrot in the town centre, photographed out of season. Image: Romaine, CC0, via Wikimedia Commons.
In 2025 adult tickets cost €9 from Monday to Thursday and €10 from Friday to Sunday, with children aged 5 to 11 at €5 and €6; children up to four go free but still need a reserved ticket. The 2025 hours were roughly 10am or 11am to 7pm, with shorter hours on Christmas Eve, Boxing Day and 30 December and the market closed on Christmas Day. Check the 2026 prices and times in the official ticket shop.
Practical info: Gemeentegrot, Cauberg, Valkenburg, about a 10-minute walk from Valkenburg station. 13 November–30 December 2026. Timed tickets online only; a 30-minute arrival window, then stay as long as you like (plan 1–1.5 hours). Wheelchair accessible. No dogs underground.
The Fluweelengrot: the Velvet Cave under the castle
The Fluweelengrot lies beneath the ruins of Valkenburg Castle, and its passages once connected to the castle above as escape routes. The Christmas market here has more than 50 stalls set along tunnels decorated with historic charcoal drawings on the walls and nativity scenes. It is smaller and a little calmer than the Gemeentegrot, and many visitors prefer its atmosphere.
Shoppers among the stalls of the Velvet Cave market. Image: Pitlane02, CC BY-SA 3.0, via Wikimedia Commons.
The Fluweelengrot also sells combination tickets: in 2025 the Velvet Cave market could be paired with Christmas at MergelRijk, the sand-sculpture show or the castle ruins at a reduced price.
Practical info: Fluweelengrot, Daalhemerweg, below the castle ruins, about 10 minutes on foot from the station. 13 November–30 December 2026. Timed tickets online only; combination tickets available. Wheelchair accessible. No dogs.
The castle ruins above the Fluweelengrot. Image: Bj.schoenmakers, CC0, via Wikimedia Commons.
The Landal Christmas Parade and the streets
Between the caves, the old town is decorated from end to end. The Landal Christmas Parade, voted Europe's best in 2025, runs on selected evenings from 14 November to 30 December 2026, passing regularly through the old town with illuminated floats and music. The parade is free to watch from the street; check the dates and route on the official site, because it does not run every day.
Christmas lights on Grotestraat in the old town. Image: Kleon3, CC BY-SA 4.0, via Wikimedia Commons.
Practical info: Parade route through the old town centre; free. Start at the Visit Zuid-Limburg Experience, Theodoor Dorrenplein 5, for maps, the parade schedule and local products.
Outdoor Christmas stalls in Valkenburg's centre in 2015. Image: Kleon3, CC BY-SA 4.0, via Wikimedia Commons.
Other underground and family attractions
Christmas Town is more than the two markets. The official 2026 programme lists:
- Christmas in MergelRijk (13 November–3 January): a 30-metre miniature Christmas story, Christmas films and 3D paintings on the cave walls. More of a show than a market; in 2025 adults paid €19.50 and children aged 3 to 17 €17.50.
- Winter Wonderland (13 November–3 January): an underground nativity scene, reached with a ride on the cable car, plus a curling alley new for 2026. In 2025 the cable car and Winter Wonderland cost €9.25 for adults.
- WinterGlow at the Pinten Pavilion (13 November–3 January): Santa's House and Christmas stalls.
- Amazing Sand (13 November–3 January): a sand-sculpture festival with international artists.
- Christmas Cavebiking (14 November–3 January): mountain biking through caves 40 metres underground.
- Route d'Amuse (13 November–3 January): a culinary walk on one of four routes, with an amuse-bouche at each of four restaurants.
- Christmas crib walks (6 December–3 January) through the nearby villages of Sibbe, Schin op Geul, Broekhem and Houthem-St. Gerlach.
Note that MergelRijk and Winter Wonderland are not accessible with a wheelchair, walker or pushchair; the two cave markets are.
Tickets: how booking works
Cave tickets are sold only online, in advance, in the official ticket shop, by date and half-hour arrival slot. You must arrive within your slot; once inside there is no time limit. Bookings are fixed and cannot be moved. If you want to see several attractions in one day, leave about an hour and a half per cave between slots. Group tickets are sold for parties of 20 or more.
Weekend slots in late November and December sell out first. If your dates are flexible, choose a Monday to Thursday: it is cheaper in the caves and much less crowded in the streets.
Getting there
By train is the organisers' recommended way in. Valkenburg station has regular trains (it is on the line between Maastricht and Heerlen), and from the station it is a 5 to 7 minute walk to the centre, about 10 minutes to either cave market and 15 minutes to Winter Wonderland and the cable car. In 2025 a promotional ticket offered train travel to Valkenburg from anywhere in the Netherlands for €5; check the official accessibility page for 2026 offers.
By car, use a park-and-ride and take the train for the last stretch, or buy an official parking ticket in advance. During Christmas Town the town's car parks charge a maximum of €12 a day, and the reservable spaces sell out. Weekend parking in the centre is notoriously hard.
Valkenburg station, a short walk from the centre and the caves. Image: Sneeuwvlakte, CC BY-SA 4.0, via Wikimedia Commons.
A day in Christmas Town: a sample plan
- Morning: take an early train and book the first Gemeentegrot slot of the day, when the galleries are at their emptiest. Allow an hour to an hour and a half.
- Late morning: walk through the old town to the Visit Zuid-Limburg Experience on Theodoor Dorrenplein for the parade times and a map, and have lunch in one of the cafés in the centre.
- Early afternoon: your second slot, at the Fluweelengrot under the castle, leaving an hour and a half after the first cave as the organisers advise. If you bought a combination ticket, add the castle ruins or MergelRijk.
- Late afternoon: the cable car to Winter Wonderland, or the sand sculptures, while it is still light.
- Evening: watch the parade if it runs that day, then take the train back to Maastricht for dinner.
Visiting with children
Christmas Town is built with families in mind. Children up to four enter the cave markets free (with a reserved ticket), and WinterGlow has Santa's House. The two cave markets are accessible with a pushchair or wheelchair, but MergelRijk and Winter Wonderland are not, so plan who goes where if you have a buggy. Underground, the galleries are crowded at peak times: hold small children's hands, and agree on a meeting point at the exit.
Coming from Germany or Belgium
Valkenburg is close to the borders. The organisers suggest planning cross-border journeys from Aachen or Liège with the Dutch public transport planner 9292, and on Dutch trains and buses you can check in and out with a contactless bank card or phone (OVpay), so you do not need a Dutch travel card. Drivers coming from Cologne and Aachen take the A79 and the Hulsberg–Valkenburg Centrum exit; from Liège and Maastricht, the Valkenburg–Houthem exit. Follow the yellow "Kerststad Valkenburg" signs and the traffic controllers.
Pair it with Maastricht
Maastricht is the natural base. Its own Christmas market, Magisch Maastricht on the Vrijthof, is listed for 27 November to 27 December 2026, with an indoor skating rink, a big wheel and free entry. See our Maastricht Christmas market guide. Spend the evenings in Maastricht, and take the train to Valkenburg for a morning cave slot when the town is quietest.
Where to stay
- Valkenburg itself: hotels and guesthouses on and around the Cauberg and the centre put you on foot for the caves and the parade; book months ahead for December weekends.
- Maastricht: many more hotels, a lively centre of its own, and a direct train to Valkenburg.
- Heerlen and the Limburg hills: quieter and cheaper, also on the railway line.
Food, drink and tips
The stalls sell glühwein and Chocomel (Dutch hot chocolate), bratwurst and reibekuchen (potato pancakes), poffertjes (small puffed pancakes), stroopwafels and Belgian waffles, and from late December oliebollen, the doughnuts the Dutch eat on New Year's Eve.
- Book the caves first, then plan the parade and the town around them.
- Arrive early in your slot: queues build at the entrances.
- Bring a layer for underground. The caves are sheltered from rain and wind but stay cool, and you will be inside for over an hour.
- Leave dogs at home or with someone outside; no pets are allowed underground.
- Go midweek if you can. The organisers themselves warn that weekends are very busy.
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