Shopping Sundays in Essen

The finder shows Essen’s next released Sundays with district and festival, based on your device’s date.

Essen: next shopping Sunday

Sun 8 November

in 10 days: Essen, Stadtteil Steele, 13-18 Uhr

Dates, from Thu 29 October8
Towns with a date1
Maximum in North Rhine-Westphalia8 a year (LÖG NRW)
List checked on29 October 2026

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Time left until Essen, Stadtteil Steele, 8 November 2026

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Essen, from Thu 29 October: dates with area, occasion and official source
DateTownAreaOccasionHoursSource
Sun 8 NovemberEssenStadtteil SteeleEröffnung 50. Steeler Weihnachtsmarkt13-18 UhrStadt Essen
Sun 29 NovemberEssenStadtteil AltenessenAdventsmarkt13-18 UhrStadt Essen
Sun 29 NovemberEssenStadtteil BorbeckBorbecker Lichtwochen mit Weihnachtsmarkttag13-18 UhrStadt Essen
Sun 29 NovemberEssenStadtteil KupferdrehAdventszauber13-18 UhrStadt Essen
Sun 29 NovemberEssenStadtteil Steele50. Steeler Weihnachtsmarkt13-18 UhrStadt Essen
Sun 29 NovemberEssenStadtteil Werden44. Werdener Weihnachtsmarkt13-18 UhrStadt Essen
Sun 13 DecemberEssenEssener Innenstadt54. Internationaler Weihnachtsmarkt Essen13-18 UhrStadt Essen
Sun 13 DecemberEssenStadtteil Rüttenscheid23. Wintermarkt13-18 UhrStadt Essen

Prepared by Radif Partners · Method · acts and ordinances checked on 29 October 2026

Essen has more shopping dates than any other town on our list: 26 entries in 2026, spread over the centre and eight districts. The city issues a separate ordinance for each Sunday and each district and published them in two batches in the official gazette, in February and July. The centre opens for the Wintertraum in March, Essen.Original in May, the opening of the Lichtwochen illuminations in October and the International Christmas Market on the third Advent Sunday. Kettwig has four dates and Steele three, alongside Rüttenscheid, Werden, Borbeck, Altenessen and Kupferdreh. The first Advent Sunday, 29 November 2026, stands out: five districts open at once for their Christmas markets. Every date runs from 1 pm to 6 pm. No ordinance for 2027 had appeared by 29 October 2026.

Festivals with a long tradition

Many Essen occasions carry a number in their name: the 48th Steele wine festival, the 43rd Borbeck market festival, the 54th International Christmas Market. That is no accident. When reviewing a release, courts ask whether the festival itself draws the visitors, and a festival that has grown over decades meets that test more easily than a newly invented occasion.

So if you want to shop in Essen on a Sunday, you need to know where the festival is. On 13 September, for instance, Kettwig opens for its fountain festival and Kupferdreh for its sunflower festival, while the centre stays shut. The table shows the area for each date and links the gazette issue. Neighbouring cities: Dortmund and Duisburg.

Dates in 2026 in Essen

Shopping Sundays and holidays 2026 in Essen, as published by the town
DateAreaOccasionHoursSource
Sun 8 MarchEssener Innenstadt3. Essener Wintertraum13-18 UhrStadt Essen
Sun 22 MarchStadtteil WerdenHolländischer Stoff- und Tuchmarkt13-18 UhrStadt Essen
Sun 12 AprilStadtteil Rüttenscheid6. Retro Classic13-18 UhrStadt Essen
Sun 19 AprilStadtteil AltenessenFrühlingsfest13-18 UhrStadt Essen
Sun 19 AprilStadtteil Kettwig10. Kettwiger Frühlingsfest13-18 UhrStadt Essen
Sun 19 AprilStadtteil Steele25. Gilde der Marktschreier13-18 UhrStadt Essen
Sun 10 MayEssener Innenstadt28. Essen.Original13-18 UhrStadt Essen
Sun 10 MayStadtteil Kettwig4. Kettwiger Weinfest13-18 UhrStadt Essen
Sun 17 MayStadtteil Steele48. Steeler Weinfest13-18 UhrStadt Essen
Sun 14 JuneStadtteil Rüttenscheid12. Rüttenscheider Kunstmeile13-18 UhrStadt Essen
Sun 14 JuneStadtteil WerdenWerden swingt13-18 UhrStadt Essen
Sun 5 JulyStadtteil Borbeck27. Borbecker Weinfest mit dem 12. Borbecker Classic Day13-18 UhrStadt Essen
Sun 6 SeptemberStadtteil Borbeck43. Borbecker Marktfest13-18 UhrStadt Essen
Sun 13 SeptemberStadtteil Kettwig30. Brunnenfest13-18 UhrStadt Essen
Sun 13 SeptemberStadtteil Kupferdreh42. Sonnenblumenfest13-18 UhrStadt Essen
Sun 20 SeptemberStadtteil AltenessenStadtteilfest mit Herbstkirmes13-18 UhrStadt Essen
Sun 25 OctoberEssener InnenstadtEröffnung der Essener Lichtwochen13-18 UhrStadt Essen
Sun 25 OctoberStadtteil KettwigKürbisfest13-18 UhrStadt Essen
Sun 8 NovemberStadtteil SteeleEröffnung 50. Steeler Weihnachtsmarkt13-18 UhrStadt Essen
Sun 29 NovemberStadtteil AltenessenAdventsmarkt13-18 UhrStadt Essen
Sun 29 NovemberStadtteil BorbeckBorbecker Lichtwochen mit Weihnachtsmarkttag13-18 UhrStadt Essen
Sun 29 NovemberStadtteil KupferdrehAdventszauber13-18 UhrStadt Essen
Sun 29 NovemberStadtteil Steele50. Steeler Weihnachtsmarkt13-18 UhrStadt Essen
Sun 29 NovemberStadtteil Werden44. Werdener Weihnachtsmarkt13-18 UhrStadt Essen
Sun 13 DecemberEssener Innenstadt54. Internationaler Weihnachtsmarkt Essen13-18 UhrStadt Essen
Sun 13 DecemberStadtteil Rüttenscheid23. Wintermarkt13-18 UhrStadt Essen

Dates in 2027 in Essen

Essen 2027: not yet published. As soon as the town announces its dates, they will appear here.

Is a 2027 Sunday possible in North Rhine-Westphalia?

North Rhine-Westphalia, Sunday, 28 November 2027

Can be released

Maximum per year8
Opening hoursfrom 13:00, 5 hours at most
Possible Sundays 202746 / 52
Who releasesthe local public order authority, by ordinance
Check any Sunday →

The state’s rules and its other towns: shopping Sundays in North Rhine-Westphalia.

Common questions

When are shops open on Sunday in Essen city centre?

Four times in 2026: on 8 March for the Wintertraum, on 10 May for Essen.Original, on 25 October for the opening of the Lichtwochen and on 13 December for the International Christmas Market, each from 1 pm to 6 pm. The other Essen dates apply only in single districts.

Which Essen districts open on the first Advent Sunday?

On 29 November 2026 Altenessen, Borbeck, Kupferdreh, Steele and Werden open for their Advent and Christmas markets, each from 1 pm to 6 pm. The centre opens not on the first but on the third Advent Sunday, together with Rüttenscheid for its winter market.

Why does Essen have so many shopping Sundays?

Because North Rhine-Westphalia counts the maximum per release area. Each Essen district stays below the limit, but together they add up to many entries. Each release has its own ordinance and occasion, usually a long-standing district festival. The city has published nothing for 2027 yet.

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Official sources for this page

Prepared by

Publisher of an independent calendar of German shopping Sundays that traces every date back to the town's own ordinance

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As of 2026, shop opening acts of all 16 states checked on