Four squares, one courtyard, and a promenade. The dynamic Freedom Square, the calm and peaceful Dominican Square, the romantic and stylish Old Town Hall courtyard, Vegetable Market with crafts, Moravian Square with a carousel, promenades through Brno. Don’t forget to look around and breathe in the atmosphere of many places, each of which has a Christmas atmosphere and is just different.
Freedom Square
The dynamic and lively “Svoboďák” is a place for meeting, entertainment, and building new friendships, and it’s no different during Advent. Besides the Christmas tree, you’ll see a Christmas tram passing through and a stylish refreshments area shaped like a star on the fountain. A popular nexus is the Zimní (Winter) bar offering punch, hot juice beverages, and ginger drinks. In addition to international specialities, the market offers representatives of the famed Brno food scene, and if you want to taste Brno, you should do so at this market.
The daily cultural and musical programme will warm the entire square – so even in winter Brno will live up to its title as a UNESCO City of Music. The stands will also be varied. You can taste a number of specialities at the market: Wallachian frgáls, French delicacies, American pancakes, Mexican cuisine, exotic fruit, and much more. There will also be stands with products that can be gifts under the tree for your loved ones.
Dominican Square
This square is a clear choice if you’re heading to Brno Christmas with your kids or grandkids. It’s domi-nated by Halouzka’s wood nativity scene, one of the largest hand-made nativity scenes in Central Eu-rope including 100 characters. With a background of the New Town Hall and the Church of St Michael, it’s a truly romantic scene.
Near the nativity scene, your young ones can write to Ježíšek and put their letters in the wooden Ježíšek postbox. Meanwhile, parents can calmly choose something from the food stands. A cultural pro-gramme is prepared for everyone on a small stage with the main focus on chamber concerts. Music at weekends is complemented by regular stories for kids and creative workshops in the Jalta arcade.
Old Town Hall courtyard
Modern design and original gifts from local brands can be found in the Old Town Hall courtyard. De-cember Design Days will be going on for the entire time. You can invest into sustainable fashion and support local artists. Each week will be different, so you should come by more than once. It will all be presented by the artists behind modern accessories, jewellery, clothes, porcelain, and more.
The Old Town Hall courtyard will be decorated by a grand wooden star from the VISUALOVE studio that has become, together with the nearby illuminated B R N O sign, a popular Brno Christmas spot for pho-tos. Every Monday and Tuesday, the atmosphere by the star is completed with the trumpeting of carols.
Vegetable Market
Like in previous years, Advent on Vegetable Market will be traditional, artisanal, and calm, with a large Christmas tree. From Wednesday to Sunday, the stage will host a programme of live music from at least 16:00 to 20:00. To support a family atmosphere, children and students from nursery and primary schools will be given lots of space on stage. You’ll find 109 stands on Vegetable Market, more than half of which will offer artisanal goods, including ceramics, bath salts, and Christmas decorations, and you can meet blacksmiths, candle makers, soap makers, bell founders, and even bookbinders, whose crafts will certainly make a nice gift under the tree. The offer is complemented by stands with food and drink.
Moravian Square
Advent calls visitors to Jobst, where stands with artisanal goods and non-profits will return along with a round bar and a carousel to entertain children. After a break, Advent will also return to Moravian Square, the renovation of which is planned to finish at the start of November. If all goes according to plan, visitors will once again be able to ride a Ferris wheel on the square. The park will be filled with stands with products from non-profits and light refreshment, and there will definitely be as many popu-lar lights in the park as visitors were used to.
Brno promenade
You can enjoy the Advent atmosphere of Brno not only in busy squares and courtyards, but also in the streets. Every year, these are festively lit with Christmas lights, and you can promenade through Brno and get to know new areas. This year, you can also admire the brand new illuminated garlands from VISUALOVE, which won a competition with them. Their design most effectively represented the identity of Brno.
