2026: Unique New Vendors | Two Big Winterized Tents with Floors!
The Sister Bay Historical Society has announced the dates for its 6th Annual Christkindlmarkt, or Christmas market. Christkindlmarkt will take place on three weekends in November and December, on Fridays, Saturdays and Sundays. This year’s dates are Nov. 27–29, Dec. 4–6, and Dec. 11–13.
Christkindlmarkt events are held throughout the world, especially throughout northern Europe, where their origin goes back to the 13th Century. Christkindlmarkt Door County is highly unique in that it takes place in an outdoor setting, rather than a large urban location, at the Sister Bay Historical Society’s Corner of the Past Museum on the outskirts of the Village of Sister Bay in Door County, Wisconsin.
Door County’s popular Christkindlmarkt showcases vendors selling handcrafted, mainly locally-made goods, plus food booths selling traditional German and Nordic street food and drinks. The first five Christkindlmarkt Door County events (2021-2025) were hugely popular and each drew more than 10,000 enthusiastic visitors. Besides the Sister Bay Historical Society, the event’s main sponsors are Nicolet National Bank, Door County Piggly Wiggly, Door County Medical Center, Peach Barn Farmhouse Brewery, Door Peninsula Winery, and Wisconsin Public Radio.
THE LOCATION
Christkindlmarkt Door County takes place on a rural 6-acre property on the southern outskirts of Sister Bay, the year-round home of the Corner of the Past Museum, which is owned and operated by the Sister Bay Historical Society. The event’s vendors, food service, drink sales and other activities are all housed either in one of the property’s historic wood buildings — many originally built in the late 1800’s — or in two large winterized and heated tents with floors. Yes, you read that right…for 2026, our tents will both feature floors for better retention of heat!
VENDORS
The event will once again be held at the Corner of the Past Museum, a rustic imagining of a historical pioneer homestead in the late 19th century. The event’s 45 artisan vendors include jewelers, photographers, painters, woodworkers, beekeepers, and glass blowers, plus makers of tree ornaments, glassware, clothing, hats, socks, scarves, handmade moccasins and alpaca items, furniture, toys, candles, leather goods, puzzles, specialized cookware and kitchen cutting boards, health/wellness products, and more. Christkindlmarkt will also feature The Bookshop, a Door County-focused bookstore featuring books by over 20 well-known Door County authors.
HOT FOOD & FOOD ITEMS
This year’s event once again has more locally-produced food and snack items than ever, including Kick Ash Products (granola & coffee), Milwaukee Pretzel Company, The Nut Man, Dickson Artisan Fudge, Literally Fabulous Candy, Uncle Tom’s Candy, Mister Burns Peppertorium (hot sauces), Island Popcorn Barn, Travelin’ Nuts, and Everlasting Eats.
Thyme Restaurant and McEvoy’s Culinaria will both serve reasonably-priced Northern European-inspired entrees, street food, side dishes and desserts in a ‘food court’ inside the property’s large Koessl Barn. For the first time, Culinaria will also staff a hut serving Raclette, the traditional Alpine dish and semi-soft cheese that originated with medieval shepherds in Switzerland in the 13th century.
Two well-known local food trucks — 888 Cheese Co. and Anatolia Cuisine — will also serve special menus from a location just outside of the entrance to the main vendor tent. Finally, in honor of the popular Christmas movie partially filmed on the Christkindlmarkt property in 2025, the Sister Bay Historical Society will be offering “Cherry Pie in a Cup” at the new Cherry Pie Shop, located in a former Blacksmith Shop next door to the Koessl Food Barn.
ACCESSIBILITY
A major 2025 change on the Christkindlmarkt property focuses on making the event’s walkways, paths, and gathering areas more accessible and safer for disabled attendees. “This event takes place outdoors during a northern Wisconsin winter, so there were a few accessibility issues for disabled attendees from the outset,” said John Lijewski, president of the Sister Bay Historical Society. “But we think we solved some of those issues last year, when we received a grant from the Door County Community Investment Fund (CIF) and used it to install an environmentally-friendly paving system on our property’s major walkways and gathering areas. The system has better traction than our previous raw gravel walkways and allows more water from snow and ice to slip into the ground before freezing in place. We’ve also continued to dedicate significantly more parking spots in our Vendor Parking Lot to attendees who have mobility issues.”
GLÜHWEIN
Christkindlmarkt events always feature hot mulled red wine, known as Glühwein in Germany and Glögg in Sweden. The Historical Society will serve its Glühwein from a special ‘drinks hut’ that will also serve hot chocolate and hot apple cider. Attendees have the option of purchasing their hot Glühwein in a collectible Glühwein mug that was designed by Sarah Koehler, a Door County watercolor artist and wellness products entrepreneur.
PEACH BARN FARMHOUSE BREWERY
Returning for 2026, Peach Barn Farmhouse Brewery is the event’s exclusive beer vendor, serving an array of beers from the Beer, Wine and Snacks tent just behind Christkindlmarkt’s Drinks Hut. Peach Barn is once again brewing a special Winter Ale for Christkindlmarkt, while Door Peninsula Winery of Carlsville will be offering samplings of its broad selection of fine wines in the same large tent.
ANDERSON HOUSE BAKERY
Anderson House, the refurbished late 1800’s home on the museum property, will again feature the popular pop-up bakery that debuted at the first annual event, and will offer a wide selection of decorated cookies, cardamom coffeecake, pecan rolls, pies, and other baked goods. A unique selection of new and gently used Christmas ornaments and decorations, plus vintage-style toys, will also be on display and for sale in Anderson House.
KIDS’ CRAFT CORNER
The popular Kids’ Craft Corner will return to the Christkindlmarkt Food Barn, with two Saturday children’s activities from 11am-3pm. Children can decorate and personalize a holiday ornament or write a letter to Santa Claus on printed stationery (Sister Bay’s USPS office has a special mailbox for their letters). All materials and art supplies are complimentary; children must be accompanied by an adult.
LIVE MUSIC
Live Christmas music, both instrumental and choral, will be performed outdoors at this year’s market. Check Sister Bay Historical Society’s Facebook page for the 2026 schedule of performances by the Gibraltar High School Jazz Combo, Gibraltar Middle School Choir, and the Zelnio Family & Friends Carolers. (On other days and times, recorded Christmas music will be a constant presence on the event property.)
THE CHRISTKIND
Like most Christkindlmarkts throughout the world, Sister Bay’s version always features a visit from the “Christkind,” which translates to “Christ child” in German. The Christkind’s origins go back to the Protestant reformer Martin Luther in the early 1500’s, and the Christkind is still the bearer of Christmas gifts to most children in German-speaking countries, just as Santa Claus is to children in the United States. This year’s Christkind will rotate among children from a local family on a regular schedule. Check the Sister Bay Historical Society’s Facebook page or the event website (doorcountychristmasmarket.com) for more details. At Christkindlmarkt, you can easily recognize the Christkind from her gold-and-white robes and the gold crown upon her blonde head.
PARKING
Corner of the Past Museum is located at the corner of Fieldcrest Rd. and Hwy 57 in Sister Bay (10310 Fieldcrest Rd.). Attendee parking is at three nearby Sister Bay locations, each with a large parking lot: the two free lots are at the former Shopko Hometown (2541 S. Bay Shore Dr.) and Stella Maris Catholic Church (2410 S. Bay Shore Dr.). Throughout the day and evening, buses will continuously ferry attendees from these nearby parking lots to the event, bringing people quickly back to their vehicles on a regular schedule. Finally, the Corner of the Past parking lot on State Hwy 57 is next to Thyme Restaurant, within walking distance of the event, and requires a $20 parking fee. Find the entrance to each of the parking lots by looking for the roadside signage.
If you are staying at any of the following Northern Door lodging facilities during Christkindlmarkt, a shuttle bus will pick you up at the front door of your lodgings and deliver you directly to the event property — SISTER BAY: Birchwood Lodge, Coachlite Inn, Country House Resort, Dörr Hotel, Open Hearth Lodge, Pheasant Park Resort, Scandinavian Lodge; EPHRAIM: High Point Inn
OUR SPONSORS
Christkindlmarkt Door County is organized and managed by the Sister Bay Historical Society as a fundraiser for its operations, especially its upcoming new History Center, the former Little Sister Barn. The event is presented each year with the assistance of its primary sponsor, Nicolet National Bank. Besides the Sister Bay Historical Society, the event’s main sponsors are Nicolet National Bank, Door County Piggly Wiggly, Door County Medical Center, Peach Barn Farmhouse Brewery, Door Peninsula Winery, and Wisconsin Public Radio. The Village of Sister Bay is also a major sponsor and has been one of the market’s biggest boosters from the beginning, assisting with traffic and parking control equipment, use of the Village shuttle, and other support.
