A Swedish Christmas runs from Advent to mid-January with one day at its center, and that day is the 24th. Here is how the season runs, what happens on Christmas Eve, and what is open from Advent to the middle of January.
When you need this
- You will be in Sweden between late November and mid-January
- A Swedish family has invited you for Christmas Eve
- You wonder why everyone is watching Donald Duck at 15:00 on 24 December
- You want to go to a church service or a Christmas market
- You need to know what is open over Christmas and New Year
The season at a glance
The Swedish Christmas, jul, is a season rather than a day. It opens on the first Sunday of Advent, passes through Lucia on 13 December, peaks on Christmas Eve, julafton, and ends on tjugondag Knut, 13 January, when the tree comes down. Nordiska museet, Sweden’s museum of cultural history, calls Christmas Eve “the highlight of the Nordic Christmas tradition”.
Almost none of it is law. Swedish law decides only which days are public holidays, and it leaves Christmas Eve off the list, along with New Year’s Eve and 13 January. Everything else here is custom, and families vary it.
| Date (2026–27) | Day | What happens |
|---|---|---|
| Sun 29 Nov | First Sunday of Advent | First candle lit; window stars go up |
| Sun 6, 13, 20 Dec | Advent Sundays | One more candle each week; Lucia on the 13th |
| Thu 24 Dec | Christmas Eve | Julbord, Donald Duck at 15:00, presents |
| Fri 25 Dec | Christmas Day (public holiday) | Julotta early morning; quiet day |
| Sat 26 Dec | Boxing Day (public holiday) | Shops and museums start to reopen |
| Thu 31 Dec | New Year’s Eve | Half-day shops |
| Fri 1 Jan, Wed 6 Jan | New Year’s Day, Epiphany (public holidays) | Systembolaget closed |
| Wed 13 Jan | Tjugondag Knut | Tree out; Christmas over |
Advent: candles and stars in the window
Advent is the four Sundays before Christmas Eve. Each Sunday, one more candle is lit on a four-candle holder.
From the first Sunday you will see two things in Swedish windows: an electric candlestick, the adventsljusstake, and a paper star, the adventsstjärna. Both came from Germany and became common in Sweden in the 1930s; the paper star originated in the German town of Herrnhut in the 1880s.
This is also the season of glögg with gingerbread and saffron buns, lussekatter, which Swedes eat through Advent, Lucia and Christmas rather than on one day. Restaurants serve the julbord, the Christmas buffet, from late November until just before Christmas. How to eat one, round by round, is in our julbord guide; Lucia has its own Lucia guide.
Christmas Eve: the day that matters
Christmas Eve, 24 December, is the Swedish Christmas. In 2026 it falls on a Thursday. The day at home follows a script most families keep:
- The julbord, often as a Christmas lunch.
- Donald Duck at 15:00. Kalle Anka och hans vänner önskar God Jul, a Disney cartoon hour, has been broadcast at 3 pm on Christmas Eve since 1960, and many families eat lunch before it.
- Presents in the evening, handed out in person by jultomten, the Swedish Santa.
The Swedish Santa is a blend of European traditions and the gårdstomte, a farm spirit from Nordic folklore. Before him, the gift-bringer was the Yule goat, the julbock; today the goat survives mostly as a straw decoration. The Christmas tree came from Germany in the 17th century, and the Christmas present, julklapp, became common in 19th-century bourgeois homes.
The Donald Duck rule nobody tells visitors: SVT, the public broadcaster, says the program cannot be watched afterwards on SVT Play and cannot be watched outside Sweden, for rights reasons. If you want to see what the whole country is watching, watch it live, in Sweden, at 15:00.
If you are invited on Christmas Eve, ask your host for the day’s timetable. Lunch, television and Santa are a sequence families keep. For how to behave as a guest in a Swedish home, see our guide to Swedish etiquette.
Church services: julbön, midnight mass and julotta
The Church of Sweden’s parishes hold three kinds of Christmas service, and the church states that everyone is welcome:
| Service | When | What it is |
|---|---|---|
| Julbön | Christmas Eve | Christmas prayer with songs, the Christmas gospel and a sermon |
| Midnight mass (midnattsmässa) | The night between the 24th and 25th | Held in many churches |
| Julotta | Early on Christmas morning | The traditional dawn service; a later service follows the same morning |
Times are set by each parish, so look up the local parish in December. Ordinary services need no ticket.
Christmas markets
Christmas markets, julmarknader, are held across the country, each with its own character. The long-running one is at Skansen, Stockholm’s open-air museum, held since 1903. In 2026 it runs on four weekends: 27–29 November and 4–6, 11–13 and 18–20 December. Entry is on an ordinary Skansen ticket. A wider list is in our guide to Christmas markets in Sweden.
What’s open 24–26 December
This is where visitors get caught. Christmas Eve is not a public holiday in law, yet it is the day Sweden shuts:
- Shops run half days on Christmas Eve. Shopping centres close completely on Christmas Day and reopen with reduced hours on Boxing Day. Supermarkets set their own hours, store by store.
- Systembolaget, the state alcohol retailer and the only legal shop for drinks above 3.5% ABV, is closed on 24, 25 and 26 December. In 2026 the Sunday after makes it four days: nothing from Wednesday 23 until Monday 28 December. It publishes extended hours on the days before.
- Public transport runs a Saturday timetable on Christmas Eve, without night traffic, and a Sunday timetable on the two public holidays. Each region sets its own, so check the local operator.
- Museums often close on 24–25 December and reopen on Boxing Day; Nationalmuseum, for example, keeps normal hours on the 26th. Skansen opens on Christmas Eve 2026 from 10:00 to 14:00.
- Restaurants: some open on Christmas Eve, but they are the exception and book early.
The fix is simple: buy food by midday on the 24th, alcohol by the 23rd, and check your bus home before you go out. Full detail is in Swedish public holidays and Systembolaget hours.
New Year to 13 January
Between Boxing Day and New Year most days are normal. New Year’s Eve, nyårsafton, is not a public holiday, but shops run half days and Systembolaget closes at 15:00. New Year’s Day is a public holiday, and so is Epiphany, trettondedag jul, on Wednesday 6 January 2027, when Systembolaget is closed again. Skansen stays open every day through the period. New Year’s Eve itself has its own guide, New Year’s Eve in Sweden.
Christmas does not end on 6 January. By a custom dating from the late 1600s it lasts twenty days after Christmas Eve, to tjugondag Knut on 13 January. Families strip the tree and throw it out, sometimes with a julgransplundring, a party where children dance Christmas out. It is an ordinary working day.
Practical information
| Item | 2026–27 | Source |
|---|---|---|
| Christmas Eve | Thursday 24 December | calendar |
| Donald Duck on SVT | 15:00 on 24 December, live only, Sweden only | SVT |
| Systembolaget closed | 24–27 December, 1 January, 6 January | Systembolaget |
| Systembolaget New Year’s Eve | Closes 15:00 | Systembolaget |
| Christmas Eve transport | Saturday timetable, no night traffic | regional operators |
| Skansen Christmas market | 27–29 Nov, 4–6, 11–13, 18–20 Dec; Fri–Sat 10–17, Sun 10–16 | Skansen |
| Skansen on Christmas Eve | 10:00–14:00 | Skansen |
| Church services | Free, times per parish | Church of Sweden |
| Christmas ends | Wednesday 13 January 2027 | Nordiska museet |
FAQ
When do Swedes celebrate Christmas?
On Christmas Eve, 24 December, which in 2026 is a Thursday. Families eat the julbord, watch Donald Duck on SVT at 15:00 and open presents in the evening. Christmas Day and Boxing Day are public holidays and quieter. The season starts on the first Sunday of Advent and ends on 13 January, when the tree comes down.
Why do Swedes watch Donald Duck on Christmas Eve?
Kalle Anka och hans vänner önskar God Jul, a Disney cartoon hour, has aired on Swedish public television at 15:00 on Christmas Eve since 1960, and many families plan lunch around it. SVT says it can only be watched live: not afterwards on SVT Play, and not from outside Sweden, for rights reasons.
Is Sweden closed on Christmas Eve?
Largely, although Christmas Eve is not a public holiday in law. Shops run half days, Systembolaget is closed and public transport runs a Saturday timetable without late services. Shopping centres close completely on Christmas Day; on Boxing Day many shops and museums reopen with reduced hours. Buy food and drink by 23 December.
Can visitors go to a Christmas church service?
Yes. The Church of Sweden says its churches are open and everyone is welcome. Many parishes hold a Christmas prayer service on Christmas Eve, a midnight mass that night, and julotta early on Christmas morning. Times are set by each parish, so check the local parish page in December. Ordinary services have no tickets.
What is open in Sweden between Christmas and New Year?
Shops and museums reopen from 26 December, often with reduced hours, and most days until New Year are normal. New Year’s Eve is a half day for shops and Systembolaget closes at 15:00. New Year’s Day and Epiphany, 6 January, are public holidays with Systembolaget closed. Skansen stays open daily through the period.
When does Christmas end in Sweden?
On tjugondag Knut, 13 January, twenty days after Christmas Eve. Families strip the tree and throw it out, sometimes with a party called julgransplundring where children dance Christmas out. The date is twenty days after the Eve by a custom dating from the late 1600s. It is not a public holiday, so everything runs normally.
Related guides
- The julbord guide: the five rounds and the clean plate, before you face the buffet
- Lucia in Sweden: the candlelit 13 December, and which concerts are free
- Swedish public holidays: every red day and what closes
- Sweden in winter: weather, darkness and the rest of the winter calendar
- Skansen: hours, tickets and the Christmas market in detail
Facts verified 2026-09-25. Sources: Nordiska museet, Visit Sweden, SVT, the Church of Sweden, Systembolaget, Skansen, the Public Holidays Act (1989:253) — full register in this topic’s source file. Found something outdated? Tell us and we’ll fix it.