Thursday 18 November – Saturday 18 December 2021
Preparations are well underway for this year’s much-anticipated Exeter Cathedral Christmas Market. More than half of the familiar festive chalets are already in place on Cathedral Green, ready for stallholders to begin setting up over the next three weeks.
Exeter Cathedral Christmas Market swings into action at 5pm on Thursday 18 November, with traditional carols sung outside by the Cathedral’s Choir from 6.30pm. This year, the Market continues until Saturday 18 December and includes more than 90 stalls, an improved layout for safer physical distancing and free entrance into the Cathedral for all visitors.
Traders will bring a wide array of tempting treats, including street food from across the world, a plethora of gifts for food and drink lovers, as well as textiles, pottery, hand-crafted jewellery, home furnishings, clothes, decorations, wrappings and more. Many of this year’s stallholders have won awards for their goods and produce, much of which is artisan-made and ethically produced by small-scale, local producers.
For younger visitors, a new feature is The Elf Express, introduced to the Cathedral Green by Exmouth Miniature Railway. The train rides will be operating on Friday evenings from 5pm and all day at weekends.
In light of ongoing Covid-19 concerns, organisers at the Cathedral have introduced wider paths between stalls to improve the flow and spacing of visitors, as well as hand sanitising stations throughout.
After last year’s cancellation due to the pandemic, The Very Revd Jonathan Greener is excited to welcome Exeter Cathedral Christmas Market back to the Cathedral Green:
“It’s such a wonderfully festive event, a great prelude to Christmas, and a joy to see so many people from Exeter, Devon and beyond congregating here. We hope to tempt shoppers into the Cathedral too – itself a hub of festive activity with a busy schedule of Advent and Christmas services – starting on Saturday 27 November with our 4pm Christingle service, to which all are welcome.”
Read more about the Exeter Cathedral Christmas Market here.