If your festive calendar is already filling up, here's one to diarise well ahead: Jet2 has opened sales for its winter 2027/28 Christmas market programme, releasing more than 800,000 seats across 82 routes from 13 UK airports. Of those, 48 routes are dedicated to getting travellers to Europe's most festive cities.
The line-up covers the big names you'd expect — Vienna, Prague, Cologne, Budapest, Strasbourg, Berlin and Copenhagen — alongside a few less obvious picks such as Tallinn in Estonia, Poland's Gdansk, and even Barcelona, which pairs its Gothic Quarter with a surprisingly good Christmas market scene. All these cities trade on historic squares, mulled wine stalls and fairy-lit old towns, which is exactly what the short-break market wants in December.
Jet2 CEO Steve Heapy framed the early release as a response to demand, noting that Christmas market trips are consistently among the airline's most popular products and that booking early gives customers choice and flexibility. For travellers, the practical upside is real: December city-break flights on popular weekends (especially the Advent markets running late November to just before Christmas) sell out or spike in price, so locking in a fare 14 months ahead can mean better timings and lower costs. Jet2 flies these routes from multiple regional bases, which matters if you'd rather avoid trekking to London for a three-night break.
One caveat for this winter rather than next: there's some turbulence elsewhere in the low-cost market. easyJet cabin crew based in Portugal, represented by the SNPVAC union, have voted to strike on 2–6 October and again 19–23 December. The December dates fall squarely in the peak Christmas travel window, when flights run fuller, so anyone booked with easyJet via Portugal should keep an eye on developments. The airline says it is "extremely disappointed" and talks mediated by Portugal's labour authority, DGERT, are ongoing.
Who should care? Anyone planning a festive city break who likes the security of a package or direct regional flight — Jet2's model suits couples, families and groups who want flights plus hotels sorted in one go. The classic four are hard to beat: Vienna for grandeur, Prague for atmosphere, Cologne for sheer scale (its cathedral-foot market is enormous), and Budapest for thermal spas with a side of mulled wine. Strasbourg claims to be the "Capital of Christmas", while Tallinn's medieval old town makes arguably the prettiest market backdrop in Europe.
The takeaway: if a Christmas market trip is on your list for 2027, seats are bookable now — and if you're flying with easyJet via Portugal this December, build in a buffer and check your flight status before heading to the airport.
