GERMAN CHRISTMAS MARKETS OPEN IN DECEMBER
IN BAVARIA, BERLIN AND OTHER CITIES
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Germany has more than 2,500 Christmas markets (called Christkindlmarkt in German). The Bavarian Christmas markets are the most famous.
Christmas markets in Bavarian towns usually open from the first Sunday of Advent to Christmas Eve day. They offer visitors roasted chestnuts, hot spiced wine, choir-singing, handcrafted gifts and Christmas toys, surrounded by medieval walls and half-timbered buildings.
Coburg's Christmas market begins December 1, with the Coburg Children's Choir candlelight parade through the center of town. Visitors can buy Christmas tree decorations, wooden toys, ceramics and porcelain, and snack on roasted almonds and Coburger bratwurst.
The Bamberg Nativity Trail, which features 34 different nativity scenes from around the world, begins at the Bamberg Christmas market. More nativity scenes, which follow Bible stories from the Annunciation to the Three Kings, are in the central Christmas market.
The Nuremberg Tinsel Angel, with its light-bearing arms, is a symbol of German Christmas. The 15th-century Christmas market in the Franconian capital of Nuremberg sells Christmas angels, as well as grilled sausages, gingerbread, mulled wine, fruit loaf and Nuremberg knickknacks and toys.
The Reiterlesmarkt in Rothenburg, just west of Nuremberg, also dates back to the 15th century. Its name recalls an old Teutonic legend about a reiter (man on horseback) who brought presents. Visitors can see a painting of this famous rider on Rothenburg's Town Hall.
Regensburg, southeast of Nuremberg, holds a Christmas market in the Old Corn Exchange in the gothic town center. Visitors can watch performances of the Regensburg boys' choir and the Cathedral Sparrows (Domspatzen), in the newly named UNESCO heritage site.
Passau's Christmas market takes place beside the baroque cathedral of St. Stephen. Vendors sell crafts, lebkuchen (gingerbread), baked apples and beeswax candles from decorated stalls.
The Christkindl Market in the pilgrimage city of Altoetting, home to the Black Madonna, takes place during Advent. Choirs and instrumental music groups from Altötting and the Bavarian uplands give musical performances. Churches display life-size mangers and nativity scenes.
Frauenchiemsee Island, surrounded by the Bavarian Alps and the crystal-clear lake, Chiemsee, is illuminated with hundreds of lights and decorations at Christmas time. Visitors can buy traditional German cakes, mulled wine, arts and crafts from local artists, at more than 60 stalls.
Bavaria's biggest freestanding Advent Calendar is in Dachau, near Munich. From December 1 to 23, the area in front of the town hall becomes the traditional Christmas Market. The old town of Dachau decorates its colorful houses, Parish Church of St. Jakob and Wittelsbacher Castle.
The Weihnukka Market, held from December 3 to 31, is the only Christian-Jewish Christmas market in Berlin. Located in the large gardens of the Jewish Museum, it sells Christmas and Hanukkah decorations, toys and foods.
Engelke Markt is Emden's floating Christmas market, in this East Frisian North Sea port. Visitors can reach the giant pontoon in Ratsdelft harbour on a pair of bridges. Decorated and illuminated museum ships surround Engelke Markt. The Dutch Sinterklaas (Santa Claus) arrives by boat. Visitors can buy handcrafted gifts and Christmas foods and drinks.
The Christmas market at Erfurt, in the Thuringia forest, features an Elves' Workshop and fairytale forest. A 25-metre Christmas tree and a 12-metre pyramid decorate the Christmas market in Cathedral Square. More than 200 little wooden huts sell gluehwein, Thuringian bratwurst and handcrafted Christmas gifts.
The Christmas market at Annaberg-Buchholz, an eastern mining town in Saxony's Ore Mountains, ends with a grand miners' parade on December 23. Craftspeople sell Christmas pyramids, tree decorations and hand-carved Christmas gifts.
Dortmund, on the Industrial Heritage route, boasts the world's biggest Christmas tree. Father Christmas entertains younger children. Older kids can make their own presents and bake Christmas cookies.
At the Christmas Market in Esslingen, on the River Neckar, torches line paths and illuminate the Renaissance town hall and half-timbered buildings. Vendors wear historical costumes as they sell Christmas gifts and foods.
The Christmas market at Bad Muenster am Stein-Ebernburg, near Frankfurt, is located in the spa gardens below the Rheingrafenstein rock face and castle ruins. Christmas lights decorate the trees and the gable of the spa treatment centre, one of the region's finest timber-framed buildings.
There are many German Christmas Market packages that bring you to several Christmas markets. Eurobound, for example, offers nine-day escorted tours that include hotels, transportation, city tours and entrance fees. Participants enjoy the Christmas lights, mulled wine (glühwein), gingerbread and roasted almonds at the Christmas markets in Heidelberg, Munich and Rothenburg. They also drive through the Bavarian Alps to visit Castle Neuschwanstein.
Gate 1 Travel offers eight-day tours of the eastern Christmas markets of Berlin, Leipzig, Dresden and Prague. Bremen Tourism offers a two-day Christmas package with two nights in a double room with breakfast, a meal of local specialities in a Bremen restaurant, a guided tour of the historical city center, a two-day Bremen pass (ErlebnisCARD) and a visit to the Bremen Christmas market, with a mug of hot spiced wine.
The Bremen Christmas Market features 170 decorated stalls beside the town hall and Roland statue. Children can see a Dutch Sinter Klaas onboard a pirate ship. Schlachte magic takes place on the popular river Weser embankment. Every day, on the maritime promenade, a little door is opened in a walk-through Advent Calendar.
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