It’s March and while most are thinking of Easter, I’m already thinking of Christmas! Every few years we take our Christmas to Europe and explored the beautiful Christmas markets of Germany, Austria, Prague and Budapest. We were planning on being in our new house this year, but since it looks like that is not going to happen, I need to get out of here or I’ll go crazy (and be very mad and depressed)!!! So, this year we are planning to go visit Romania! I’ve saved up miles so its time to figure out the route and get the tickets, I might already be a little late. Its best to get tickets about 11 months before a trip if you are trying to get business class (which is a big reason we are all about points and miles!!)
When I’m planning a Christmas market trip, there are so many little things to look into. Which dates are you there, what things are there to do during the day, how much traveling will you do during the day… the list goes on! For many, this is the part that is daunting and why they hire me to plan their trip :). So what I’m going to do is just give you a few tips to make sure you enjoy your markets. Sometimes they are great to visit during the day but certainly sparkle at night! While wandering the streets of the towns you are visiting, you may stumble on tiny markets here and there. Don’t ignore those booths, we have some of the best ornaments and hand made things from these tiny village markets.
Wear good shoes. If you forget your hat, gloves or scarf and get chilly, there are loads of hand made offerings in the stalls at the market. I got this amazing hat the first day we were in Munich and its still one of my husband’s favorite hats on me. It’s fuzzy and soft and huge! LOL
Don’t eat before you go! For sure come hungry. The food at the market is some of the best you will have. Get something and share it between your party. There are 4 of us, so we are usually sharing multiple dishes and desserts. We grab some nuts for the road and even get our Christmas morning breakfast at the market to take home. There are foods you have never seen before and it’s a blast to explore and see what you find. I’ll never forget the time I ordered what I *thought* was a pizza type of thing. it was a rectangular flat bread with some kind of white sauce and different things on top, like onion and some peppers. The small cubes looked just like the cubes of pineapple from a papa Johns and it was COVERED in it! So I said “wow thats a lot of pineapple!” and the guy looked at me like I had a 3rd eye and said in his lovely German accent “thats not pineapple! Its PO-Ta-Toe!” Uhh ok Sorry! And off I went. It was delicious! This photo is a caprice flatbread thing that is one of L’s favorite. They do an amazing seasoning on it and roast it to perfection!
Get the mugs! The first year we went we didn’t really care about the mugs. My husband loves to gluhwein but the other 3 of us tend to go for the apple cider or “kinderpunch.” We just turned the mugs back in the first year… then for years after we were bummed that we didn’t have a awesome souvenir from some of the markets we visited. Most of them are so different! Last time we went my husband really liked both from this one market – they had two colors of mugs. He finally settled on one and I secretly bought the other one. A few days later it was Christmas morning and he was tickled pink to have a matching pair. You just get your drink and if you return the mug you get a few Euro back. It ends up making the mugs really only a few Euro and a great souvenir. When you go home, wrap them in socks and put them in your boots. We’ve never had one break. Jared plans to make a cool wooden tree that will display them around Christmas time in the bar.
Last, check parking or public transportation. Often the markets are near the city center. If you are in a hotel that is walking distance, that is ideal! But for many of our trips, we are just in a town for an evening to visit the market, so parking needs to be figured out. Use google maps and put in “parking” and they will often help you find the spot you need.
If you’ve been wanting to do a Christmas Market vacation. Reach out and I can help you organize it, or send you on a fabulous River Cruise that will take you to them so you don’t have to worry about a thing. 🙂
