Years ago, after my first international river cruise, I knew I wanted to visit Christmas markets or Christkindlmarkt in Europe. As life sometimes has a habit of getting in the way of plans, I never was able to fulfill that dream. That is, until one day two years ago, my daughter, Karen, asked me if there was anything on the calendar for specific dates. The next thing I know, we are jetting off to Germany for a whirlwind Christmas Market tour! Fröhliche Weihnachten! If you love Christmas, you have to experience a European Christmas Market. One year ago today, we embarked on a river cruise down the Danube, specifically to visit Christmas Markets. So many beautiful items, most of which are locally made. Everything from glass ornaments to cuckoo clocks, to nutcrackers, miniature Christmas villages and accessories, to elaborately decorated cookies, wooden toys and so much more! And, be sure to have a ‘brat’ with sauerkraut! Delicious! Don’t forget to get your souvenir mug with either beer or Glühwein! The mugs are collectible as each year they change. Just be sure that you have the correct year on your mug! We had to go back to the vendor as they had given us a previous year!
Be prepared. Plan on plenty of walking. Plenty of people. Plenty of uneven surfaces. Colder weather – so be prepared with winter wear and dress in layers. No place to sit – they want you up and shopping! And limited restroom facilities. (We usually take a break and head to a nearby restaurant to get warm, order a hot drink or have a snack and use their facilities.) Locally, we’ve visited Christmas Markets in Florida, Maryland and New York City, with plans to visit Philadelphia’s and Washington D.C’s markets this year.
Many Christkindlmarkt are located near a prominent square or in the shadows of a church, government building or other historical setting. I think the most notable European market that we have visited so far is Nuremberg (Nurnberg). We have also visited and enjoyed Wurzburg, Bamberg, Rothenburg, Vienna, Budapest, Passau, Lintz and Bratislava.
A few of our favorite purchases are hand-painted ornaments, holiday linens and assorted table-top decorations. For us, hand-made is an important criteria. And, it has to ‘speak’ to us ‘asking’ us to bring it home!
The more I travel with my challenges, the more prepared I am to deal with them. Hands cold? Bring disposable hand warmers to put inside your gloves. No clean place to sit? I fashioned an insulated seat pad that folds up small to protect me from dirt and cold surfaces such as low walls. If you use a walker, you hopefully have a ready place to sit. Wheelchair or scooter use could be problematic due to crowds and uneven surfaces. It is sometimes difficult to get up close to the vendor’s booth to shop their wares. Patience is needed here; just move in as the crowd moves out. Generally speaking, you should be prepared to use local currency as many vendors do not accept credit cards. Buying a cuckoo clock? You can have it shipped for a fee, but be prepared to wait for it to be delivered to the United States and go through Customs. Bring some bubble wrap with you for fragile items. Use your clothes to cushion other items. We generally save room in our carry-on luggage for our purchases. I’m still learning as I travel but I’m getting smarter all the time!
Still need some convincing?
Check out this article,
“8 Reasons to Take a Christmas Markets Cruise” from Cruise Critic:
https://www.cruisecritic.com/articles
Fröhliche Weihnachten
Twenty Steps at a Time 