Advent abroad
This festive season, groups can enjoy authentic continental shopping at an overseas Christmas market. Carrie Drage provides a selection from across Europe.
In this third part to our annual Christmas shopping feature, we look at trips to a variety of European Christmas markets; a great way to experience the traditions and customs of the season through another nation’s culture and pick up unusual gifts not found in the UK.
Many European cities are currently offering Christmas market packages which can include accommodation, city tours and mulled wine tastings. Further information is available from the Tourist Board of the destination you are planning to visit.
Foreign festivities
France has always been a popular destination for groups as it is only a short journey across the Channel.
For a ‘unique’ continental shopping experience, groups can visit Disneyland Resort Paris. Between 21st December and 6th January, the attraction will be holding its annual yuletide market in the Disney Village.
In the Nord-Pas de Calais region, one of the most popular Christmas markets is held each year in Lille. There are 80 stalls set on the Place Rihour and this year the market runs from 21st November until 24th December. On the Grand Place, a 50-metre Big Wheel is also a highlight.
In the Champagne-Ardenne region, the Reims Christmas market combines street entertainment, choral concerts and more than 125 wooden cabins selling festive produce. This year, the market runs from 23rd November until 27th December.
In north eastern France, one of the largest Christmas markets takes place annually in Strasbourg in the Alsace region of France. Dating back to 1570, the market is located around Place de la Cathedrale and will take place between 24th November and 31st December.
The small village of Montpellier in the Languedoc Roussillon region will have a Christmas market between 8th December and 24th December. Set in the Place de la Comédie, groups can pick up Christmas nativity figures as well as a selection of foods.
In south west France, Toulouse is holding its annual Christmas market between 9th Dec and 29th December. Set in the Place du Capitole, groups looking for inspiring Christmas presents can choose from a selection of gifts displayed on the market’s 130 stands. You can also visit the Christmas Food Market on Place Wilson, running from 30th November until 9th December.
Brittany on the west coast of France is home to the annual Brest Christmas market, taking place from 1st December until 24th December. Groups should head down to the Place de la Liberté, where you can browse more than 40 wooden chalets selling regional produce.
Meanwhile in Germany, Christmas markets have become a popular festive tradition. Visitors should note, though, that the fifth Sunday before Christmas is a public holiday, known as ‘Totensonntag’, when many markets close.
The German capital of Berlin is staging more than 60 Christmas markets this year, running between 26th November and 6th January. There will be hundreds of stalls selling traditional gifts and edible treats alongside jewellery and artwork. On Gendarmenmarkt, groups will be entertained by musicians and acrobats. Meanwhile in Spandau, the westernmost borough of Berlin, visitors can enjoy performances by choirs and brass bands.
The Dresden Christmas market, taking place between 28th November and 24th December, dates back to 1434 and is believed to be the oldest in Germany. Groups visiting the city can also enjoy the renowned Christmas pyramid, which has several levels of wooden figurines.
During the Christmas period, one of the most popular European destinations is Cologne, situated on the River Rhine. This year, the city is offering the choice of six Christmas markets, taking place between 26th November and 23rd December. The four main markets will take place at the Cologne Cathedral, on the Alter Markt, on the Neumarkt and on the Rudolfplatz whilst there will also be a medieval market outside the Chocolate Museum and a floating Christmas market on board ‘MS Wappen von Mainz’.
South of Cologne, groups can visit the Christmas market in Bonn, also known as ‘Beethoven’s city’. The 160 stalls will be crammed with festive gifts including cribs and candles and will run from 26th November until 23rd December.
Nearby, Brühl stages a market each year at two of its UNESCO-listed attractions, Augustusburg Palace and Falkenlust hunting lodge. Groups can visit the markets between 23rd November and 24th December.
A less traditional Christmas market is held each year in Essen. The market will be open to visitors between 22nd November and 23rd December this year, selling exotic products from all over the world.
Further north in Bremen, the city centre will transform as more than 170 stalls bearing traditional handicrafts and gastronomic dishes open up to visitors. This year, the Christmas market will run from 29th November until 23rd December.
Meanwhile, in Hamburg, groups can enjoy an impressive Christmas market staged by Roncalli’s Circus, Germany’s most famous circus act. Here, groups will find stalls loaded with confectionery and hand-crafted toys. The market runs from 26th November until 23rd December.
Other German cities holding Christmas markets this year include Münster, running 26th November until 23rd December, Leipzig, between 27th November and 23rd December, Stuttgart, from 29th November until 23rd December, and Munich, from 30th November to 24th December.
Across the border in Belgium, Brussels will be holding its Christmas market between 1st December and 1st January and will have over 240 stalls whilst the Mons Christmas market in Wallonia, Belgium’s southernmost region, will run from 8th December until 31st December and also features a heart-shaped ice rink.
Elsewhere in Belgium, Christmas markets will take place in the city of Liège, between 30th November and 31st December, and the pretty town of Durbuy, from 1st December until 6th January.
In Holland, groups can visit Vrijthof square in the centre of Maastricht, between 1st December and 6th January. The renowned ‘Winterland’ festival features an ice rink and giant ferris wheel along with more than 80 stalls selling national specialities.
East of Maastricht, the historic town of Valkenburg will once again be illuminating the caverns of the old marl quarry between 16th November and 22nd December for its popular Christmas market ‘Fluweelengrot’, meaning velvet cave.
Meanwhile, in Sweden, the country’s largest Christmas market will take place in Skansen. This year, it will be held over three weekends; 1st – 2nd December, 8th – 9th December and 15th – 16th December.