Christmas markets / short break

[bungalow]

Hi, am looking to do a short 2/3 night European city break early December, some xmas shopping, food & drink, sightseeing etc, just somewhere for an all round nice 3 night winter break – just the two of us.
We’ve already done a lot of the usual suspects, Krakow, Prague, Budapest, Helsinki, Copenhagen, Cologne etc, but you’re all so well travelled in here I was wondering if anyone had any random suggestions I may not be considering?

[TGLoyalty]

Maybe a bit more random Tallinn it’s nice, cheap, few random bars, very cold and has a small Xmas market but not sure major shopping would be on the cards or not listed as one of your “done” but lovely that time of year … Vienna has a large Xmas market and lots of shopping.

[bungalow]

Thanks TG, not into major shopping or spending big, just a bit of browsing and something different. Done Tallinn a few times, but never winter, and I know the marketplace you speak of, up the cobbled hill in the church square. Yes actually, that might be a nice winter break option indeed!
Vienna I’ve been to for a day trip, looked a fair bit grander than Tallinn mind 🙂
Thanks again for the suggestions

[NorthernLass]

+1 for Vienna, several different markets selling beautiful crafts and delicious food. It was very mild when we were there a few years ago, in case you’re set on the crisp and snowy experience!

France also has numerous Xmas markets, even the smaller cities seem to put displays which put the UK ones to shame! Again you may get fairly mild weather – we were in Limoges last December and during the day it was so sunny that the hats and gloves weren’t needed!

[TGLoyalty]

If you’ve only been to Vienna for a Day trip then I do recommend for a little longer but as NorthernLass says it’s milder than Tallinn but personally I found that much better for walking around as the streets were very slippery in Tallinn

[masaccio]

Hard to know what’s in the etc. in your list, but Munich and Nuremberg would be my picks. How about picking a destination where there are a few within driving distance?

[bungalow]

masaccio wrote:

Hard to know what’s in the etc. in your list, but Munich and Nuremberg would be my picks. How about picking a destination where there are a few within driving distance?

Haven’t done a lot of Germany in the winter actually, travelled all over during World Cup 2006, but that was summer, Hamburg, Berlin, Leipzig, Munich, and only in and out using trains for the football. Certainly something I would consider, and as with a lot of places I’ve actually been to, I’m sure there’s a very different feel about the place in December.
Some good options guys…

[Ant M]

Riga is another possibility. Sadly last year I was there a few days before the Christmas market opened but the old town is a lovely place to visit. It’s got the advantage of direct flights from London with BA, and the bus from the airport goes to the old town and stopped a 2 minute walk from my hotel (Hilton Garden Inn). I was advised Uber is no good there – Bolt is the rideshare firm that dominates and certainly the amount of Bolt cars I saw seems to support that.

[strickers]

Lincoln XMas market is fantastic, oh wait, sorry, the city council scrapped it. 🤬

[Lyn]

NorthernLass wrote:

+1 for Vienna, several different markets selling beautiful crafts and delicious food. It was very mild when we were there a few years ago, in case you’re set on the crisp and snowy experience!

France also has numerous Xmas markets, even the smaller cities seem to put displays which put the UK ones to shame! Again you may get fairly mild weather – we were in Limoges last December and during the day it was so sunny that the hats and gloves weren’t needed!

I found the Christmas market in Vienna to be magical about thirty years ago. I am glad to see that it still sells beautiful crafts. Vienna would have plenty to offer for a short break.

Strasbourg, and perhaps Colmar, have also been mentioned here in the past.

[Lyn]

Have you already come across this post from last December?

https://www.headforpoints.com/forums/topic/vienna-budapest-salzburg-2-night-break/

[bungalow]

Lyn wrote:

Have you already come across this post from last December?

https://www.headforpoints.com/forums/topic/vienna-budapest-salzburg-2-night-break/

Great pointer Lyn, hadn’t seen that, thank you

[MF176]

Cannot recommend Colmar enough – a wonderful place at Christmas. Bigger than I expected it to be, with plenty to see and do, but intimate and cosy at the same time.

[Wanderlust]

Probably a bit basic, but we went to Bruges a few years ago and liked it there- it all felt fairly compact and easy to get around on foot, decent amount of interesting things to see and do and I don’t recall any issues with food.

[yorkshireRich]

Hi Bungalow, not sure if it’s random enough but we have done Brussels before and got the train to Bruges.

[Cranzle]

Innsbruck
Munich

Avoid Brussels

[Londonsteve]

+1 for Vienna. It’s the ultimate Christmas market destination and as a city has a ton of things to offer at any time of year. The Christmas ambience is just magical.

Budapest has also become a popular Christmas market destination but you’ve already been and the markets have attracted stinging criticism in recent years for becoming overpriced, overall more expensive than its comparator in Vienna and many others in western Europe. This has to be taken in a context of a city that is overall cheaper than western Europe and therefore your other costs will be lower, but again, the last few years have seen drastic price increases across the board. 5 more years and it’ll be the same price to visit as Vienna.

[Sudz74]

I stayed in Salzburg with my eldest daughter pre-covid, mid December which was magical. Had a very good value two-night BAH staying near the station, very easy to get around with buses and walking. We then got a train to (and from) Zell-am-See and had two nights in a spa hotel which was delightful before the skiers had descended en masse.

[BA Flyer IHG Stayer]

Berlin has a number of Christmas markets.

But like in many places you’ll see the same stalls selling the same stuff.

I went to cologne and despite it having many markets they were basically all the same.

[Ruralite]

Have you thought about the Moselle region, Trier, Cochem & lots of lovely little places in that region have their own markets. Probably have to fly to Luxembourg & hire a car though and then it’s not that far from there to drive.

[Michael C]

Munich is a great base if you want to do daytrips to other German/Austrian markets.

Although Italy does not have a reputation for markets, we had a lovely time in Bologna
last year: a couple of different markets, and of course all that food and wine/daytrip to Florence.

[peterH]

Enjoyed the Stuttgart christmas markets a few years ago. Easy to get into the city from the airport and around as quite a small city, and some interesting museums/things to see, particularly the Porsche and Mercedes Benz museums if you’re into cars.

[Skywalker]

I recall Sofia had a lovely Christmas market – really nice atmosphere and great food too 🙂

[Annie]

Zagreb? I’ve only been in the summer but found it enchanting. I’m told they have a lovely underground Christmas market.

[bungalow]

Thanks to everyone for the helpful suggestions, what a dilemma! Vienna seems to garner quite a bit of favour amongst you, but goodness me, I have status with both Hilton and Marriott and wow, some of the hotels are pricy!
I’ll spend this week researching and pricing all of the above trips, thanks again for the input, really is much appreciated.