European Christmas Markets

[mimi]

We are planning a short break,and hope to visit a Christmas Market.
Please can I have recommendations of nice ones to visit.

[Pippa]

You used the 'C' word!

[souter girl]

Cologne and Aachen are lovely and very German and *hristmassy. If you want to go further afield you could try South Germany and also the beautiful city of Dresden, home of the German Weihnachtsstollen (*hristmas cake)some or Prague and I believe that Bruges, which is a beautiful place also has a lovely one! You'll be spoilt for choice, it all depends how far you want to go and how much you want to spend!!

[Healing Hands]

Why do I hear as Pippa put it the "C" word, I was at the nurseries the other day and they were telling me that their Christmas Tree's have been ordered and Pippa you mentioned it also. My friends children were making plans about coming to me on Boxing Day.........Help..... can I finsih the summer first I still have to much too do!

[bluebell]

I feel very very ill,fancy using that word in SUMMER, I cannot think about it until November at the earliest.I might have to go and lie down,to recover!!Planning so far ahead speaks to me as wishing your life away. Live life as it comes,you never know what tomorrow will bring.

[souter girl]

Don't listen to them Mimi!!! I've got my sprouts on already!

[lily]

I'm interested in the markets, but I'm with Bluebell and HH- too much too soon!
Just wait till the schools go back and then it'll be wall to wall xxxx everywhere!

[mimi]

Hi, Please forgive me for useing that word,I am new to this site and I did not realise it was forbidden.I do like to plan ahead so that I can find a nice Hotel. Thank you souter girl for your recommendations.

[souter girl]

Good for you planning ahead. My parents, now gone, always used to love their holidays for which they saved carefully and which were, for the time and the small Scottish town where they lived, quite adventurous. In his latter years after Mum died, my Dad, virtually housebound and living on his OAP pension, gave OH and me a cheque for a holiday which we couldn't have afforded as OH had been made redundant, saying that some of the best times he and Mum had spent were their holidays and no-one could take those memories away.He got so much pleasure knowing that he was doing that for us and we gave him an extra set of photo's when we next saw him and told him all about it(we had gone to Prague, Budapest and Vienna on a tour) so that he could see all we had seen. It still makes me grateful but sad, but I know he was proud of all the postcards on the mantelpiece and telling people where we were. I think it was R L Stevenson who said that to travel hopefully is better than to arrive, which I interpret as meaning that planning can be part of the fun! So don't be put off your planning!! (But remember to put the sprouts on before you go!)

[Cheryl]

souter girl - what a WONDERFUL quote!!! and I agree!!! for me anyway, anticipation always adds just the greatest spice to experiences.

c.

[mimi]

I agree with Cheryl it is a wonderful quote Souter girl. Thank you. I will definately put the sprouts on !

[buecherwurm]

I just realized, mimi, that you are still waiting for an answer.
We have the most beautiful summer weather at the moment but, companies have to advertise early, we had a brochure of one of those touring bus companies in the mailbox today advertising tours to a lot of Christmas markets.
There are Christmas markets in Straßburg, Karlsruhe, Stuttgart, Dresden (I was told that this one is really nice), Salzburg, Wittenberg, Leipzig, Jena, Weimar, Vienna. Well, these are the towns this tour bus company is going to. There are probably lots more.
I personally only know Nuremberg, Würzburg and Bamberg. Nuremberg is quite big and quite well known.
Another interesting area is the Erzgebirge. The little town of Seiffen is more or less a Christmas market. Here and in the neighbouring towns a lot of the nutcrackers, pyramids, little wooden angels etc. are made. When I was there years ago you could watch people working on those little wooden toys. Seiffen also has a most beautiful museum.

[Gentian]

I went to the markets in Munich and had a lovely time. One tip, do your sightseeing during the day and go to the market at night when it is all lit up and has a wonderful atmosphere

[buecherwurm]

I forgot; some Belgian friends told me that the Christmas market in Bruges (Brügge) is supposed to be very nice

[Sarahc]

Vienna is beautiful and has wonderfull **** Market, particularly fond of the Gluhwein (is that the word?) found on every corner.

[mimi]

Many thanks buecherwurm, Gentian and Sarahc for the information.
We are going to have to decide very soon, which one to go to.