Last Updated on January 17, 2023

We love Christmas and we love visiting Christmas Markets around Europe. We did our first Christmas market roadtrip in 2019 and each year we return to our favourites plus a few new ones.

Below is a brief description of each market we have visited. We update this post each year with new markets that we have visited, as well as updating the details about markets that we have visited in the past.

Belgium
Croatia
France
Germany
Italy
Netherlands

Belgium

Bruges, Belgium (2019)

The Bruges Christmas Market was a small market in the main town square. The stalls were all lined up in front of the cathedral. It was a small market, with no real stand-out features.

The town itself was the highlight for our visit to Bruges. We had a great time walking around the town, seeing the sites and visiting the shops. The best part was the yummy food shops – lots of chocolate shops and waffle shops.

Croatia

Dubrovnik | Rijeka | Split

Dubrovnik, Croatia (2021)

Unfortunately, the Christmas market wasn’t very good. There were only a few food stalls open and hardly anyone in the area, so there wasn’t much of an atmosphere. We hope to visit this market again as we think the atmosphere and low number of stalls is due to covid. We never visited the market pre-covid, so it’s hard to compare or know for sure, but it’s probably worth trying again in the future.

We think there is a larger Christmas market area inside one of the buildings, but we didn’t see any sign of it and it wasn’t open while we were there –it was a Sunday and late in the evening, so it may have already closed by the time we arrived.

Since we were in the old town we decided to walk around the for a while, enjoying the quiet and snapping pictures of the empty streets. Last time we were here (summer 2016) it was very busy, so this was much different than our previous visit.

After a while, we headed back to the market stalls to get some dinner. As we were finishing dinner, it started to rain again (luckily, we had a couple dry hours to enjoy) so we started to make our way back to our accommodation. On the way out of the old town walls, we noticed a few additional food stays in the small square area across the road. We decided to check them out to see if they were any different to the ones inside the walls. They were basically the same food and drink options, however one of them did have hot chocolate – Ben’s favourite! This hot chocolate was delicious. It had “winter spice” Monin flavor syrup, marshmallows, a cinnamon stick, and a star anise. It was pretty and yummy!

Rijeka, Croatia (2021)

After Split, we headed further north to Rijeka. When we arrived in town we headed straight to Trsat Castle on top of the hill. We had heard, and seen pictures, of the castle covered in Christmas lights. We also thought there was a market outside the castle. Turns out the market was inside the castle and the lights were amazing. One of the towers is completed covered in lights. The market is all food and drink options. There was Christmas music playing and the atmosphere was the best we had experienced so far. We was starting to feel like Christmas.

The castle was fully open to visitors of the market. Normally you have to pay a fee to enter the castle, but not for the Christmas market. Inside some of the castle rooms there were different Christmas displays, including a fireplace scene for pictures and a large nativity scene. We enjoyed exploring the castle, trying some yummy food and drinks, and soaking in the Christmas mood.

After a while, we headed to our accommodation, which was along the water near the town center.

In town there were several market areas. One was just around the corner from our accommodation, which lots of food options from local restaurants. We grabbed some more food and then walked further into the town center. Along the main strip, there were lots of Christmas light displays as well as a few market stalls. Most of the stalls were closed, or in the process of closing. As we walked further along the main strip, we found another area of food and drink stalls along with music. And about a block from there, was another area of food and drink. This area had a live band that everyone was enjoying – everyone was singing and dancing. It was a great evening!

Split, Croatia (2021)

They had a Christmas Market on in the open area between the city walls and the Palace. You did have to show your “green pass” to enter the area (December 2021).

The atmosphere at this Christmas Market was much better than Dubrovnik’s. There were a good amount of Christmas lights, with several food and drinks stalls, as well as Christmas music filling the area. We enjoyed some yummy sausage and pulled pork. Next to the food and drink area, there was another area with more food stalls and an ice-skating rink. You did not have to show the “green pass” to enter this area. We walked around the small area, and then left the Christmas markets to explore the rest of the city. Most of the stores were closed and there were not a lot of people around. We wondered around for a bit and then ended up along the water. There were a few more Christmas market stalls setup here, but they were closed for the night.

France

Amiens, France (2019)

Amiens was an unplanned Christmas market for us. We stayed in this town because it was a good stopping point between our other destinations. We stayed the night and decided to look through the town before making our way. Turns out they had a Christmas market… (which ended up being our first market of the trip).

There were quite a few chalets along the main shopping street down the centre of town. Throughout the market there were some really good Christmas decorations, including a snow globe display with a couple large Christmas trees. They also had a large sled and Santa’s house on display (complete with a set dinner table).

The town itself is also nice, with beautiful old buildings. On one side of the town there are a bunch of canals running along the roads. Along the main canal you will find several restaurants and a few small shops.

Metz, France (2019, 2021)

The Metz Christmas Market was one of the larger markets that we visited throughout the season. The various market events were spread across multiple squares within the city. Each square had a different theme, including a few specifically for food stalls. Yum!

The highlights of the Christmas market included the light projection show on the side of the cathedral and the Lantern Walk.

The cathedral light show was amazing. The light projection was shown regularly throughout the night and is worth a watch (or two or three like we did!).

Most of the Christmas attractions are on one side of the canal, but you do need to cross over to see the Lantern Walk. While we were there, we found that the lantern walk closed before the rest of the markets, so don’t wait too late in the day to visit while in town. The walk was very nicely done and included several fun themed scenes.

Throughout the town centre, there’s a huge pedestrian area, lined with shops. Some of the streets had lights hanging above the walkway.

Update 2021: I was looking forward to the Metz Christmas market. My favourite thing was the amazing light projection show on the Cathedral. We checked into our accommodation and then hurried to the market area so we could see the projection show in the evening. Much to my extreme disappointment there was not a project show. We didn’t miss it for the night, there was no show this year. We walked around Metz and found that this year the Christmas market was not nearly as good as it was a couple years prior. It was unfortunate that we didn’t get to enjoy one final Christmas market, but at least we enjoyed the other amazing markets in the Alsace region.

Alsace France Region

The Alsace region in France was one of our favorite areas. The Christmas markets were amazing, but the towns themselves were just as magical. The small towns nestled amongst the vineyards added to the beauty of the old medieval towns.

If you are visiting the area for Christmas (or any time really), I would highly recommend staying in the area for several days so that you have time to visit each of the gorgeous villages.

We stayed just outside of Colmar and it was an easy drive to each of the villages.

Colmar, France (2019, 2021)

One of our favorite markets. It’s a good size, but still felt small. The town is absolutely beautiful and there are lots of things to see and do throughout the town (even if it wasn’t Christmas time).

The highlight of the Christmas market was the Christmas carols along the canal. A group of school students travel down the canal by boat singing Christmas carols, with Saint Nicholas in the last boat. It was a beautiful addition to a wonderful Christmas market.

There is also a chocolate museum, full of chocolate facts and chocolate displays – plus lots of free chocolate samples!

The town is great to wonder around as well. On one side of the town is “Little Venice” full of canals, which provided a lovely walk.

Eguisheim, France (2019)

Eguisheim is another charming village in Alsace. The buildings were beautifully decorated and the Christmas decorations added to the magic of the village.

The town is small, therefore the market is small, but these Alsace villages aren’t fully about the number of market stalls. It’s more about the Christmas feel of the place – the old buildings with Christmas decorations – and the market stalls are just a bonus that adds to the Christmas spirit.

Kaysersberg, France (2019, 2021)

Another beautiful Alsace village (they all really were stunning!). This town was a bit bigger than some of the other nearby villages. There’s a castle on the hill looking over the village, and there’s a small canal that goes through the village (all adding to the magic).

The Christmas market included a ‘Stories and Legends’ display that contained different scenes from well-known fairy tales, such as Snow White and the Sevan Dwarfs and Little Red Riding Hood.

There was also a glass blowing workshop where you could watch glass blowing in process. It was pretty incredible to see how they created glass ornaments and other glass decorations. All of the items created in the workshop were for sale in the store next door.

Update 2021: Last time we were in the Alsace region we only had a short time to visit Kaysersberg, and it was later in the day. This time around we allowed more time to visit this town. The town is stunning in it’s own right and with all the Christmas decorations and Christmas feel throughout town it truly felt magical. There are lots of things to see throughout town, so make sure you allow plenty of time to see it all.

Mulhouse, France (2021)

Mulhouse was a new town and Christmas market for us. There were a couple different small markets throughout town. In the town center there is a large Cathedral surrounded by gorgeous, colored buildings. Mulhouse is definitely on our list to visit again (even outside of Christmas) since the town was so cute.

Neuf-Brisach, France (2019)

The Neuf-Brisach Christmas Market a very different Christmas market to most of the other ones we visited. We hadn’t heard of this one, but the host at our accommodation suggested it.

The market was themed around the 1700s. There was straw on the ground throughout the market, workers were dressed in period outfits, and there were several stalls giving demonstrations on craftwork from that period.

There was a room for bread making, blacksmiths, open fire cooking, and lace work. Each stall had someone demonstrating the craft. We stood and watched the blacksmith for a long time as he created a small horsehead out of an iron rod.

Everything at this market was old and traditional. It was so different to the other markets in the area and we were so glad we found out about it.

Riquewihr, France (2019, 2021)

Riquewihr is my favorite village in Alsace. I loved walking around the old town and viewing the old buildings. Everywhere we looked was just stunning – the old medieval style throughout the village was incredible. We could have spent hours, days, months just soaking up the atmosphere of the old village. The Christmas decorations on the front of the buildings were beautiful and enhanced the beauty of the whole village.

Again, the market itself was small, but the Christmas atmosphere was in the air and made the how town magical.

Selestat, France (2019)

We included this market because it was supposed to have a Christmas tree theme. The town of Selestat’s claim to fame is the first written mention of a tree. When we arrived, most of the stalls were shutting down (it was 11am). We weren’t sure if the market was only on for half a day, or if they were closing for lunch, either way there wasn’t much to see. Most of the stalls looked like normal street market stalls, and only a small section looked like it was part of the Christmas market.

The market was very small, but the town had some great decorations on some of the buildings, and the town itself was nice.

There wasn’t much of a tree theme, considering that’s what the town is known for. Luckily the market wasn’t out of our way, so it wasn’t a total waste of time.

Strasbourg, France (2019, 2021)

Strasbourg is a larger town in the Alsace area within France. The buildings along the streets are old, and everywhere was decorated for Christmas. This was our first full-out Christmas town – and it was stunning.

The Strasbourg Christmas Market was one of my favorite Christmas markets. There were multiple squares around town setup with market stalls and the streets throughout town were decorated including different themed light hanging over the streets. As you walked between the markets the buildings were fully decorated for Christmas, so the whole town has a Christmas feel to it. Just perfect!

Each market has a different theme, as well as a different styled Christmas tree. One of the markets as an “alternative Christmas market”. They had different styled huts, used recycled materials for decorations, and had a florescent colored light beam tree.

Along the main streets of town there were different Christmas lights overhead. One street was decorated with chandeliers, another one was large presents, another with stars, and one with angels.

The real highlight here was the decorations throughout the town. Everywhere you looked it felt like Christmas. The buildings throughout town, the lights down the streets, the rooftops of the stalls – everything was full on Christmas.

Update 2021: The markets were smaller this year than the last time we went, however the town is still full of Christmas magic. The buildings are decorated throughout town and the market stalls are more unique and interesting than other towns – a great selection of Christmas decorations and gifts to browse.

Turckheim, France (2019)

The Turckheim Christmas Market was a smaller market in the area. However, they have a great advent calendar to open each night in December – the “calendar” was three painted house fronts. Each night school children walk down the stairs next to the Town Hall, across the square to the advent calendar where a window is opened to display a special Christmas scene.

The town also offers a Night Watchman walking tour that takes you around the town. Unfortunately, the tour is only available on certain nights and the night we visited was not one of them. The town was super cute, so I’m sure the tour would have been a fun way to see the town.

Germany

Aachen, Germany (2019)

This was a small market setup around the cathedral. The market has a gingerbread theme, with lots of stalls selling gingerbread and lot of large gingerbread statues around the market.

The cathedral was beautiful from the outside and stunning on the inside – well worth a visit inside. It is free to enter but does cost 1 Euro to take pictures.

Baden-Baden, Germany (2019)

Baden-Baden, known as a spa town due to it’s Roman Baths, contained a small market outside of the town center. There was a number of stalls around the grounds next to the Trinkhalle building. Near to that, there was a large area with lots food stalls – we had a delicious lunch while there.

After the market, we walked around the town. The town itself is nice, with lots of great shops. Some of the buildings had some amazing, over-the-top decorations. It wasn’t a large town, so the short walk was well worth the time.

Cologne, Germany (2019)

We really enjoyed our time in Cologne. In general, we didn’t enjoy the larger markets as much as the smaller quaint town markets, but this one surprised us.

Cologne, being a larger city, contained several markets throughout the city. Each market had a different theme, which felt completely different to the other markets in town. The Cologne markets include the Cologne Cathedral Christmas Market, The Christmas Market in Cologne’s Old Town, The Angels’ Market, The Christmas Market in the Stadtgarten, Harbour Christmas Market, and the Nikolausdorf.

Our favorite market in Cologne was The Christmas Market in Cologne’s Old Town, know as Heinzels Wintermarchen. Heinzelmännchen were elf like creates from an old Cologne legend. The elves would do all the housework throughout the town while the residents slept. This is where The Elves and the Shoemaker story comes from. the market was themed with elves, including a sign for each stall so elves working specific to the stall. For example, the pizza stall had a sign with elves making pizza!

The other markets were also great to walk through. The market near the cathedral was a more traditional market with the cathedral as a great backdrop. And the harbour market had a nautical theme to it. Everyone market was special in it’s own way.

We spent a few days in Cologne, which barely gave us time to explore everything. The Cologne Christmas Market should be on your list of markets to visit.

Esslingen, Germany (2019)

The Esslingen Christmas Market is another unusual market – it’s a themed medieval market.

Everything about the market is styled from the medieval time period – from the stall buildings, to the workers dressed in period costume, and even a complete games area full of medieval games (including one that involves a mouse!).

Garmisch-Partenkirchen, Germany (2019)

Garmisch-Partenkirchen was an unexpected Christmas market stop. We were heading near the town and decided to drive through in order to see the wall murals painted on the exterior of some of the buildings. While there, we discovered the Garmisch-Partenkirchen Christmas Market. This was a small market, probably not worth going out of your way for, but if you are in the area it may be worth a visit.

Kempten, Germany (2019)

We decided to head south to see King Ludwig II’s castles (and hopefully some snow). So, while there, we tried to find a local Christmas market. This led us to the Kempten Christmas Market.

This was a small Christmas market and nothing overly special or unique. I wouldn’t recommend driving out of the way to visit, but if you are in the area it’s a good option for some yummy food and hot drinks.

Nuremberg, Germany (2019)

The Nuremberg Christmas Market is setup in the square in front of the cathedral. The streets around the square are nicely decorated with lights on the buildings and over the streets.

Every night there was a Christmas choir that performed in front of the cathedral.

There was also an area next to the main square that contained stalls from all over the world. Many different countries had a stall with Christmas goodies from their part of the world.

The market contained a few fun Christmas scene displays, including one of children playing in the snow with one of them fallen over on his skis!

Rothenberg, Germany (2019)

The Rothenberg Christmas Market was a smaller market, but the town was stunning.

The town is within the city walls, which you can walk around. There are also some very interesting museums, including a Christmas Museum and a Medieval Torture Museum.

The town contains several Christmas shops, including one that has an amazing Christmas display.

In the evenings there is also a Night Watchmen Tour that you can join which walks around the small town and provides some very interesting history.

This town was a beautiful setting for a Christmas market and it was lots of fun with the traditional activities that take place during the holiday season.

Rudesheim, Germany (2019)

The Rudesheim Christmas Market is in a small town along the Rhine River. This was one of our favorite markets. It was quite small, but it had a lot going for it, plus the town had a lot of fun activities.

Every street in the small town was packed with Christmas stalls and decorations. It had a very lovely Christmas feel to it.

The Rhine River is known for the large number of castles overlooking the water. We wanted to visit as many castles as possible, but unfortunately many of the castles were closed over the winter season so we only got to see a couple of them.

As an extra activity, we took a boat ride along the Rhine River. They had other boat rides themed around Christmas but they were sold out, so we took whatever boat ride we could get which gave us the chance to see all of the castles from the river.

One of our favorite activities in town was the Siegfried’s Mechanical Musical Museum, which is actually one of our favorite museums ever. The museum was full of antique mechanical musical instruments. It was fun learning about the instruments and most of them were in working condition. During the tour we got to see several of the instruments demonstrated. It was great fun hearing the music and seeing some of these amazing mechanical musical instruments.

Near to the museum is a cable car that takes you to the top of the hill to see the Niederwald Monument. The cable car goes over a vineyard that produces wine which can be purchased to enjoy on the cable car ride. It was great fun to drink some wine that came from the fields below.

We really enjoyed our time in Rudesheim along the Rhine River.

Stuttgart, Germany (2019)

The Stuttgart Christmas Market was one of the largest (and oldest) markets we visited. The Christmas stalls were amazing, they were covered in Christmas scenes. The town surrounding the market wasn’t as nice as other small villages we visited, but the stalls and decorations make up for that.

At one end of the city there is a large Christmas tree surrounded by large light displays.

Near Stuttgart is the Christmas Garden which contains light displays at Stuttgart’s Zoological and Botanical Gardens. You can walk around the beautiful gardens and enjoy the displays. We had a great evening walking around seeing the lights.

Not Christmas related, but near Stuttgart there is a Pig Museum. Yep, a museum full of pigs. The building contained rooms full of everything pig – from piggy banks, to toy stuffed animals, to kitchen gadgets – anything and everything you could imagine.

Ulm, Germany (2019)

The Ulm Christmas Market was a small market setup around the cathedral. There were a lot more stands than we expected, and the town was quite large with some great shopping options.

While at the market we viewed the inside of the cathedral, which is worth a visit. The tall steeple is quite impressive.

Next to the cathedral, just outside the main market area, is a fairy tale area. There’s a kids train that circles the area, complete with tracks that you have to cross over. The fairy tale scenes are basic, but cute and include well-known stories.

In the market there was also a large Steiff Bear display. It was a great Christmas scene full of animated bears and winter animals.

The market, along with the usual Christmas stalls, had some great food options available.

Wiesbaden, Germany (2019)

The Wisebaden Christmas Market was a quick stop on our way to another market. The Wiesbaden market was small, but had some of the prettiest Christmas lights. We loved the tall lights glowing above the market stalls.

Wurzburg, Germany (2019)

The Wurzburg Christmas Market was an average Christmas market. We didn’t stop here specifically for the Christmas market. We were passing through and wanted to see some of the other attractions within the town including the Wurzburg Residence, Marienburg Fortress, Wurzburg Cathedral, and Hofkirche. The Christmas market was just an extra bonus and a great stopping point to grab some food and enjoy the Christmas atmosphere.

Italy

Verona, Italy (2021)

Verona is one of my favourite cities. It is such a romantic and charming city, that I love exploring. We hadn’t been for a few years, so I was so excited that we had a chance to visit again – and at Christmas time!

There were several areas with stalls and decorations setup around the town centre. it was a great atmosphere, so much so that we decided to stay in Verona an extra night.