Colored lights, sparkling ornaments, balls for the tree, figurines for the nativity scene, street performers and then sweets and the smell of spices in the air: what would christmas be without markets🇧🇷 They are the busiest places during the holidays, from mid-November to early January, because they are perfect for fully immersing yourself in the Christimas spirit🇧🇷 The tradition is popular all over Europe, from big cities to small villages: everyone wants to give young and old a place to experience Christmas in all its magic. In between christmas markets The oldest are those of Berlin, flanked by those of romantic Paris, picturesque Vienna passing through Strasbourg, Prague, Brussels, Innsbruck. Here are some ideas for those who have a trip to Europe in mind for the Christmas season.
Christmas in Berlin
Berlin is very concerned about Christmas parties and every year the German capital hosts dozens of markets in all the city’s neighborhoods, bridges to receive tourists and citizens, young and old. Streets, squares and alleys are filled with all kinds of stalls, where you can satisfy your desire to party, with purchases ranging from souvenirs to typical local products. Among the most popular markets is the elegant Gendarmenmarkt square (dedicated to ancient crafts and crafts), which moved this year to Bebelplatz square, close to the Opera, the Cathedral of Saint Edwiges and the Royal Library. It opened its doors to visitation this week and it is the first time without restrictions since the beginning of the pandemic. Instead, we’ll have to wait for December 2nd for the Christmas market. Christmas Panoramic Klunkerkranich🇧🇷
- Where: Bebelplatz square.
- When: from November 21, 2022 to December 31, 2022.
- Entrance: 1 euro.
- Hours: Sunday to Thursday 12-22, Friday and Saturday 12-23, December 24 12-18.
Vienna’s Christmas Village
During the holidays, Vienna also hosts its traditional Christmas markets every year, in the most suggestive places in the city. The Christmas Village on Maria-Theresien-Platz opened its doors to visitors on November 16th and will be available to citizens and tourists until December 24th. The village is made up of around seventy stands dedicated to handicrafts, with Christmas decorations and handmade souvenirs. Don’t miss the evocative Advent lighting, which transforms the surrounding landscape and Vienna’s Ringstrasse (the road that circles the city center) into a fairytale Christmas world.
- Where: Maria-Theresien-Platz.
- When: from November 16, 2022 to December 26, 2022.
- Free entry
- Opening hours: Sunday to Thursday, from 11 am to 9 pm, Friday and Saturday, from 11 am to 10 pm, December 24, from 11 am to 4 pm, December 25 and 26, from 11 am to 7 pm.
Santa’s House in Rovaniemi
What Santa’s city🇧🇷 It’s Rovaniemi, a village in Lapland (Finland), two steps away from the Arctic Circle. It is said that the man dressed in red and with a white beard lives in a wooden house: here, helped by his elves, he packs gifts for children from all over the world. 8 kilometers from the city is the traditional Santa Claus Village, open all year round, but accompanied during the Christmas holidays by Santa Park, a theme amusement park. Of course, you can meet Santa Claus in the flesh, as well as take a sleigh ride between the stalls.
- Where: Rovaniemi
- When: from November 19, 2022 to January 7, 2023.
Stalls in the center of Strasbourg
Strasbourg’s Christmas market is home to around 300 stalls spread across 12 spots on the Grande Île, the city’s historic center. The market in Place Broglie is the oldest in France, the famous Christkindelsmärik, whose origins seem to date back to 1500. The square’s stalls stretch along the streets of Place de la Cathédrale and Rue de la Comédie to Place Klébler, where a tree of A gigantic and richly decorated Christmas is traditionally assembled. The tree will be lit on November 25th, when the markets open. In addition to Christkindelsmarik then there are many other spots where you can stop to breathe in the festive air, for example the Marché de Noël de la Cathédrale, between wooden houses and gazebos.
- Where: Place de la Cathédrale and Place Broglie.
- When: from November 25, 2022 to December 24, 2022.
- Opening hours: every day from 11 am to 8 pm except November 25 (from 2 pm to 8 pm) and December 24 (from 11 am to 6 pm).
Lights and markets in Paris
From Montmartre to the Champs-Elysée, from Notre-Dame de Paris to the Champs de Mars, Paris is the capital of Christmas. It’s impossible not to get caught up in the magic of holidays in this city. Its markets are among the most famous in Europe, but the capital also loves to shine, decorating the most evocative places in the city with lots of gold and silver lights: the Christmas version of the Eiffel Tower is a gigantic Christmas tree that stretches to the sky. And also lights for the Champs-Élysées and the Arc de Triomphe, obligatory stops for tourists in the city. O flea market at Notre-Dame de Paris will remain open from 9 to 26 December 2022 every day from 10am to 8pm, while the thematic space set up near the Tower🇧🇷 Here, Aldeia de Natal offers stands with food and local products, but also souvenirs for Christmas shopping.
- Where: Champ de Mars.
- When: From December 16, 2022 to January 2, 2023.
Christmas in Basel
It’s impossible not to mention Basel’s Christmas markets, among the largest and most famous in all of Switzerland. It is no coincidence that the city won the title of Best Christmas Market in Europe last year. Munsterplatz (in front of the old cathedral) for the occasion it is festively decorated in an exquisite and sumptuous way and it is the square that hosts the traditional and always present richly decorated Christmas tree. Barfüsserplatz for the occasion it is full of wooden houses and stalls, ready to offer delicious delicacies and spectacular attractions.
- Where: Barfüsserplatz and Münsterplatz squares.
- When: from November 24 to December 23, 2022.
- Free entry.
- Open hours every day from 11:00 am to 8:30 pm, on the 23rd of December the Barfüsserplatz market will be open until 8:00 pm and the Münsterplatz until 6:00 pm.
Brussels’ secret garden
Brussels hosts one of the most suggestive Christmas markets in Europe, which will remain open from the end of November to the beginning of January. Plaisirs d’Hiver (Winter Wonderland) is the event that allows tourists and citizens to experience Christmas surrounded by lights, colors, suggestions and thematic songs. On the 25th of November, the traditional Christmas tree on the Grand Place is lit: twenty meters high, decorated with 600 champagne-colored balls and 2 kilometers of luminous LED garlands.
The market takes place in the streets of the historic center: hundreds of wooden chalets where you can find Christmas souvenirs, decorations, gift ideas, vintage objects, handicrafts and local food and wine. At the disposal of visitors there are also rides, the Ferris wheel, an ice skating rink located on Place De Brouckère. A second Christmas village is located in the Bois de la Cambre, a garden that for the occasion becomes a veritable enchanted forest in an explosion of lights.
- Where: historic center.
- When: From November 25 to January 1, 2023.
Source: Fan Page IT
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