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Christmas Markets

Just starting to plan a trip based on a river cruise start.
beginning November 21st in Zurich and ending in Paris the 30th.
After that we train and car from December 1st to the 9th.
Any recommendations I can research are greatly appreciated.
Hoping some markets are open along the way or even out at the D-Day sites.
Thank you in advance.........RC

Zurich - November 21 and 22
Basel – 23
Strasbourg – 24
Speyer – 25
Mainz – 26
Koblenz and Winningen – 27
Cochem – 28
Bernkastel and Trier – 29
Paris – 30, 1
Bayeux – 2, 3, 4
Dinan – 5, 6
Paris – 7, 8, 9

Posted by
9917 posts

The Christmas Markets are lame in Paris, so plan to enjoy the city for those days. Strasbourg is gorgeous for the setting of the markets, plus their shops are decorated on the building fronts several stories up. Also be sure to go into the cathedral - amazing! And very spectacular to take photos as the backdrop at night. We also liked the medieval church in Strasbourg.

Posted by
2700 posts

Well I haven't been to Winningen, Dinan, or Bayeux for the Christmas Markets, but I've done all the rest of your list in the past three years, some annually. My issue is the 21 November is very early, and I'm not sure what will be open. Usually they start the last weekend of November.

Zurich has a number of small plazas with events. The largest market is in the train station, where (IMHO) it's too crowded and in the way of anyone attempting to travel. The best one is in the courtyard of the Landesmuseum, but it's only open in the evenings.

Basel is good, but i actually preferred Freiburg's market, mainly due to the lower cost, and Black Forest crafts available there.

Strasbourg has half a dozen large markets (and a couple small ones) and it's not feasible to attempt to see them all in 1-2 days. One of the best markets anywhere, with a seriously French twist. I love it!

Speyer is good, and really gets better the closer you get to Christmas. Be advised that the Gluhwein varies a lot as this is wine country and most vendors use their own wines in the preparation. You won't find mass market swill here. Go to the Technical Museum in the daytime, and the market after sundown.

Mainz has a huge market, second only to the celebration on Rosemontag. The center is around the Gutenberg statue, but there's usually 4-5 open stages around the city.

Koblenz is one of my favorites, but not for the market. That's okay, but what you really want to do is take the cable car up to Ehrenbritstein and go to the Winter Garden, a huge lightshow, music stage, skating rink, and outdoor street food festival.

Cochem is okay, small compared to most of the others already mentioned. Nothing special as far as I'm concerned. And Bernkastle-Kues is also not bad. But the one you want is Traben-Trarbach, and that's because their market is held underground in the wine caves. It's the best of the Mosel town markets.

Trier is another large fest. it stretches down the river bank, over to the castle, and into the old town around the Dom. One of my favorite towns to visit in December, especially on week nights when the tourists are mostly gone.

Paris is another large city with multiple markets. The largest is usually at la Defense. The small park next to Shakespeare and Co hosts a small handicraft market that's nice. The Tuileries has a long arcade with all the rides and games like a county fair.

The D-Day beaches are not a place I'd consider going in winter. They are cold, wet, and shut down. You want to re-think this. Consider Rouen if you must go to Normandy.

One lesser known, but really nice market to consider, not far from Trier, is Sankt Wendel. It's a medieval market, in a pretty small town, known for the handicrafts and locals who set up booths. No mass market products here. It only runs two weekends, but it's worth the effort to visit if you can.

Posted by
470 posts

I agree with Jean that the Paris Christmas markets are lame. And especially since you'll have seen what a real one is. Spend your short time in Paris enjoying the things Paris is good at at Christmastime. The big department store windows, Christmas lights and displays.

Posted by
749 posts

In Zurich I enjoyed the market in front of the opera house more than the one at the train station, partly because they had such a fun area for children. I liked the markets in Basel too. They are small and easy to get from one to the other. It became quite clear that markets can get crowded so we preferred going early, seeing the lights shortly after sunset and then finding a place to eat. Enjoy!

Posted by
28 posts

While the Paris Christmas markets aren't as great as ones in other countries, they are far from lame.

I love the market at Tuileries. It's a lot of fun and has a fantastic champagne bar. I like the one at La Defense but Tuileries is a lot of fun and takes me right back to being a five year old.

Posted by
591 posts

I am also doing the Christmas Markets this year.

Paris-usually decorations and markets begin around the middle of November. don't forget to go to Galleries Lafayette for their decorations and lights. My birthday is in November and I say at my age one day and a slice of cake just doesn't cut it so I generally spend a month in Paris. Have been to the markets a few times and seen one seen them all but the lights around the city are spectacular. I will be there in July for Bastille Day but will be there again for just 2 days in December to see the lights.

Basel: will be there but as far as I know the markets begin November 27 until Dec 23. I don't have the dates of your other cities. I culled my list from the cutest, oldest, prettiest, most authentic, sparkliest, you get the idea!

Google Christmas Markets and you will probably get the 2025 dates but these events rarely change much except for the date moving one day so you can at least get a sense of what you will find or not find. Markets may not be open but ligts may be up.