Christmas 2.5 week itinerary

I hate to break it to you, but Christmas ends on Dec. 25, so any hopes of X-mas Markets after Dec. 24 should be let go. I can state generally that the period between Christmas up until Jan. 6, things are terribly quiet, with the exception of Dec. 31/Jan. 1. It will also be cold and with kids you might want to focus on indoor activities.

To me, this means you should focus on cities with numerous indoor options, rather than places where the main attractions are on foot. Obviously, Vienna would be a good choice with numerous things to do during this period. There are also two markets which transition from a Christmas to New Year's Market (although lacking some flavor) - Rathaus and Schonbrunn.

I also highly recommend New Year's in Vienna, particularly the Silvesterpfad (New Year's Trail) - a pedestrian route through town with music, activities and food. A highlight is also watching the famous Vienna Philharmonic Concert on the big screen at the Rathaus on New Year's morning while people waltz. I must advise you, however, that the New Year's Eve scene approaching midnight is rough (people are throwing fireworks everywhere and breaking glass) - not child friendly.

Vienna has plenty of things to keep kids busy - I have two of my own and can help if you need.

Salzburg is a beautiful city as well and worth seeing. You might want to combine Salzburg with a ski thing.

Thanks for the prompt feedback.I did read earlier that New Year's eve on the street can be rough for kids.So is it okay to explore these areas during the day I 'm hoping to get the xmas markets experience in Paris.I read up on some interesting Palaces and museums ( that we could do a bit ). What activities /places would you suggest for kids?We are open to skiing also for 3 days.

Thanks

Sophie, your children and yourselves will enjoy the Christmas windows of the big department stores on Boul.Haussman ((Galeries Lafayette and Printemps). They are wonderful, amusing and funny for children and adults alike. Also if your children are girls they may enjoy the Musee des Poupées (Doll Museum).

I was in Belgium last year until 1/1, and Christmas markets were still going on, probanly for a few days yet. I also was in Kitzbuhel the day after Christmas, and a small market was still going on there (mostly food and drink, but some crafts). The markets are definitely gone by January 6 (Epilhany), according to a friend who lives in Switzerland.

Another idea for the children would be the Science Park at La Villette. Lots of interactive stuff for kids. You can get there by metro or the Canal St Martin boat cruise, if weather permits.

I believe the swiss alps arent that great at that time of the year unless we are skiIng.

On the contrary, the Swiss Alps -- at least in the Berner-Oberland -- are a delight even for non-skiers. You can do "Winter Wandern" meaning winter trail walking on groomed paths with no equipment other than hiking boots required. You can ride the cableways and the narrow gauge trains all over the B-O and enjoy the scenery, and of course there is skiing. We spent 4 nights/3 full days there over New Year's and enjoyed it immensely. It is very busy, though, so reservations ASAP are essential. True for most of Europe over the holidays.

Although I do usually prefer a mix of smaller and larger cities in good weather, I think Vienna and Salzburg have enough variety that you need not worry about the experience being too similar to Paris, Florence, or Milan. Check www.skyscanner.com for flight prices to/from Austria.

Thanks everybody, let me research both the swiss alps and Vienna salsburg more.Offcourse swiss alps are closer and travel time from Paris to Vienna ( by flight) , then Salsburg to Rome to florence ( as Florence we dont have a direct flight option is a consideration)
Science museuem , dolls museum sounds fun-We loved the science museum in Munich.

Boul stores look fascinationg and might be worth a look and stroll.
Between Milan , Florence , Paris and Vienna - which city has the best outlet malls .I have been to the Florence one and was almost half a day trip and some of the stuff was nice.Jan /post xmas im assuming most of these cities will anyway have good sales going on so I dont have to rush to outlet malls.Since both kids and men wont tolerate it very much and very long :).
In my list of things that I would like to pick up is maybe a bag ,some clothes , kids stuff, local crafts and paintings and a pendant.
I love Italian jewellery designs ( they are different what we get here in Spore).Any recommendations?

Any suggestions for websites for flights n trains? I have been checking out Expedia , sky scanner and fare compare but the connections between Paris and Vienna are very expensive 😁.
Thanks a lot in advance.

There are other discount flyers out there which may not appear on skyscanner - although I doubt there are many.

Have you looked at that very different airline, Ryanair? They don't fly from Paris, they use a remote place called Beauvais, and they don't fly into Vienna - but - they do connect Beauvais with Budapest which is not a million miles from Vienna. I don't see your travel dates so I picked out of thin air and saw one day with a flight at €32.90 per person one way, and several more days at just €4 or €5 more.

Then a train into Vienna.

You might also look into Bratislava and Salzburg.

Good luck.

[[EDIT]] I reread and see your 29th date - a particularly difficult one. Budapest on the above route on that day shows €169. Could be better, but could be far worse. ]]

Ryanair does fly into Bratislava, a suburb of Vienna. Much closer than Budapest.

but it seems they aren't flying there on the 29th, at least according to my reading of their website....

Thanks Emily n Nigel . Let me Che k it out.

Hi ! We are still stuck.I started looking at Bernese oberland / Interlaken - sking options along with sightseeing for the 4-5 days that we have between 29th to 2nd Jan.But most of the decent hotels seem sold out.Since the days r going to b short n we have two kids with us, a decent hotel with some vibe is important.Then a Swiss friend told us that forget Switzerland at this time of the year as it would be very damp n cold.We arent really skiing experts but did enjoy it very much in Japan.The cold n snow doesn't bother us but rain , fog , not being able to do much would.

So my question really is - ( connections n price apart ) what would be a better experience - Vienna , Salzburg or the Swiss alps ?

Thanks so much in advance

"So my question really is - ( connections n price apart ) what would be a better experience - Vienna , Salzburg or the Swiss alps ?"

It is all up to your own personal preference. Vienna is a large city with museums and varied attractions no where near the mountains; Salzburg is a smaller city with charming ambiance and music near to the mountains; Swiss alps would include villages with heavy emphasis on outdoor activities, obviously in the mountains. All three are very different.

You also asked earlier about shopping. I can comment on Vienna. There is no equivalent here to what you found in Florence. In my opinion, you don't come to Vienna to shop as the variety of shops is poor and the prices are very high.

some more ideas. http://www.lonelyplanet.com/travel-tips-and-articles/77540

and the Christmas markets in many towns stay open to the end of the year; as in Budapest.

Thank you all for your replies and time .Looks like we are going to Vienna