Christmas Markets in Italy, Switzerland, Austria and Germany

Your visit will coincide with the beginning of the ski season in Zermatt and the Berner Oberland. This is the busiest time of year for these locations, so don't expect a whole lot of "quiet".

Thank you Tom. Do you have any alternative suggestions for an Alpine Christmas experience?

There's nothing wrong with visiting a winter sports resort at it's busiest. It will provide a festive environment. The flip-side is that if an Alpine town doesn't cater to skiers, almost everything will likely shut down for the winter.

We were in Europe last December for Christmas and visited several of the cities you plan to visit. The Christmas markets in Salzburg and Munich are large and interesting. The Luzerne Christmas market was small; there is no Christmas market in Murren. One of the best places we visited for Christmas markets, decorations and spirit was the Alsace part of France, i.e. Colmar, Riquewhir, etc., but that may be difficult for you because you will be traveling by train with a tight schedule. (We rented a car.) We were very lucky with the weather which was spring like with many sunny days and higher than normal December temperatures. Have a great time.

We've visited Salzburg and Munich during their Christmas markets. The Munich market is huge and fantastic. The Salzburg market wasn't as large, but still very nice. And both cities were great places to stay at that time of the year. We managed w/o a car in both places.

I know Strasbourg and Nuremberg are not on your list, and with your current itinerary, are a bit out of the way, but those are two I will always remember. This site has info on many different markets.

http://www.christmasmarkets.com/

It won't be quiet around the Chrismas markets either. Tons of people, especially after 5 pm when the locals get off work.

I too enjoyed the Alsace markets (Strasbourg, Colmar) most of all. Another huge favorite was the Medieval market in Esslingen, just outside Stuttgart (which is close to Alsace).