Europe in December

It would be extremely helpful to know what you like to see or not see. Not being backpackers doesn't say much other than you are not staying in hostels. Europe is a BIG place. Don't even know where you are landing or departing from. A common Christmas trip is a tour of various Christmas markets especially in Germany. Read the guidebooks. Only you can decided what is important to you.

London would be easy (take the Eurostar). I love London in December. If you want to stay on the continent, try Austria. It is lovely in winter- and if you ski, you could try some "real" slopes!

Kathleen Some observations. Please take a look at recent threads on eating on Christmas Eve and Christmas in Paris (and probably all of France and maybe Europe?). Hard to do. Also, I think that Christmas markets end right at Christmas Day. Therefore may not be an option for traveling to other Christmas market destinations after Paris. Where is your return flight from? If Paris, I would suggest not going to far afield or you will spend a lot of time backtracking. Bobbie

....... Christmas markets end right at Christmas Day...... It strictly depends on the country and local customs. In Germany the markets do close on Christmas eve. In Spain it is the 6th of January and the same for Prague. That is based on experience. Someone told us the markets in Austria close on Jan 6th. Again, we could use a little, just a little input from you, Kathleen.

Check the cities you want to visit, most Christmas markets close on the 22nd or 23rd, and only a very, very few are open at all on the 24th. You may find a very few that are open on the 25th and later.

Thank you ! Yes , I apologize for being so vague about our interests. This trip is last minute and the pressure is on. Yes I will check on the Christmas markets in Paris and the trains to London. We do feel taking the train is a good option. Flying within Europe may be busy at that time. The suggestion are very helpful . Thanks again.

I suggest you head to Alsace area, Strasbourg, Riquewihr, then make a loop south to Basel, over to Beaune, back up to Paris. If you want to go a bit further, then south from Strasbourg to Geneva, maybe up to a ski area, then back up to Paris. You can investigate all the Christmas markets at www.christmasmarkets.com

My wife and I were in Europe about three years back at the same time you are thinking, it was amazing to say the least. First, very very cold. Be sure to bring big jackets, long johns, beanies, and good shoes. Paris is fantastic anytime of year but especially around Christmas time. The cold weather makes for not a lot of travelers which means shorter lines for you everywhere you go. The only downside to Christmas in Paris is that most of the city shuts down for the holiday. We did a guidebook self-guided walking tour, which worked out great. I would also suggest a Christmas night stroll down the Champs Elysees. The lights, people, and shear magnitude of the place is ridiculously cool. Brussels is pretty magical and if you're there you may as well go to Brugges, which is on my list of best Christmas village type places in Europe. Munich has a cool Christmas set up but it shuts down on the 26th. Prague's Christmas village is pretty amazing and goes all the way through the first of January. Side note, New Years in Prague = insanity, in a good way. I hope you have a great time.