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Last Minute Christmas in Europe 2023

Posted by on

Hello!
I am planning a 9 night vacation with 3 guests for December of 2023 (21st-30th).
We are flying into Paris and want to spend at least 3 days there before we leave on the 30th. I have looked up different Christmas markets in Colmar, Metz, all over Germany, and Basel. I was considering flying from Paris to Basel (or training) to hit Colmar and Metz on our way back to Paris.
After reading a couple forum posts I am conflicted.

Do I scratch Basel all together? (none of us have gone to Switzerland before, and the hotels/airbnbs seem scarce)
I am worried about Christmas Markets closing after the 25th as well...

We have visited Germany and Austria in the past but wouldn't mind going back for the Christmas Markets.

Any suggestions or help is greatly appreciated!

Posted by
17940 posts

The markets I'm Budapest always get excellent reviews. In past years, the food stalls have closed on Christmas Eve, but the craft stalls stay open till the 31st.

There are discount airlines from Paris.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=q7JSwLklDJk
http://budapestchristmas.com/
https://edition.cnn.com/travel/article/budapest-winter-things-to-do/index.html
https://wanderingwheatleys.com/best-christmas-markets-in-budapest-hungary/
https://www.hungarybudapestguide.com/events/christmas-markets/

Posted by
464 posts

What about Strausbourg? We were there end of July. Loved it…wonderful, old and picturesque, delightful! It seems they have great Christmas markets. Good question about markets open after the 25th?

Posted by
656 posts

Hi there, I've been saving links about Christmas markets - good luck there's so much choice!
https://community.ricksteves.com/travel-forum/general-europe/christmas-markets-willing-to-go-anywhere-where-to-go. The one thing I would consider is taking the train, sticking with markets that are close to Paris. I also wondered about reversing the order, going to maybe Strasbourg first, and then Paris after the markets close? (I didn't check the dates). There's so much more on the Forum about the markets, just do a search on the main RS page.

Posted by
2034 posts

This past December we did the Christmas Markets in Munich and Salzburg and had the best time! We had been to both areas before, but not at the holidays and it was so incredibly beautiful.

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