Christmas Markets Germany/Austria ideas for 2026 requested

Jean, I would suggest Gengenbach in the Black Forest. It has the world's largest advent calendar and is so beautiful and interesting. I've been there in the spring but have wanted to see it at Christmas for several years now. The town is very charming with beautiful half-timbered houses (it's frequently called a "chocolate box" village) and has a beautiful Altstadt, with quite a few restaurants and cafes to choose from. Here's another article showing the town. https://www.wanderlustmagazine.com/news/gengenbach-advent-calendar/

And since it's not as well touristed as other places, it doesn't get the crowds that you'll find in places like Strasbourg and other cities. In fact it doesn't get that many American tourists at all, although you will find many Germans there. it's one of my favorite places in Germany and I just love it. In fact I'm planning to hopefully add it to my list this year if I can get my sister to agree. And there are other Christmas markets in the Black Forest as well. There's a list of them on this website: https://www.black-forest-travel.com/typical/christmas-markets.html

One other benefit is if you stay there (or anywhere in the Black Forest), you receive a KONUS card, which entitles you to free public transport throughout the Black Forest region. There are many quaint villages in the region that you can visit along the Black Forest Railway, including many with Christmas markets (see list above via link).

Gengenbach is lovely. Freiburg is lovely and lively.

I'd consider flying into FRA and an itinerary which includes Mainz and Heidelberg in between the Black Forest and FRA. Mainz is so close to FRA airport that it would make for a good fly-in or fly-out stay - just 25 minutes by direct train to FRA.

"One other benefit is if you stay there (or anywhere in the Black Forest), you receive a KONUS card..."

The KONUS card is a very nice perk indeed. But it is not available "anywhere" in the Black Forest, sadly. You need to stay in one of the participating KONUS towns to receive it. There are MANY of those towns. Gengenbach is one of the best. KONUS details here:

https://www.schwarzwald-tourismus.info/planen-buchen/konus-gaestekarte#googtrans(de|en)

In Germany over 3,000 Christmas Markets opens doors every year - some only for a weekend - so worth to see the ones which are not located in Southern Germany only.

I am not sure if Gengenbach really has the world's largest advent calendar since Tönning has the longest (see article). The warehouse built in 1783 is annually transformed into an advent calendar.

There are a lot of Christmas Markets in Northern and Western Germany.

Northern German town Lübeck describes itself as "Christmas Capital of Northern Germany"; it is since decades a demanded destination for visitors form Northern Europe.
https://www.visit-luebeck.com/culture/christmas-city-of-the-north

Also the Christmas markets in castles and palaces of German state North Rhine-Westphalia (NRW) are real unique beauties off-the-beaten tourist paths:
https://www.nrw-tourism.com/christmas-markets/castles

Medieval town of Goslar is worth a Christmas journey with its awarded Weihnachtswald.

The traditional markets in Hamburg (see list of Northern markets) and Bremen (Schlachte-Zauber) are really worth visiting. Also Berlin offers a huge variety of large and very local Christmas Markets (link).

Located in East Germany you will like Dresdner Striezelmarkt which "turns the Dresden Altmarkt into a Christmas wonderland".

The closely to Dresden located Ore Mountains are famous for their Christmas handcrafts.

I've posted on the markets in Germany I've visited this year, and they're all fairly close and reachable by train from Kaiserslautern or Mannheim. https://community.ricksteves.com/travel-forum/germany/freiburg-christmas-market

I've also been to Nancy and Metz, and Wroclaw (which was the outlier). (posted those too.)

In the past two years I've "done" a couple dozen more, from Cologne to Zurich, Munich to Paris. I've hit most of the major cities in that area, and a number of the smaller places. In previous years I spent more time in Bayern and Austria and had a great time there also.

Where to base from is always a question, and really, there's no perfect answer. My experience is that regionally the markets are much the same, but if you travel across a border, or even just 3-4 hours drive, things can be very different. Prague is different than Nuremberg, which is not like Salzburg, which is unlike Freiberg, and crossing over to Strasbourg is quite noticeable. Part of this is history, part is religion, and part is local culture. This year I really enjoyed Sankt Wendel and Deidesheim, neither of which had the best decor, nor where they the largest, but they were local, friendly, and charming in a way you don't get in the places tourists tend to head to.

A couple regional ideas you may consider, would be to base in Bamberg or Saarbrucken. Both have fairly good markets, but they also have good connections. From Bamberg you can easily see most of Franconia; Bayreuth, Nuremberg, Amberg, Regensburg, Wurzburg. From Saarbrucken you have Paris, Nancy, Metz, Trier, Trauben-Trarbach, Koblenz, etc. I'd pick 2-3 cities in different regions, and explore out from them.

But you'll have to wait until next October to ensure the dates of the events will match your plans. For the big cites this is easier, but smaller markets (like Sankt Wendel) are short lived.

Emily has a very good thread on the subject in Vienna. Actually a number of good threads on Vienna.

You planned a Christmas Market Trip for 2026 and want to go by train from City to City and theier Markets.

For ex Fly to Frankfurt and Departure from Vienna or viceversa
There is a direct train connection with stops in cities with one of the most wonderful Christmas Markets in Germany and Austria

Train Frankfurt to Würzburg to Nuremberg to Regensburg to Passau to Linz(Aut) to St Pölten to Vienna
Make stopover for 1 or 2 nights in each city and see Historic Center and Christmas Market
Go on with "same" train the following day
for ex:
Nüremberg Christmas Market is the most famous in Germany

Regensburg Thurn und Taxis Christmas Market is my favourite but entry fee (there is a "public" one also in town and free)

The other cities and their Markets are also worth visting.

When you decide to go this way there will be for sure more detailed info from others and me ;o)

Thank you so much for the responses from our German contributors & others!

I will look over the details you’ve shared and map out the locations, so I can get a good overall picture of them & distances by train. Plus as you mentioned, I do want some variety in the locations & types of markets.

Mr. E, yes, Emily was fantastic help with the input for Vienna this year!

I would absolutely make the Wolfgangsee markets (St. Gilgen, St. Wolfgang, Strobl) a must. To this day they are at the absolute top of my list (Strasbourg is probably my second, and I would love to explore more around Stuttgart)

Also on the list should be the Erzgebirge and Dresden. The Erzgebirge is home to numerous Christmas traditions and crafts.

Beyond that I would put the Harz, Bremen, and Lübeck on the list for more northern markets. Lübeck is great, but Bremen is my favourite here in the north. Both are crowded on weekends. The Harz has more small town events, so a bit of research is likely required.

Hamburg, my home and absolute favourite city in the world, tends to disappoint in the market category, with the markets being generic and the nicest one, the Rathaus, being overcrowded. But the more edgy Santa Pauli is worth a visit if you are passing through--especially on a Monday night, when it a) isn't as crowded, and b) serves the glitter Glühwein.

For small towns (beyond the Harz or Erzgebirge, but up here in the far north) I would put Wedel, Stade, and Glückstadt on your list of possibles--depending on how your schedule works. And definitely Schwerin and Lüneburg for mid-sized towns.

The flair of these markets varies wildly, so you will get plenty of variety.

Thank you SO much, HowlinMad! January can be a very snowy month here in North Idaho, so it’s a good chance for me to be inside, researching the valuable information you’ve shared. I think it’s going to be difficult to narrow down the choices of cities once I see the details of several areas.

I’ve repacked all of my Christmas decor in my home, but I left the Christmas Markets mugs out on display for January, too, to remind me of the beauty & fun of this past trip.

Have you considered the Südtirol? I believe the website Throne and Vine has lots of market-related info. Would you also consider a Krampuslauf or two? Could be fun. You can find videos online. I enjoyed the Krampuslauf in Hallstatt about 5 years ago. Great fun!

Two years ago my husband and I flew into Berlin, stayed two nights, then took a train to Leipzig. On to Chemnitz. Car to Seiffen (can be done by bus/train but not easily). Then train to Freiberg, Goerlitz, Dresden, and Prague (we love Prague but the main market is not among our favorites). Total of 17 nights. With a Deutschland ticket we took day trips to Quedlinburg, Meissen, and Bautzen. Also a day trip to the Polish pottery town of Boleslawiec (which inspired an entire trip to Poland the following year!). No sign of any plastic mugs! We have visited several markets along both the Rhine and Danube; with the exception of Budapest (outstanding!), these markets in the northeast were our favorites. Of course, it may have been that it started snowing on our arrival day and we ended up with a little snow every day-enough for great ambience but not enough to slow us down:).

Den, this may need to be considered a 2-year plan because there’s so many options that are sounding nice! : ). Thank you for your wonderful info.

My only criteria is that I’m limiting myself to only train travel to simplify transportation, plus I don’t want to place my suitcase in the lower section of a bus where contents could get broken.

I had a wonderful day of snow here - the kind where the flakes are light & the sky stays bright, and I only needed to push shovel vs. heavy wet snow lifting.

I’m just circling back to say “thank you” again!

Yesterday was a good day with 8” / 20cm of snow outdoors to spend the afternoon indoors mapping out each of the cities you mentioned, plus others I have found from initial research. I looked up the train times to reach cities, making a spiderweb of lines with the info. So far, I need a 3-week trip to complete a few pieces of possible itineraries & that’s moving at my fast speed! (My goal is to make it a 16-day trip.)

Next steps will be looking up each of the cities again to see what features they might have, such as a castle, cathedral or interesting museum. And then looking up YouTube videos to determine how photogenic the city would be, plus if the Christmas Market stalls are decorated or just some common look across them. The first step may add more days needed for the trip - LOL! Hopefully the second step will help narrow it down. : )

I also marked the cities on the map which are destinations for river cruise Christmas Markets tours because I’d rather not be following too much of their circuit through Germany. And I marked the route I made at the trip last month to not repeat those again unless I need to because of a convenient airport city.

Anyway, I just want to reiterate how much I truly appreciate the responses from our German contributors! You’re showing me places I wouldn’t have considered, and I want this to have a local feel.

If you want stands at markets with decorated roofs, then Frankfurt and Stuttgart are the markets for you. They are gorgeous.
The French markets use plastic cups, the German ones use mugs.

Cities with a castle and a good Christmas market?

Koblenz - the Ehrenbreitstein Fortress turns into the Winter Garden with ice rink, live music, light shows, etc. The market down by the old town is good too.

Nuremberg - This is the most heavily touristed, but worth it.

Wurzburg - The market, the fort, and the Residence!

Bad Homburg - major spa town nobody in the US has heard of.

Cochem and Bernkastle Kues - beautiful in the spring and fall, special at Christmas.

Heidelberg - another very popular market. (I go every year.)

Ludwigsburg - more of a Palace than a castle, but really pretty.

Neustadt on the Donau - another less commonly known spot with fantastic castle.

”The French markets use plastic cups, the German ones use mugs”

Ms. Jo, that’s a bonus that I am just planning to be in Germany for this next Christmas Market trip!…with maybe a little bit in Austria. My daughter & I only saw a couple of people at the Strasbourg, France market with ceramic mugs, and we had to ask someone to even find the one stall that was still using them.

We did enjoy the beautiful decor of those in Stuttgart last month - glad we went there, plus nearby Esslingen was fantastic.. Thanks for the comment about Frankfurt’s decor - appreciate it!

KGC, thank you very much for the list! Some of those aren’t on my list, yet, to research & having castle settings is a large bonus.

I was concerned that Nuremburg and others along the river cruise routes might be jammed full of tourists and could lose the ambiance. But, I should go to at least one of those major ones.

Thanks for your replies! I have a final itinerary selected and have begun to reserve small hotels. Very exciting!

Appreciate your responses very much!

Bad Homburg is one of my favorites too. They have more hand-crafted items for sale then any other market I have been to except for the medieval ones, like at Esslingen or Ronneburg Castle. (near Büdingen and Gelnhausen)

Thank you, Ms. Jo! There’s so many nice options. Maybe the Frankfurt area becomes a Christmas Market trip sometime after 2026.

Last Saturday, I had an event at my home and a lady from NW Germany who is a friend came. I showed her my Post-It planning calendar for the Dec trip, and she was excited to see so many cities where I will stay that she thought were great choices. I took that as a good sign!

Jean-
We did a Christmas market trip last year . If you're in the Black Forest I would recommend the Ravenna Schlucht market at night. it's very beautiful and quaint. We also went to Freiburg, Colmar, Heidelberg, Marburg and Amsterdam. They were all fun, generally a bit crowded, but fun. If you have any questions, let me know. We rented a car and drove from Munich to Freiburg and then ended up turning the car in at Dusseldorf before taking the train to Amsterdam. Good Luck

Dan

Been reading about all the good ideas and information about the Christmas markets in Germany. Have had thoughts about a short river cruise Frankfurt to Basal, with a weeklong car trip before, in December ‘26. Car trip would involve Munich, Rothenburg and maybe Neuschwanstein. Is doing your own tour in a car suggestible in the Dec weather of Germany, and is this the right time of year to do a river cruise? (Snowy, rainy, cloudy) Have been in Stockholm and Copenhagen in December and enjoyed the holiday festivities there.

I saw a travel video tonight where each German Christmas Market was rated on the quality of its döner kebab. Wurzburg won, so make sure its on your list.

Mr. E, Wurzburg is actually on my itinerary!

My final itinerary & hotels booked:

Fly to Munich
2-Regensburg
1-Wurzburg
2-Bamberg
1-Erfurt
3-Dresden
1-Leipzig
2-Bremen
1-Münster
2-Köln
1-Aachen
1-Dusseldorf & fly home

Sounds like an epic trip. Have fun.
And do make notes about the quality of the döner kebab at each stop.

Looks like a fun trip! I went to Aachen last month. I liked it a lot. If you have interest in Charlemagne, I would recommend the English tour in the Dom; it's best to buy a ticket online ahead of time -- I saw people turned away the day of the tour because all the tickets were sold. The self-guided tour of the Rathaus is interesting, too.

Mr. E, I would be more successful if you substituted “the quality of the döner kebab” with “the quality of some Christmas Markets sweet treat”! ; )

Dave, thank you for the recommendation to reserve a ticket for Charlemagne. Yes, I want to have some activities during the day in these cities - not just a focus on the markets at these destinations. The markets will be my wonderful late afternoon/evening ambiance activity, but I am a minimal shopper.

Okay, doner kabob and Christstollen. What could be more traditional.

Enjoy your trip and dont forget to

Have Regensburg Fast Food at the Wurstkuchl

Bratwurst and/or Reiberdatschi mit Apfelkompott

Have lunch or dinner in Münster at Großer Kiepenkerl near Lamberti Church and Prinzipal Market

Taste Töttchen a very special dish from Münster and/or Münsterländer Pfefferpotthast

Definitely looks like a fun trip!

And since you have to go through there to get to Münster, you might want to stop in Osnabrück along the way, since it has a lovely Christmas market itself, and it's nicely symmetrical to visit both of the Treaty of Westphalia cities. (The Christmas market in Osnabrück is in front of the historical town hall.)