Hello travel friends. I just posted a suggested 8 day/7 night round trip from Frankfurt aggressive itinerary through German Xmas markets. How about our experts recommend a journey? Arrive on 30-Nov and depart 7-Dec. I’d like to see the biggest and or best markets plus see the famous Castle of Neuschwanstein. We are both 65 and fairly mobile but would like to meander some and not be road warriors like my previous post. I’d concentrate on XMas markets with a bit of other sites but not to wear us out too quickly. Big ask I guess but thought I’d anyone, this group would know! Thanks Mike
Posted by
Detroit, MI
28 posts
We are going to be doing the Cologne markets when they open in late November for a week. We may try a couple of day trips nearby. We like the week in one place as we get to see the town too.
Then to Prague and Krakow each a week. And Munich in mid Dec. We have been there at Christmas ans love it.
Posted by
Paradise
6916 posts
I’d like to see the biggest and or best markets plus see the famous
Castle of Neuschwanstein. We are both 65 and fairly mobile but would
like to meander some and not be road warriors like my previous post.
Your previous post included a "suggested" itinerary with some very nice destinations and markets. SOME of those places are located conveniently near your in-and-out city, FRANKFURT. I think you'll be happier with your trip if you revise the previous itinerary...
Your new focus (bigger/better) would turn you into road warriors, I am sorry to say... the more famous markets (Nuremberg, Munich) and then Neuschwanstein will mean excessive ground travel for 7 nights.
AND... when you say 8 days, I think you are miscounting if you mean sightseeing days...
Nov 30: Arrive FRA airport (what time?) + go somewhere + check into hotel. This leaves half a day for sightseeing/markets at most.
Dec 1-6: 6 full days for sightseeing (if you stay put in one place) or maybe 5 full days if you move to another town or two (moving/meandering takes up time, of course.)
Dec 7:: 0 days for sightseeing, usually... Wake up, pack up, check out, travel to and arrive at FRA airport 3 hours early for your flight home.
In total, there will be just 5 - 6.5 max days available for seeing/doing stuff. You should make the most of this time, IMO, and you do this by staying within a certain radius of FRA.
Also... the big and famous Christmas markets attract huge mobs of people sometimes... many travelers complain of overcrowding in those places, and as a silver-haired citizen myself, I get why many of my fellow seniors have an aversion to them.
My suggestion for a stay using two base towns:
1) Book 3-4 nights in MAINZ (only 20-25 minutes from FRA airport by direct train.) Mainz is a great town for both sightseeing and the Christmas Market experience.
- Do one full-day outing from Mainz to KOBLENZ.
https://www.christmas-garden.de/en/koblenz/ (at Ehrenbreitstein fortress)
https://www.koblenzer-weihnachtsmarkt.de/en
Stop off in nearby Braubach for a tour of the Middle Rhine's only intact medieval castle, MARKSBURG.
https://img.fotocommunity.com/marksburg-braubach-bc203e81-d606-4f2f-bb8d-17e275e8ba88.jpg?height=1080
https://www.marksburg.de/en/circuit/#/
- Do one half-day outing to Rüdesheim for the market there:
2) Book 3-4 nights in COLOGNE. Cologne is roughly 1 hour from FRA by train. Do a day trip to Aachen and Monschau. Monschau is perhaps Germany's most picturesque small town.
NOTE: You might be able to do the Cologne stay with just 2 NIGHTS. Night #7 could then be spent in FRANKFURT (which puts you only a few minutes from FRA airport for departure AND might leave you some time for the FRANKFURT Christmas market.)
Posted by
OP
4 posts
Thanks Russ, you are right. It is at most 6 1/2 days to sightsee. I’m flying out of MCO on Friday 11/30 and arrive at FRA at 9 am. The. 12/7 is my return home… I’ll give this an another read once I have my coffee. :) I will have a car for this trip though, maybe giving me a bit more flexibility.
Posted by
Paradise
6916 posts
The car will be handy for Monschau and for Marksburg Castle.
My only experience with day trips from Mainz and Cologne has been by train. By car... I would choose lodging in both Mainz and Cologne that makes the day trips by car easy and quick - meaning that staying in the heart of these cities, as most people generally advise, might not work as well for you as it does for train travelers like me, and you probably should study this a bit before booking. Maybe other forum members with car experience in these places will have tips for you.
One option that comes to mind for booking is a suburb that has two features...
a) access to the roads you will use
b) a S-Bahn or bus stop that gets you to the town center and markets without driving
Posted by
Alsenborn, Germany
1300 posts
Neuschwanstein is an entire days travel south from Frankfurt. Do you really want to spend 2 days traveling to and from this for a 30 minute tour?
One market a day, from Frankfurt? Mainz, Koblenz, Trier, Heidelberg, Nuremberg, Wurzburg, and Frankfurt.
Posted by
Frankfurt, Germany
9140 posts
Personally, and as expected, I think staying in Frankfurt for a while is wise as there is a wider choice of trains. We all have different ideas about what makes a great Christmas Market. The one in Nuremburg does not fit my idea of a great market, where as the ones in small towns, like Büdingen, Idstein, Bad Homburg or Marburg do. It is all personal choice.
For big cities, Frankfurt, Mainz, Heidelberg, Stuttgart or Wiesbaden. For unique, Rüdesheim because you have the gondolas to ride and you are next to the Rhein or Esslingen because it has a cool, medieval vibe with lanterns and candles.
The Pealing of the Bells on the 30th is unique and very special and a brass band will be playing from the gallery of the Alte Nikolai on that Sat. evening at 18:00.
My list of markets so far for this region:
Limburg Christmas Market – 15.11-5.01
Worms Christmas Market – 20.11-23-12 (closed 24.11)
Rüdesheim Christmas Market – 21.11-23.12
Aachen Christmas Market – 22.11-28.12
Koblenz Christmast Market – 22.11-05.01 (closed 24.11)
Frankfurt Christmas Market – 25.11-22.12
Darmstadt Christmas Market – 25.11-23.12
Wiesbaden Christmas Market – 26.11-23.12
Oberursel Christmas Market – 28.11-1.12
Mainz Christmas Market – 28.11-23.12
Michelstadt Christmas Market – 29.11-22.12 (closed Mon. and Tues.)
Marburg Christmas Market – 29.11-24.12
Pealing of the Bells, Frankfurt – 30.11 , 16:30
Hessen Park Advents Market – 30.11-1.12
Büdingen Christmas Market – 4-8.12
Idstein Christmas Market – 6-8.12
Kronberg Christmas Market – 7-8.12
Bad Nauheim Christmas Market – 13-15.12
Eppstein Christmas Market – 14-15.12
Posted by
OP
4 posts
Hi Ms.Jo (and other friends!)
Thank you for your detailed responses. May I ask for your help on this a bit more. Seriously, I have no clue what to do. I have a car and love to drive, but understand six hotels over six nights now isn’t a smart plan. This is a birthday surprise for my wife’s 65th birthday. I’d like an idyllic, romantic, trip where we see some special Christmas markets, meander through cobblestoned streets and maybe see a castle! :) I know, not asking for a lot! I hope for two good hub cities for the week with options for an afternoon drive someplace quaint that can fill an afternoon. I’d like to see one of the bigger markets but beautiful and quaint could make a better trip I hope! I just want to give her some nice meals and an easy, stressless trip. We are good travelers together and can handle adventure! Any thoughts starting from Frankfurt? I expected to get to Frankfurt on the last full morning and stay there overnight. But stay in the.other two sleep cities for the majority of the trip. Thanks so much!
Posted by
Paradise
6916 posts
...beautiful and quaint could make a better trip...
If you use smaller, cozier Rüdesheim as your base for nights 1-6, I doubt you will be disappointed. It is the cobblestoned town you imagine and is located in between the two base towns I suggested previously (Mainz & Cologne) and is also near Frankfurt... so it's central to almost everything that we've suggested thus far. Outings by car will be easy from there... Marksburg Castle in Braubach (see my previous post) is a quick drive from Rüdesheim. Idstein, Limburg, Koblenz, Oberursel, and other fine destinations that have already been mentioned are also nearby. A little bit further out, Michelstadt (to the southeast), Marburg (to the northeast), and Cochem (to the northwest) are also good options for outings.
Cochem (not previously mentioned) has its own castle, the Reichsburg, which dominates the Mosel River town in dramatic fashion. It is open for wintertime visitors too. See schedule below. Maybe you will get lucky and see it on a snowy day:
