Going to Christmas Markets 2014 with daughters,Help!

Are you flying out of Frankfurt? Cologne seems a bit out of the way with the rest of your trip.

I am a fan of Heidelberg and find it beautiful and interesting. One of my favorite things there is the Student Prison and the Aula, though the castle itself is magnificent. Both of the main churches in or near the town square are well worth a visit.

Don't skimp on Marburg and some of the towns in the area, like Wetzlar, Dillenberg, and Braunfels (huge castle here). These are all really nice, well preserved towns. Marburg might just be one of the most attractive towns in Germany. If their Christmas markets coincide with your visit, it might be a better use of your time to check out these places than to go far out of your way to Rothenburg odT and Nurnberg. And if the idea of a scenic old walled town appeals to you, consider the beautiful but virtually ignored (by foreign tourists) Fritzlar.

Rick's guidebook includes his B&B recommendations for most towns you've mentioned, except Heidelberg and Regensburg, and you may not be planning overnights in those. There have been many previous Munich hotel discussions on this forum, which may interest you, especially pros and cons of the area around the main train station.

You do realize that the German Christmas markets will start closing around noon on Christmas eve. Many will be completely gone by dark.

That Christmas markets close on the 24th is a common misconception. Most of them have their last day on the 22nd or 23rd. Only a very few are open at all on the 24th. The vendors want to be closed down and back home before the 24th. There are of course markets that are open on the 25th and later, but again, very few. Check the website for each city to get the closing dates of their Christmas market.

I guess I should have been more specific. When we were in Munich, two years ago, the main markets in central Munich started closing down around 2pm on the 24th.