Itinerary help with Christmas markets

I haven’t read great things about the markets in Frankfurt. But we will be there for one night at the start of our Christmas market trip this December, so I guess I’ll find out!

That said, if you are not particularly drawn to Frankfurt, you might consider staying in Cologne instead at the end of your trip. There is a direct train to the Frankfurt airport in 50 minutes. That is our plan.

That would free up two nights. Add one to Cologne. From there you can say trip to Essen or Düsseldorf, even Aachen. We’re doing a trip to the medieval market in Dortmund from Cologne.

For Stuttgart/Esslingen, you can see both easily over two nights. They’re only 10 minutes apart.

Nuremberg is a bit farther away, so you might want to spend another night there. Or consider Strasbourg & Colmar as an alternative.

Hi Kathy
I’m a Christmas Market nut! This year I’m going exclusively to Germany starting from Frankfurt. Rudesheim am Rhine is one of my favorites. It’s small, but has booths from several other countries. I like going to the Finnish area to enjoy their fire if it’s cold. If you make it there (and drink at all), try the Rudesheim Coffee made with Ansbach brandy and topped with whipped cream. There’s a gondola to take you to the top of the hill with views of the Rhine - one gondola has Santa in it so best behave!!

You can stay in Rudesheim and take side trips (I go by train) to both Mainz and Wiesbaden (my favorite cookie vendor) for their Christmas markets. You can get to Rudesheim in a little over an hour from Frankfurt airport by train. Easy access to the other towns. There’s also a music museum worth visiting.

I’ll then travel to Cologne which has 5 Christmas markets. There’s a little green transport train that you catch near the Cathedral - takes you to all 5 kind of like a hop on bus. If time permits the Chocolate Museum is quite interesting.

Trier is my next stop but I know very little about it because this will be a new market for me.

This year I can’t make it to Rothenburg ob der Tauber because their market doesn’t start till December 1. It’s a charming town with a couple of interesting museums. On my last visit I went to the Kathe Wolfart museum and found it interesting. You might be able to catch a classical music concert if you’re lucky.

The furthest for me will be Munich, but might be too far for you if you’re doing a loop. I’m flying into Frankfurt and out of Munich.

Let me know if you have questions or want information on hotels.

Best of luck!
Sandra

https://community.ricksteves.com/travel-forum/trip-reports/christmas-markets-switzerland-france-germany-2019

Perhaps my 2019 Xmas markets Trip Report will have some helpful info.
Both Esslingen and Stuttgart are very worthwhile, and very different.

Secure lodging asap, as from my experience, many hotels were fully booked in June, especially on the weekends.
Have a magical experience!

The Frankfurt market has expanded and is a bit different and in my opinion, a lot nicer than it used to be.

Near-by towns to visit for their markets would be Mainz, Wiesbaden (they will have a huge ice-skating rink this year) Limburg, Marburg, and on weekends, Bad Homburg. You can use an RMV day ticket for any of those as they are all in Hessen.

I have read about so many markets, and they all sound lovely; it's
hard to choose.

Yes. I think your personal convenienience and preferences should guide your visit rather than the loveliness factor. Except for Esslingen, the choices you have mentioned do not approach the "small historic village" standard you are looking for.

I'd like to second Sandra-from-Florida's recommendation for staying in Rüdesheim. The Market there is one of the most atmospheric I've visited. This is the town's promotional video:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=eDMc5L0FkMc

Rüdesheim is a short train ride from FRA. This map of the local train lines shows the FRA airport location (near Bischofsheim) and the route you would take to Rüdesheim via Wiesbaden. As Sandra points out, a stay in Rüdesheim makes for quick and easy train outings to nearby Wiesbaden and Mainz. Mainz is a greatly underrated town - not a tiny village, but packed with pedestrians-only streets and plenty of sightseeing options in addition to its wonderful Christmas Market. But you can also day-trip to the north from R'heim to Koblenz for the Christmas Market there. Keeping in mind that it's wintertime and you cannot expect blossoms and grape vines packed with fruit, the train trip through the Rhine Gorge between Rüdesheim and Koblenz is packed with castles from the Middle Ages and dramatic cliffsides... many say it's Germany's most scenic rail segment (direct train, 60 minutes.)

https://img.locationscout.net/images/2019-04/burg-rheinstein-germany_l.jpeg

The "RMV" Jo mentions refers to the local travel zone around Frankfurt (see map I posted earlier.) RMV tickets are available at ticket FRA airport station ticket machines and at machines in Rüdesheim, Mainz, or Wiesbaden as well as Frankfurt. The tickets are valid on all local trains, buses, and other modes of transport (not for high-speed long-distance trains like ICE.)

While Koblenz is close to Rüdesheim, your ride along the Rhine's east bank takes you outside the RMV. You would be candidates for the Rheinland-Pfalz ticket (day pass) if you day trip to Koblenz. It's a day pass which allows multiple train trips at any hour within the entire state.

Rail Map... Frankfurt > Wiesbaden > Rüdesheim > Koblenz: https://rheingaulinie.de/files/rheingaulinie/files/Fahrplan/fahrplan.png
Rheinland-Pfalz Ticket details: https://www.vrminfo.de/en/tickets/tickets/leisure-tickets/rheinland-pfalz-ticket/

Note also that just before reaching Koblenz you will have a stop in Braubach, a VERY attractive old-world town and the home of Marksburg Castle, which is open for tours year round.

Braubach (scroll through 3 pages of photos)
Marksburg Castle

With all the day trip options from little Rüdesheim, I could easily see a stay of 3-4 nights there.

"Nuremberg or two nights and a day trip (where?)" - Regensburg. https://www.regensburg.de/christkindlmarkt
Schloss Thurn und Taxis too, but it is private and there is admission cost. https://www.wm-tut.de/startseite
Maybe make it an overnight?
Smaller but nice is Forchhheim. This might be something for you from Nürnberg. Many manger scenes there too Krippenweg. https://www.forchheim-erleben.de/events/weihnachten Years ago, Hotel-Schweizergrom was a nice place for dinner and overnight.
The small local markets are usually open only the second and/or third Advent weekend. Time consuming and difficult to reach in most cases by public transportation.

I was at the Frankfurt Christmas Market last year and it was quite good. I love the different markets in Cologne and agree that Mainz is under rated. I was not impressed with Koblenz’s market.
I would never spend the last night too far from the Frankfurt airport, like Cologne. Just read the remarks in the German Trains tread on this forum. They are almost always late, and can get cancelled.
Start looking for lodging now as it will help you decide where you are going.

I would not stay in Rüdesheim. There is only 1 train every hour in either direction. Stay in Mainz or Wiesbaden or Frankfurt. You will spend all your time waiting on a train that may not go where you want to go. Staying in someplace central with lots of train connections, is so much better.
Rüdesheim is worth a visit, though their Christmas market is not as international as it use to be. A lot of stuff being sold there that is just cheap goods from China. Seriously. It is a bit sad. Riding the gondolas at sunset is nice though and an evening spent there is fun, but I surely would not stay there.

Braubach is so very dead in the winter time, that there is nothing to see or do there except for the Marksburg, and you will have to walk up a very steep hill for about 20 min. to get there unless you have a taxi. Everything was shut up tight when I went there one winters day. Nothing was open. A lot of the small towns on the Rhein are like this. If you go to someplace like Limburg, Marburg, Michelstadt, or Büdingen, these are towns that are not depending on tourism for a living. They will have restaurants open all year long and they are gorgeous small towns.

Esslingen is one of my favorites and Stuttgart is too. Lots of good reports about Cologne, though I haven't made it up there yet.

I'd like to respond to the objections I've just read about Rüdesheim and Marksburg. Ms. Jo writes,

Braubach is so very dead in the winter time, that there is nothing to
see or do there except for the Marksburg

Marksburg: Yes, Marksburg Castle is probably the only reason most visitors travel to tiny Braubach. But that's true in summer too, and Marksburg is a truly exceptional medieval castle IMHO, one that appears on most "top-ten" castle lists, and the only one open for visitors in December in the Rhine area. (Those who recommend Rheinfels castle will say the same - it's really the only thing to see in St. Goar.) If you are anywhere on/near the Rhine, I would not hesitate to tour Marksburg if touring a real castle matters to you.

Access to Marksburg is the same in summer, winter, or shoulder season... you catch a taxi or walk. If it's raining in summer (Germany's rainy season) or extra-cold in December, take a taxi. It's worth it.

Braubach: Very small town, but the buildings there are outstanding, and if you're there for the castle tour anyway, it only takes a few minutes to walk through the streets there. You're a tourist and you want a meal there? No worries... there are restaurants, they do serve tourists, and they are open in winter. But this is not Rothenburg... it's a small, very traditional town that operates on its own schedule - NOT a place that caters to the tourist's every need like some towns do - and you have to do things their way. The visitor just needs to plan accordingly. The "Moms and Pops" that feed you cherish their days off. Some close up for a break between lunch and dinner. Most close their doors for 2 days every week. They keep the same schedule all year long. So no matter what the season is, don't show up in tiny towns like Braubach expecting a nice meal at any moment, or on their days off - some examples...

Zum Goldenen Schlüssel (top pick on Tripadvisor) closed T & W
Cafe Maas closed M & T
Pizzeria Laguna closed M & T

(If you must visit on the closed days, it's a 12-minute train ride from Braubach into big-city Koblenz for a meal.)

Some of the supposed drawbacks to a December stay in Rüdesheim seem pretty shaky to me... the train "facts" for example...

# of northbound trains from Rüdesheim to Braubach/Koblenz along the Rhine in the twelve hours between 7 am and 7 pm:

15 (weekdays, December; source = DB schedule) not 12.

# of northbound trains from Wiesbaden (270K population, suggested alternative to R'heim) and will add 30 minutes in each direction to your train outing:

15 - the same as from Rüdesheim, btw.

I cannot see how 15 trains in a 12-hour period forces you to "spend all your time waiting on a train that may not go where you want to go." The northbound train goes north to every town on the railway. I mean, you might have to wait if you ignore the train schedule and show up too early at Rüdesheim station - or if there is a delayed train, which you can do nothing about, no matter where you start.

In peak travel season, Wiesbaden and Rüdesheim once again each send off the same number of northbound trains (16 in the same 12-hr. period.) I'm supremely confident that 15 in winter will suffice on this route.

Koblenz: Ms. Jo, who penned the trip report below, recommends the day trip by train from Frankfurt to Koblenz during the Christmas season using this same railway:

https://community.ricksteves.com/travel-forum/trip-reports/koblenz-christmas-market-and-christmas-garden

If you take her advice on getting to the Koblenz markets, a stay in Rüdesheim rather than Frankfurt will not only provide the old-world "historic village" atmosphere you are after - it will shorten the 4-hour round-trip train ride she had to take from her Frankfurt base to a round-trip of just 2 hours. A R'heim base will save you the same amount of travel time on an outing to Braubach/Marksburg.

Russ, I meant trains going to other places, not just on the Rhein. Perhaps towns like Limburg, Marburg, Büdingen, Worms, Heidelberg, etc. Being on the Rhein in the winter is not ideal and they want to go to Christmas markets. Trains there ARE limited if you want to go to any of those towns where the Christmas markets are, compared to being in a city with more train access.

kathy asks,

Two nights in Frankfurt and a day trip to another market, maybe
Heidelberg?

With 2 nights in Frankfurt at the end, as you say, just one day trip will be possible. No matter how many different train lines might spider outward from Frankfurt, you're looking at using one of them. Have a look at the travel times carefully for your potential destinations. Some may take longer than you are thinking. Getting to Heidelberg-Alstadt by regional train (using an inexpensive day pass or Deutschland-ticket) will require more transit time than you are expecting - like 110 minutes, and another 110 minutes getting back, with a change of train in Mannheim in each direction. Getting there by high-speed train is faster (like 70-80 minutes) but the walk-up flex price round-trip fare for two just for that day will be €130+. If this outing matters to you, you may want to opt for a pre-purchased, train-specific saver fare for the fast long-distance option (ICE for example) at DB for more reasonable pricing. You'll still have a change of train to make, however.

You can check regional train times (for use with the cheaper tickets) by clicking on "only local transport" when you search:

https://reiseauskunft.bahn.de/bin/query.exe/en

Your ticket strategy could be a factor in choosing all your destinations, actually. Are you looking at pre-purchasing train-specific saver fares for this big-city Stuttgart > Nuremberg > Düsseldorf > Frankfurt tour? Getting around on a German Rail pass? Or are you hoping to use a Deutschland-Ticket or regional day passes for most/all of your stay? These latter ticket options could work well if your gave up those destinations and the long-distance train rides between them for tighter travel circle.

Trains there ARE limited if you want to go to any of those towns where
the Christmas markets are, compared to being in a city with more train
access.

Urban myth.

Look at Büdingen's schedule. Basically the same number of trains - 16 of them from 7 am to 7 pm - arriving and departing that Rüdesheim offers to the north. There is no greater access from Frankfurt to Büdingen and its market than there is from Rüdesheim to Koblenz and its market.

Then look at southbound from Rüdesheim.... R'heim > Wiesbaden and its market. There are 24 trains between 7 and 7 that will get you there.

What about getting to Mainz and its market from R'heim? It's the same. 24 trains. Service every half hour.

I didn't mention the BOPPARD Christmas market (Dec. 8-17.) Train to Filsen, walk to ferry and cruise across the river in 5 minutes. The same number of trains that serve Büdingen and Koblenz also serve Filsen.

Speaking of Büdingen's market - it runs Dec 6-10 only.

Staying in big-city Frankfurt on the back end of your trip makes sense since you fly out of FRA; it will give you access to DIFFERENT Christmas-market destinations and a gigantic train station with dozens of tracks, but generally speaking, it will NOT get you to these small-town destinations on a more frequent schedule than the tiny two-track station in Rüdesheim does to its satellite towns.

One-way train travel times from Rüdesheim compare quite favorably to the Frankfurt outings mentioned.

From R'heim:
Koblenz (60)
Mainz (55)
Wiesbaden (32)
Filsen (39 train + walk/ferry)

From Frankfurt:
Limburg (75)
Worms (62)
Heidelberg (100)
Marburg (60)
Büdingen (62 min.)

"The views along both of the rivers was fantastic..."

They no doubt were last year and will be this year too, as you said, Jo. And staying in Rüdesheim - the gateway town to the Rhine Gorge - puts you in a "historic village" as well. I wouldn't recommend staying all 8 nights in Rüdesheim, but 2-3 nights in this lively Christmas market town, with a couple of outings, sounds just right to me.

I give up. You are of course, right about everything, Russ. The forum use to be fun. Now, it isn't anymore.

I've attempted to be factual about the train service and schedules, Jo. The OP who is organizing and funding this trip deserves that.

Russ, me too.
I live here and am in Rüdesheim and on the Rhein often and all year round. I offer suggestions based on experience. I think the trains on the Rhein are a huge pain, if the OP wants to visit Christmas markets in the region.

Stick with Ms. Jo’s advice…..she’s a local, versus the “professional “ visitors. I lived a convenient distance from Rudesheim and other than a work colleague who lived there, never found any attraction to it.

Mainz is a nice Christmas Mkt albeit sometimes insanely crowded. Wiesbaden is a nice market but then that was my home for a long time and seemed to have a festival for every season. Munich had a pleasant market and the multiple markets in Berlin were fascinating. Never had a bad choice of market visits.

Christmas Market season isn’t a horse race…..nice times can be had in places small and large. Public transportation eventually works out fine, accommodations work out and it’s a fun time that I was grateful to enjoy for more than a decade.

I offer suggestions based on experience. I think the trains on the
Rhein are a huge pain, if the OP wants to visit Christmas markets in
the region.

??? The markets start up roughly a month from now... the OP and others who might be heading to Wiesbaden or Rüdesheim would surely appreciate some specifics. What problems are you cautioning people about, exactly? Equipment breakdowns? Overcrowding? Construction issues? The DB site shows upcoming construction projects for the west bank of the Rhine ( Mainz - Boppard - Koblenz) which won't affect trips to W'baden or R'heim. But I see nothing in their announcements for the east side of the Rhine.

Thank you everyone for all of your advice. I was able to add one more day so my schedule is as follows:

2 nights in Stuttgart with a day trip to Esslington,
2 nights in Nuremberg with a day trip (not sure where yet),
1 night in Esson,
2 nights in Koln with a day trip to Dusseldorf,
2 nights in Frankfurt with a day trip to Mainz.

If all goes well, hopefully, I will see 9 Christmas markets.

Looks like a good plan.
If you have time in Frankfurt, the Palmengarten just announced they were doing the Winter Lights again this year from 9 Dec. to 14 Jan. Every evening from 17:00-21:00, wander through these Botanical Gardens with special light displays. One of my favorite things to do each year.

Thank you for the information Ms. Jo, I will definitely put that on my to-do list and I am planning to do the Frankfurt by Foot tour as well.