The $35 Swiss Pass is a joke. I filled out the paperwork as soon as I was allowed to enter my date of entry, which was 3 days before I landed. After 5 days in the country, the QR code wasn’t emailed to me until the day before I left for Germany.
Now, Germany has closed the Christmas Markets according to an Italian vendor in Basel.
We got the 48 hr test for $43 & on our 2nd day of proving out Covid free status, the code stopped working at 4:30p in the market we’d entered at 2:30p, left to eat in a nearby restaurant & came back to the same police officers who saw us & spoke earlier, but they wouldn’t let us come In although it was the quickest route to our hotel.
Now is not the time to visit Europe. We scheduled a river cruise w Grand Circle & wonder why they didn’t postpone the trip. If Christmas markets aren’t open & we can’t tour the cities without an expensive test that only lasts 48 hrs, we are essentially on a cruise to nowhere.
Posted by
Karlsruhe, Germany
293 posts
Sorry that you are having a difficult trip. Unfortunately, you have managed to arrive in Europe at a point of tremendous instability in the pandemic.
I second your comment that now is not the time to be travelling internationally.
Now, Germany has closed the Christmas Markets according to an Italian
vendor in Basel.
This is not quite accurate--there has been no single centralised closure by the federal government. Instead, some states in Germany (so far only Bavaria and Saxony) have closed Christmas markets across the board. And, many other Christmas markets have closed either because of the difficulty of complying with state protective measures, or because of concerns of overcrowding. Whether the ones in your cruise stop towns will still be running, however, is a different question.
Posted by
Minnesota 🎒
16538 posts
As Azra said, not ALL Germany's Christmas markets have been closed, although some may have been reduced in scope. As near as I know, you are not going to Bavaria, where they ARE closed? You don't say where your ship is going, but based on past posts & Grand Circle's Christmas cruise tour Basel> Amsterdam, it looks like ports in Germany include Baden-Baden, Speyer, Mainz, Koblenz and Cologne? Google up the markets for each to see what current status is.
And versus what you were told by a vendor in Basel, gather information from the shore excursion staff on your ship instead; hopefully there will be some positive news there. This link may also be useful, although some openings may have been cancelled/details changed since it was last updated; as the author stated, things can change with short notice!
https://happytowander.com/german-christmas-market-cancellations/
Azra, as you are "boots on the ground" in Germany, you might have a better web resource for the OP?
Extra note: do pay attention to new COVID rules in Amsterdam (posted in the Netherlands forum) as I know you've booked time there. These are NEW so nothing Grand Circle knew about in advance. The situation with COVID restrictions is fluid EVERYWHERE right now so honestly, travel isn't exactly recommended unless able to roll with last-minute changes which can't be avoided. :O(
Posted by
Karlsruhe, Germany
293 posts
Baden-Baden, Speyer, Mainz, Koblenz and Cologne. I would google up the
markets for each to see what current status is.
There is not a good single source for markets that I know of, as most articles are written for German-speakers and contain information about markets in a specific Bundesland/region. The website you link to seems pretty good, though, but I didn't check the details.
As of websearching that I just did on German-speaking sites, here is the status of the markets in the towns you name. NOTE: this information is correct to the best of my knowledge, but may well change in the next day or two. The OP should absolutely listen to whatever the ship crew says, they will for sure have more up-to-date information. In any case, I have noted the rules that each market is operating under, using the terms we use here, so 3G for proof of immunisation, recovery, or negative test; 2G for proof of immunisation or recovery; 2G+ for proof of immunisation and recovery AND same-day negative test). I am pretty sure that all require a mask, but didn't check specifically.
Baden-Baden: Open under 2G+ conditions (So, in addition to being immunised, you must also show a QR code for a negative test taken on the same day. These should be available for free in town).
Speyer: Open only until 18.00 each day, under 3G conditions.
Mainz: Open, under 2G conditions.
Koblenz main market: Open, under a mix of 2G and 3G conditions
Köln: Open, under 2G conditions.
Posted by
Minnesota 🎒
16538 posts
Apologies for the additional post, Berry, but one more thing? You had mentioned Amsterdam's "Light Festival" in a previous post? You were wondering if any of it would be visible from your hotel, and I'm unsure if you'd planned to participate the fest otherwise. That said, I saw this on the website regarding TBD impact the new COVID measures may have on the event:
https://amsterdamlightfestival.com/en/news/covid-update
So if you'd planned on visiting the festival, check into the site now and again to see what shakes out?