Before you ask, yes I have read the Christmas in Europe thread on this website.
My brother and I are considering Germany, Czech Republic, Austria, Switzerland for our December/January trip. I would LOVE recommendations for great Christmas and New Year's cities/towns. Looking for a beautiful Christmas in a place that won't completely shut down as we will want to be out and about since we will not have the traditional family Christmas. For New Years, just a lively place. We are not major drinkers/dancers/partiers but a little craziness on New Years would be fine: ) As a side note, if you have spend a Christmas in Europe away from your hometown, did you have a special experience? Did a family invite you in to celebrate with them or perhaps your family run B & B had a get-together? Or is Christmas considered strictly a family affair and tourists can bet left out in the cold a bit. I would love to hear about your experiences!
Posted by
Tilburg, Netherlands
2829 posts
In some countries, Christmas is less relevant as a social gathering than January 6th. But, no, people don't start inviting strangers to their family functions inside their homes. Like you won't see American families inviting strangers for their Thanksgiving dinners.
Posted by
Portland, Maine
2916 posts
Yes, as Andre says, strangers won't invite you into their home for Christmas. But you don't have to worry about things being shut down as long as you pick the right cities. Which basically means a good-sized city. In many cases, if anything the cities get more lively around Christmas with their outdoor Christmas markets. From personal experience I can name Salzburg, Strasbourg and Munich.
Posted by
OP
Dallas
73 posts
Thanks so much for the help so far. I was surprised at Andre's comment about Americans not inviting people to their house for Thanksgiving. We always have guests at our house for Tgiving--usually foreign students who can't go home for the holidays. Its neat to share traditions with travelers!
Posted by
Great Lakes Region, Michigan, USA
81 posts
We spent Christmas in Nuremberg in 2010. We were visiting our son who was on study abroad in nearby Erlangen. There was never a time when everything was shut down. We spent Christmas Eve with lots of others at an Indian restaurant. My daughter, who was 7 at the time, had lunch on Christmas day at McDonald's and thought that was great. The Christkindlmarket was so much fun. It happened to be extremely snowy that year and that made some things a little more difficult getting around. We were staying in a Rick Steves' recommended hotel, and though everyone was very hospitable, I just don't see being invited to a stranger's home as something that is the norm. On Dec 26 we went to Prague. Their Christmas market is open until January 6 where Nurmeberg's ends Dec 24. We left before New Year's Eve, but I would imagine it would be a fabulous place to be since it was every single day and night we were there. We had a fabulous time. It was the first time we've been in Europe when it wasn't summer and it was a great experience that I would highly recommend.
Posted by
maplewood, new jersey, usa
818 posts
This will be our first Christmas in Europe. We will arrive 6:00 am on the 22nd (have first class flat bed seats so hoping we will be well rested),day in Munich and next morning we depart 7:20 am trainto Verona, then two nights in Venice (Christmas Eve and Christmas), two days in Bologna and then our last night in Milan. So excited. I know we mi e around a lot but it's what we like! The first train ride will be loonngg but hopefully scenic.