Best Christmas Markets?
Best Christmas Markets?
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Discussion

Al Gorithum

Original Poster:

5,006 posts

232 months

Monday 12th September 2022
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Sorry for bringing up the dreaded C word so early in the year laugh

Arranging a family do in December so thought a venue near a Christmas market in the UK or near-Europe would be nice.

Any recommendation to visit or avoid please?

sherman

14,966 posts

239 months

Monday 12th September 2022
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Edinburgh is good.

Baldchap

9,539 posts

116 months

Monday 12th September 2022
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Nottingham is always rammed.

shih tzu faced

2,597 posts

73 months

Monday 12th September 2022
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My wife makes an annual pilgrimage to York and always seems to enjoy it. Haven’t been myself but have been to York loads of times and can imagine it being a great location for a Christmas market.

Use the excellent park & ride service. Driving and parking in York is not good fun, especially at night, in winter and when you don’t really know where you’re going.

Freakuk

4,467 posts

175 months

Monday 12th September 2022
quotequote all
I've done Berlin and Vienna pre-covid, both good.

Berlin was great as a mini break and timed with Xmas, obviously lots of history re: - WW2

From a market perspective Vienna was better though, plenty of choice (but spread out), some small, some huge, some at royal palaces and some in some obscure trendy cobbled street shops.


ReallyReallyGood

1,641 posts

154 months

Monday 12th September 2022
quotequote all
shih tzu faced said:
My wife makes an annual pilgrimage to York and always seems to enjoy it. Haven’t been myself but have been to York loads of times and can imagine it being a great location for a Christmas market.

Use the excellent park & ride service. Driving and parking in York is not good fun, especially at night, in winter and when you don’t really know where you’re going.
I went York Christmas Market pre covid and hated it, victim of its own success, just couldn’t move, was like a mosh pit!

shih tzu faced

2,597 posts

73 months

Monday 12th September 2022
quotequote all
ReallyReallyGood said:
I went York Christmas Market pre covid and hated it, victim of its own success, just couldn’t move, was like a mosh pit!
Fair enough, strike York from the list OP.

Won’t tell the wife though, I look forward to her going and spending a bit of quality me time drink

prand

6,231 posts

220 months

Monday 12th September 2022
quotequote all
shih tzu faced said:
ReallyReallyGood said:
I went York Christmas Market pre covid and hated it, victim of its own success, just couldn’t move, was like a mosh pit!
Fair enough, strike York from the list OP.

Won’t tell the wife though, I look forward to her going and spending a bit of quality me time drink
Sensible. Id say the same for Bath too. Atmospheric setting, but extremely draining traipsing around the stalls and through the thronging masses. Then you come home thinking "why am I exhausted and why did I just spend £250 on a door wreath and a bottle of spiced chocolate liqueur"!

HTP99

24,805 posts

164 months

Monday 12th September 2022
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We are going to Budapest in early December for the Christmas markets, haven't a clue if they are any good, the wife does all the research, food and beer are cheap though!!

GruntyDC5

388 posts

190 months

Monday 12th September 2022
quotequote all
sherman said:
Edinburgh is good.
Edinburgh was rammed and not much good last year I thought. Bonus being you are still in Edinburgh so plenty of other things to do

Silvanus

6,905 posts

47 months

Monday 12th September 2022
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The one in Winchester is a nice place to have a mooch about.

anonymous-user

78 months

Monday 12th September 2022
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I went to York one year and it was amazing, went back the following year and it was crap.
Lincoln is or was good but by christ does it get rammed and again, P&R is your friend there
Frankfurt is supposed to be good but i can't tell you because the one year i was meant to go there it snowed, so that was that out of the equation.
I believe Salzburg is meant to be good too.

okgo

41,645 posts

222 months

Monday 12th September 2022
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Nothing in the UK is the answer.

austinsmirk

5,597 posts

147 months

Monday 12th September 2022
quotequote all
They’re all rubbish selling nothing you need. But with crowds. The booze is overpriced and when you see some lovely hand crafted wood thing Thing you’d actually like for your Christmas display: the actual price of it is eye watering.

But yes I’ll still probably go to Leeds and York again I’m sure. Bah humbug.

Condi

19,872 posts

195 months

Monday 12th September 2022
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Winter wonderland in Hyde Park is good. More like a funfair with a good beer tent than an Xmas market, but better than the identikit ones elsewhere IMO.

QJumper

3,238 posts

50 months

Monday 12th September 2022
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Traipsed round a load of Christmas markets in France, Germany and Switzerland last year. Probably the best were the markets in Colmar, and the medieval Christmas market in Ribeauville, which wasn't too far away.

smithyithy

7,797 posts

142 months

Monday 12th September 2022
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I went to Cologne a few years ago, there's about half a dozen markets around the city, all quite nice and not rammed, one has an ice skating rink around it, decent for a short break.

Sister did Prague recently too and loved it but I can imagine that gets busy too

Genuine Barn Find

5,868 posts

239 months

Monday 12th September 2022
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Düsseldorf and Cologne - The former is massive, feels like it goes on forever… the large skating rink is great.

Cologne was much more ‘old’ and atmospheric in terms
of feel and was centred around the Catherdral and surrounds. Both worth a visit. Our closest is Birmingham…. which barely comes close to the experience we had in Germany

Zippee

13,991 posts

258 months

Monday 12th September 2022
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I'd like to do one of the big German markets but not had the chance as yet.

In the UK I've done Bath & York. Both used to be OK but now are just so rammed it's nigh on impossible to move. That and the fact every other stall seems to be selling exactly the same thing bar the odd one that has something unique/bespoke albeit at a very inflated price.

TBH the one I enjoyed most was Chatsworth, not huge but certainly enough and you can also take a wander round the house (their Xmas theme set ups are normally pretty good) and gardens afterwards,

Presuming Ed

1,667 posts

232 months

Monday 12th September 2022
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I don't they exist in the UK. They tend to be a selection of 20 sheds in a semi-circle with some cotton wool as fake snow and selling any old tat you can get from Amazon.

The missus and I went to Vienna in 2018 and it was epic. So I suggest leaving these shores.