Best Christmas Markets and other things to do in Germany in December
 

So I am planning on flying into FRA, arriving midday on December 4th, and staying in Germany for 5 days.

My itinerary during that time is completely open.

It seems like my best bet for traveling around the country is buying the Bahn German rail pass.

I know I want to visit a couple Christmas markets (at least one in a major city, and one in a smaller city or town). I don't know which ones are the most worthwhile to check out. Any opinions?

Otherwise, what (in your opinion) are the things I must see or do while I am there?

I'm traveling on a budget, so nothing too extravagant. And I don't love doing touristy type stuff. My main interest when traveling is food.

Take a look at traveling the Romantic Rhine river via boat. Winter service is very limited so check up on the time. It might not be working during the time you are there but it is something you should do if available.

The Christkindelsmarkt in Nuremberg is quite famous, the also have the biggest Feuerzangenbowle in the world (at least they claim it).

The english translation of Feuerzangenbowle according to dict.leo.org would be: "mulled wine with a rum-soaked sugarloaf lit above it" :)

If you like a medieval touch, then you could visit the christmas market in Esslingen (near Stuttgart).

The Christmas Market in Stuttgart is the biggest in Germany and quite frankly the best (in my opinion).

They already opened a portion of it last week and will be going strong here shortly.

DB can get you here in less than 2 hours from FRA.....

Yes, Stuttgart is big. Visited in 2013, it´s a nice one.

If you search this forum, then you will see lots of threads regarding Christmas Markets, e.g.:

Please recommend a Christmas market

Xmas markets & NYE near FRA/DUS

Nuremberg Christkindlmarkt Worthwhile?

Which of the three Frankfurt Christmas markets to choose?

St Nicolas Day is December 6 in Germany.

Thanks for the tip. I found a company that is offering tours while I'm there, so it looks like this is definitely going on my agenda.

Yeah, I've heard the Nuremberg one is pretty nice. And I've never heard of a Feuerzangenbowle before, but from the translation it sounds awesome.

I visited the Christkindlmarkt today (unfortunately it was quite rainy, so it was only a short visit) but the Feuerzangenbowle tasted quite good.

Sorry for that! At the moment it´s really bad weather:(

I have an upcoming trip to Munich and Vienna, where we plan to visit several of the markets.

In Munich, we're staying near the Haidhausen market. Any thoughts on that one? We'll stop by since its near the hotel, but is it worth setting aside some time to visit?

Honestly you can't go wrong with any Christmas market- they all have great food and plenty of Glühwein! :)

As far as the best one are your area, I'll join some others and mention the Stuttgarter Weihnachtsmarkt as my favorite. In many of the big markets (Dortmund, Freiburg, etc etc) the market is scattered throughout the city, but in Stuttgart it's all concentrated in one area right under the Rathaus...it's great.

From FRA you can get there in an hour and fifteen minutes with an ICE train from DB. If you buy in advance (especially on this site) you can make the journey for less than 20 euros.

Enjoy!