Another food not to be missed is Lángos. It’s sold in Germany but tastes much better the further east you go. Get the garlic flavor.

If you go to Munich, try and visit the Tollwood Winterfestival. It’s just outside the city center an$ easily reachable by tram. There are circus performances, live music, craft markets and the usual food stalls. My son enjoyed this much more than the traditional Christmas markets.

I’ve been looking at pictures of the markets and picked some of my favorites. I haven’t booked any accommodations yet. I’m waiting to get a clearer picture of the weather. If we have to go south to get snow rather than rain we will do that. It’s nice to know most small towns have some sort of market. We have a lot of options. I agree the mugs are awesome.

Munich:



Rothenburg ob der Tauber:



Lindau on Lake Constance:



Trier:



Wurzburg:



Wiesbaden:



Colmar:



Coburg:



Tübingen:



Frankfurt:

Word has gotten out a long time ago about Rothenburg. It now gets crushed with an intolerable amount of tourists during the Xmas season.

That's sad news. I was seriously blown away by the city visiting as a jaded expat teen, and I have always thought I wanted to take my kids when they get a little older. But may have to look into this a little more!

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:For something different, try Monschau. It's my favourite place in the world. The market is quite small, as the beautiful village is small, but it has a wonderful local feeling.
Quite different from the larger markets.

Every Christmas, I love getting out my souvenir market mugs to decorate with.

The mugs are probably the best things to buy at the markets to take home. A few euros and far cheaper than most of the tchochkes on sale. And yet much more useful and decorative too! Each market has its own design for the mugs, even if it's a smaller market, so we like to collect them as souvenirs.

Exactly! I lived in Germany and the Netherlands for a while before returning to Ireland and the mugs are my favouritel souvenirs I have from my time there. The designs are always unique and they're so small, they are versatile for decorating.

OP, make sure to pick up as many mugs as you can!

Anonymous wrote:For something different, try Monschau. It's my favourite place in the world. The market is quite small, as the beautiful village is small, but it has a wonderful local feeling.
Quite different from the larger markets.

Every Christmas, I love getting out my souvenir market mugs to decorate with.

The mugs are probably the best things to buy at the markets to take home. A few euros and far cheaper than most of the tchochkes on sale. And yet much more useful and decorative too! Each market has its own design for the mugs, even if it's a smaller market, so we like to collect them as souvenirs.