16 christmas markets
“Christmas markets are a great way to discover local food and drink. Good for food lovers are the markets in Québec, Canada, and, closer to home, Funchal’s small-scale market in Madeira has a firm food focus”
ANNA MARIA ESPSÄTER, FREELANCE WRITER Frankfurt and Gothenburg.
Jet2.com and
Jet2holidays offer Munich as a new destination. New markets: A recent addition to Stockholm’s markets is Hornstull Market (hornstullmarknad. se), on weekends only. Oslo’s main Christmas market will start on November 22, at Spikersuppa near main street Karl Johan (
julemarked.no). Also in Norway, ski resort Geilo has a new weekend market, running from November 22 to December 22, featuring local producers and artisans. In Finland the Porvoo Art Factory does a
weekend market (December 12-14), while Lohja, west of Helsinki, organises an Old Time Christmas Fair with craft demonstrations. In Germany, Frankfurt will have a pink-
coloured market, complete with pink trees. The city also runs guided market tours for the blind or visually-impaired. Further north, the city of Kiel puts on an ice festival (
kiel-sailing-city.de). The Portuguese capital, Lisbon, has its own Christmas village (December 8-January 3) (
obidosvilanatal.pt), while Funchal on Madeira has cute stalls selling traditional crafts. (
visitportugal.com).
Tourism talk “We don’t have any precise visitor numbers for our Christmas markets. However, Vienna has had a 25% rise in December arrivals
since 2008, which shows that Christmas markets are
defi nitely an additional reason to visit the city.” “Furthermore, we can see an increase in interest from tour operators as they include more and more Christmas market packages. Our holiday fi nder on
Austria.info helps to fi nd and plan trips to Austrian Christmas markets. Whatever Christmas market you visit, don’t miss a glass of glühwein or punch, some roasted chestnuts and other traditional dishes” Herwig Kolzer, Regional Manager Austrian Tourist Board, UK
Where to book it INGHAMS – 01483 345 738
A three-night Munich city break starts from £489pp. The deal includes return fl ights from UK airports, transfers, four-star accommodation, half-board, a Christmas market pass, a free guided tour, a
brewery visit and more.
inghams.co.uk/christmasmarkets RAMBLERS WORLDWIDE HOLIDAYS – 01707 331133 An eight-night Dresden & Berlin Christmas market tour starts from £1150pp, with the deal including return fl ights from Heathrow, all transfers, four-star accommodation, a guide and meals that
Top: festive fun and games at the annual Christmas Market in Aalborg, Denmark; Above: Prague’s long-standing and hugely popular Old Town Christmas market
include two festive dinners.
ramblersholidays.co.uk THE RIVER CRUISE LINE – 0844 544 7580 A four-day Strasbourg Christmas Market cruise on the four-star ms Serenity, departing from Mainz and visiting Mannheim before reaching Strasbourg, starts from £399pp and includes the return ferry crossing between Dover and Calais, transport to the cruise, full-board, evening entertainment and coach transfers.
sellingrivercruises.com •
sellingtravel.co.uk
TALLINN PRETTY IN WHITE BY ANNA MARIA ESPSÄTER Tallinn’s Old Town was dressed for the occasion in beautiful fluffy winter-white, the snow covering its ancient rooftops and church spires, as I leisurely wove my way through the stalls at dusk. Raekoja Plats, the medieval main square, is each year taken over by a wide variety of picturesque wooden stalls and the scenic setting alone makes this market one of the best in Europe. It’s small enough to be easily visited in a morning or afternoon, with all the other splendours of Tallinn within easy reach. The stalls offer the finest of Estonian
and Russian handicrafts and I found myself seduced into buying a gorgeous winter hat, complete with tassels. There’s traditional food and drink in abundance and you can’t beat a Christmas market with actual snow. The market is open from November 21 until January 8, so there’s plenty of time to visit. Several smaller markets also operate at Tallinn’s open-air museums. Be sure to check dates with the Estonian Tourist Board.
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