Welcome to Germany at Christmas

I’ve been trying for the longest time to remember just when I became aware of the phenomenon of Christmas in Germany. I do recall about 20 years ago having a particularly beguiling advent calendar that depicted an idyllic, old-fashioned village all decked out for Christmas with festive shop windows and holiday shoppers. (Were they perhaps bunnies?)

Rothenburg Tourismus

In those days I still lived in New York City and a friend was visiting from San Francisco. I asked her where she wanted to go that day and she pointed at the calendar and said, “There.” I realized in that moment that I wanted to go “there” too, but I didn’t actually believe this kind of fantasy Christmas wonderland really existed. Very fortunately indeed, I was wrong.

Fast-forward 10 years or so during which time I became a travel writer. Somehow—though as I said above, I don’t remember details—I’d learned along the way that Germany at Christmas was something unusually special. There were all these markets and people were really into the spirit of the season. I found out my neighbor’s German parents went back every year without fail just to be there. I saw photos of bustling town squares with lighted stalls selling hand-crafted wooden ornaments and stuffed toys; sausages and gingerbread. I knew there had to be wonderful music. It was the Christmas I’d always dreamed of and apparently it was real.

I’m happy to report that I have now managed to visit Germany during the Advent season five times, most recently in December 2011. Each trip was quite different and I plan to share as many of the details as I can remember, but since I am a travel writer and a traveler, I hope also to inspire other lovers of Christmas to go to Germany and find out for themselves.

Briefly, in this blog, in addition to my personal reminiscences, I intend to provide information about how to get to Germany and then get around once you’re there, some thoughts about where to stay and eat in some of the key cities, plus lots about the Christmas markets (there are hundreds), customs, food and drink, etc.

Bottom line: If you love Christmas, Germany definitely deserves to be front and center on your radar.