Christmas Markets?
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I wondered if anyone had tried any Christmas markets, uk and the continent? If so which ones were your favourite and why?
I’d love to go.
Many thanks
I've been to the Edinburgh one and the one in Prague. They are nice to walk around but ridiculously expensive.
I've never been to one, and I'm not really interested in going. From what I've heard, most things are overpriced.
LyndaSarrington Yeah I heard this too so never went to any either! I mean it would be nice to go there for the Christmas atmosphere get into the festive season but the prices are ridiculous
I've been to a few, Oxford, Bath and possibly a few other places I can't remember. I don't think I've ever bought anything. I did try some mulled wine once at one, it was vile but then I don't like normal wine anyway. Even though I don't ever buy anything there I love the atmosphere of them, the smell, the lights and often the sounds but just wouldn't pay the ridiculous prices. However they definitely evoke a Christmas mood. I'm trying to think of a outrageous price and the only thing I can remember was a oversized Bratwurst hot dog which I think was £7.99 and looked like a very highly processed carcinogenic product although did smell very nice. I remember passing the stall a few times and there was never anyone there and that seemed common for most stalls with hardly any sales. I can imagine nowadays with people's incomes being much tighter it being even harder to sell at those sort of inflated prices.
BonzoBanana I think it’s just that. It’s going for the Christmas spirit more than purchasing lots of things.
I haven’t been to any, but I’ve heard the one in Germany is good. And Edinburgh too of course
PayItForward I can imagine the German one being better perhaps a little more reasonable for pricing (although I'm only guessing) but would have thought the Edinburgh one would have the same rip off prices as elsewhere in the UK.
BonzoBanana I live near Edinburgh. It is so crowded you just can’t move. I thought maybe others might be better. The one in Glasgow doesn’t have much or it didn’t last year.
I went to one at Winchester.It was lovely..I am sure most of them are but they are usually oh so expensive.
leeanngor Definitely worth it for that.Especially if it's a quaint town like Bruges.
My god daughter, her mum who's my good friend & her friend went on the Folkestone Christmas Markets trip the other year but couldn't go to Bruges because of Covid so we had to go to Chatham instead .
We went to Germany in 1998. We went to Koblenz, Cologne and Rudesheim markets. Rudesheim was awesome. I hope it hasn’t changed. Cologne far too busy, hundreds of people in their Main Street we were pushed along - never again at market time.
The UKs don’t have a patch on the “originals” I’ve been to a few, the best I thought was Worcester this is also better because it’s in a number of streets. Bath I felt was the most disappointing no atmosphere and very repetitive never going back there.
I really want to go to Vienna for the whole Christmas experience but my health is stopping me at the moment. I will get there in the end
We used to love going to York each year for the market but swerved it last year & will this year too. It gets diabolically busy & over crowded nowadays. I do enjoy a Christmas market tho, usually get conned at the cheese stalls.
The Winchester Cathedral Christmas market is beautiful with the town centre so close you can pop into M&S cafe for hot chocolate rather than pay the rip off prices in the market.
We go to the York Christmas market every year (except last year) kids love to go there, I'm guessing this year will be expensive compared to previous years
As a rule, most of the ones in the UK are not all that, but I've yet to go to a poor one abroad.
This year I'll be visiting the Reykjavik one.
I've previously visited them in Bruges, Luxembourg, Strasbourg, The Black Forrest region of Germany, Copenhagen, Lund, Malmo, Vienna, Bratislava, Budapest, Vilnius & Trier.
blacklabrador did you enjoy the ones on the continent? I’ve been to a few in the uk and wondered if European ones were better.
leeanngor Yup the ones abroad are far and away superior.
And ones in lesser known Countries like Lithuania & Luxembourg are cheap as chips too.
I hate them and never been to one but my son loves them. We’re West Midlands so he goes to the Birmingham one but he wants to actually go to Germany for theirs
I’ve visited the ones in France and they’re pretty, but as per usual, highly geared for tourism, and I hate paying tourist prices
Always go to the one in Birmingham as it’s local to me, it is a rip off though. Manchester’s Christmas market was ok last time i went but not too different from birmingham’s.
Don't really go out of my way to vist Christmas markets but was in Cardiff a few years ago and there was one on there, nice to wander around but expensive.
I’ve not ventured very far for Christmas markets usually the same extremely expensive stuff / tat . Usually just pop to the one in our town centre for a drink.
Edinburgh is over crowed and overpriced but lovely to look at walk around.
Glasgow is small but ok but expensive too,the 1 in George’s Square is better than the St Enoch 1.
Gloucester is lovely,Victorian themed but is expensive
Sweden,Stockholm by far the best but it did have snow and atmosphere in square was lovely as surrounded by older type buildings which adds to the holiday theme and prices were holiday prices again expensive.
smallbike1961 Stockholm sounds perfect. I found the same thing with Edinburgh. I went to Glasgow last year and was very disappointed.
Many thanks
I would adore to go to Bruges. It's somewhere I have always wanted to go (the medieval connection) and to go to the Christmas market at the same time would be wonderful.
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